Comments for Untold Damascene Stories

Comment on Bush & the “Good Ol’ Iraqi Shoe!” by 50% Syrian

50% Syrian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:45:32 +0000

The movie is mentioned in the article. it’s called “Wag the Dog.” It’s one of the best movies produced by Hollywood, very insightful about how the media spin the news

Comment on Buy Shares in the Syrian Dream by 50% Syrian

50% Syrian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:43:52 +0000

Thanks Elissar and sorry for the late response. On behlaf of Haykal Media, I’d like to thank you for your comment… wish you all the best

Comment on Syrian students banned from using supercomputer at KAUST University in Saudi Arabia by 50% Syrian

50% Syrian — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:41:04 +0000

The magazine has sent copies of the press release to several UK and US publications, including The Guardian. But as you must know, news in Syria’s favor, defending Syrians, isn’t hot enough for the international media. However, the news was circulated in Arab media and blogs (see Arabian Business among others)… http://www.arabianbusiness.com/arabic/569693

Comment on Profile of a young photographer from Syria: Mais Shourbaji by hazem alani

hazem alani — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:29:29 +0000

wiiiiiiiiiioooooo tarek

Comment on Bush & the “Good Ol’ Iraqi Shoe!” by Eprocurement software

Eprocurement software — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:56:09 +0000

What was the title of the movie? I’d like to watch it too. Thanks for this post.

Comment on Syrian students banned from using supercomputer at KAUST University in Saudi Arabia by susie

susie — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 09:57:53 +0000

This is an extraordinary story! Can’t you get it wider circulation – eg to the Guardian newspaper in London?

Comment on When Damascus is too hot and the day refuses to end by Bill Bartmann

Bill Bartmann — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 19:18:40 +0000

Cool site, love the info.

Comment on Buy Shares in the Syrian Dream by Elissar Hajj Zarwi

Elissar Hajj Zarwi — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 06:47:13 +0000

Very well written article. Lovely to read about the “Syrian Dream” and hope your country keeps flourishing everyday with the endless efforts of entrepreneurs and social figures like you…

Comment on Syria Banker ‘09: The new face of Syria’s economy by Forward Magazine

Forward Magazine — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:13:56 +0000

5- The diversity of interviewee backgrounds (economists, observers, analysts, bankers, government policy-makers) and articles, in addition to the comprehensive figures and numbers provided in the guide is what makes this guide “complete.” You have Islamic bankers and observers critiquing Islamic banking, you have private bankers critiquing some aspects of the economic fabric, some talking about anti-competitive behavior, others pointing out what made Syria dodge the international credit crunch. The opinions expressed need an analytical mind, ready to decipher a diverse array of opinions to draw a general overview of what is going on in Syria.
6- Our team dedicated a lot of time and efforts to gather, check and double check the information in this guide. The number of times we proofread the guide, double checking it over and over again for any idiosyncrasies is more than our readers can expect. The team of journalists who worked on the included interviews carried out huge research before coming up with their questions, so that we could tap every possible angle to cover everything related to the banking scene: from policy-level to grass-root microfinance challenges.
7- Collecting information in Syria is not an easy task, since there are no data-banks or one-stop-shops for us as media people to get our information from. This alone allowed us to dedicate a team of 5 researchers to make sure all the information this guide provides is accurate and up-to-date.
8- The fact you felt “Syria Banker ‘09” was “magaziney” comes from the fact we intended it to be so… The heavy information in the guide was organized and presented in a way to lend it some lightness so our readers won’t feel they were being spoon-fed the information. We added a photo-essay (p32-42) to soften the guide, and we have adhered to several recognized journalistic standards to accomplish an easy-to-read, user-friendly guide that has all the right elements. We were also very careful not to compromise the intellectual value of the product – by providing an array of analytical features and opinion pieces, as well as very informative interviews from within and around the sector. We could have opted to present the same material in a way that would have left our readers with the feeling they were carrying around a heavy, hard-to-digest book, but that’s not what people in the business of publication are keen on doing

Comment on Syria Banker ‘09: The new face of Syria’s economy by Forward Magazine

Forward Magazine — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:13:31 +0000

Dear Majd:

Thank you for your comments and for finding the time to express your opinions. Indeed, this blog was created to establish more communication with our readers, and to keep open and transparent channels with you, as part of our vision at Haykal Media.

Re the points you raised, please consider the following:
1- “Syria Banker ‘09″ does run an in-depth banking study (p46-p57), with detailed information on the performance of all operational banks (their capitals, establishment dates, assets, portfolios of direct credit facilities, deposits, revenues, their contribution to treasury, growth rates, and an analytical overview on the economic efficiency of the banking sector). This covers the 1st point you raised.
2- In addition to this, a critical report on what the banking sector in general needs to boost its performance is detailed on p78, where the SBC points out the Syrian laws and policies that need to be changed so as to allow better growth for the financial sector.
3- In article titled, “Defining the dynamics of financial reforms,” we have been granted an exclusive interview with Mr. Adib Mayaleh, Governor of the Central Bank. We are the first Syrian publication to publish the figures, opinions and information expressed in the article p14-p18. The information provided is in-depth and useful for anyone from the local and/or foreign business sectors. It shows what is being done to create a secure financial platform.
4- On policy level, the interview with Mr. Abdullah Dardari, Deputy Prime Minister, the article provides critical insights on Syria’s strides forward. Any economic and political analyst will find this interview in particular of great weight due to the policy pointers that show where reforms will be taking us, and what the future will look like.
……