On April 9th 2020 the College of Law at the University of Bahrain organized a webinar session on “the legal consequences of the Corona virus” to discuss the role of the Bahraini lawmaker and the judiciary in dealing with the current (COVID-19) crisis. The webinar divided into two sessions, the first session discussed the issue from public law perspective, whereas the second session focused on the Corona virus from private law perspective. The first session, which was moderated by the Dr. Adel Bashir, an associate professor in Public Law, discussed five scientific papers including: digital education as a means of dealing with the Corona virus, administrative control, criminal responsibility for epidemic disease transmission, quarantine, personal freedom, and legal harmonization to counter the global pandemic. While the second session- which was moderated by Dr. Wafa Yaqoob Janahi, the head of the private law department, discussed seven papers: the legal value of the financial acts taken by the infected person with the Corona virus, the international decade under the epidemic, the force majeure and the Coronas virus, patent rights, dispute resolution mechanisms under the Corona crisis, and eventually the impact of the Corona virus (COVID-19) on the consumer.

 More information about the webinar, including the agenda, is available in the attached concept note. 

 Information about this and upcoming webinars of the joint series on the reopening of schools, including recordings, reports and presentations, can be found here: https://en.unesco.org/news/joint-unesco-unicef-world-bank-webinar-series-reopening-schools

College of Law, on its electronic platform Zoom on Monday 14/9/2020. Dr. Salah delivered a legal lecture entitled “Corona Pandemic (Covied-19) and its Effects on Work Contracts in the Private Sector Between Theory and Practice”. During the lecture, Dr. Salah reviewed the legal dimensions of the Corona pandemic, its legal adaptation and the availability of force majeure conditions or emergency conditions in the Corona pandemic. He also explained the judicial applications in some countries regarding adapting to this pandemic. Dr. Salah clarified the social, economic and legal implications of the pandemic and its effects on contracts in general and on work contracts in particular. He added that these effects range from terminating the contract, amending its conditions or even breaking it by the force of law. He described the impact of this on workers’ rights, wages and legal protection for them in respect of Bahraini labour law. The lecture also dealt with legal concepts developed as a result of the existence of the pandemic and what may arise from legislative amendments or judicial directions during the post-pandemic phase.

Dr. Salah’s participation in this lecture comes within the framework of the university’s role in community service, cooperation between institutions and public bodies, and in light of the common interest between the University of Bahrain and the Legislation and Legal Opinion Commission in spreading legal awareness and supporting and strengthening human rights in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

7th October 2020, Wednesday, 11:00am to 12:05pm

Moderator: Dr. Hessa Al-Junaid

The link for the registration is the following:
https://forms.gle/Um3rUvWZ8k1NJCB76

]]> https://sustainability.uob.edu.bh/sdg_events/covid-19-and-environmental-sustainability/ Tue, 29 Sep 2020 23:26:10 +0000 http://sustainability.uob.edu.bh/?post_type=sdg_events&p=6443

A Lecture at the University of Bahrain

Professor Dr. Khaled Mubarak bin Dinah, Professor of Microorganisms and Infectious Diseases at the College of Medicine and Medical Sciences at the Arab Gulf University, urged people to take preventive precautionary measures, namely  through adhering to personal hygiene standards, to avoid being infected with COVID-19.  These measures include: washing hands in the correct way, covering the mouth and nose when sneezing or coughing, and avoiding touching the nose, face and eyes – one of the most common causes of COVID-19 infection. He emphasized the necessity of not mixing with infected people and staying away from crowded places to prevent being infected with the emerging COVID-19 disease. He also pointed out that not wearing protective masks may increase the chances of catching the disease.

Prof. Dr. Bin Dinah delivered an educational scientific lecture at the College of Science at the University of Bahrain, held under the patronage of the Dean of the College – Prof. Dr. Muhammad Mustafa Al-Hilu. The lecture was entitled ‘Coronavirus: Challenges and Prevention Methods’. The lecture was organised by the Chair of the Lectures Committee at the Department of Life Sciences – Lecturer Maysoon Nedham Awad.

Prof. Bin Dinah explained that the emerging COVID-19 virus is a form of Coronavirus due to the presence of a protein cover that resembles a crown encapsulating the genetic material of the virus. This structure is similar to previously known viruses. These viruses infect animals with cold and flu. It is believed to be transmitted to them through contact with secretions and droppings from bats. He Pointed out that Coronavirus is a strain of virus that has the ability to transmit from animal to human, and then from human to human through respiratory secretions. Prof. Bin Dinah mentioned the symptoms of the disease include high temperature, shortness of breath, acute inflammation of the lungs, joint and muscle pain and coughing.

Prof. Bin Dinah expected that the spread of the virus will subside with the high temperatures of summer and the end of the winter season. He highlighted the preventive measures taken by the Ministry of Health in dealing with suspected cases.  As a result of these measures, COVID-19 test results turned out to be negative cases.

“The New Normal Status – Business Continuity after COVID-19“  

 The Administration and Marketing Department of the Business Administration College at UOB held on Wednesday July 15, 2020 at 11:00 am, via Microsoft Teams, a virtual general seminar for students, academics and the public entitled “The New Normal Status – Business Continuity after COVID-19”. 

Ms. Samah Yousif AlHamad – Supervisor of Business Flexibility at BAPCO touched on seven principal themes related to the approach of a working life after the Corona pandemic (COVID-19) as follows: evaluate the institutions readiness to adapt to changes, determine the support required upon return, apply the required protocols to approve a safe return to work, assess the strength of business continuity plans, identify operational points for business continuity plans, evaluate the effectiveness of communication channels, and develop measures for governance of the return system. 

Haifa Muhammad Khalaf, Associate Professor at the College of Business Administration at the University of Bahrain – who moderated the seminar – explained that the objective of this virtual seminar was to enable business institutions to develop an organized approach to the process of employees returning to the work place after the Corona pandemic (Covid 19). She pointed out that a platform to assess the readiness of enterprises for the return of employees was provided, in addition to determining the support required to ensure a smooth return to the work place.  

Dr. Khalaf pointed out that the seminar, which was held in English, shed light on the new work standards recommended for application in enterprises after the Corona pandemic, so as to ensure the continuity of work and operations; as well as the protocols that needed to be applied at all levels to ensure the safe management of the pandemic, and the continuation of an effective working environment, according to best practices developed by international organizations such as: International Standards Organization, MARSH, and the National Safety Council. She noted that the importance of Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS) would be discussed and used to maintain the flexibility of organizational work in the face of any emerging or potential new risks. 

 She added that the return to work approach was designed with respect to the full cycle of a Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) management system,” noting that it would cover each of these elements and a specific sector in this seminar, in order to ensure its effective implementation and preservation throughout the institution. She stressed that the discussion highlighted the importance of awareness and communication being the two basic elements in institutions; and focused on the same to build a basic level of awareness capable of responding and interacting in a timely manner. 

 Dr. Khalaf also reiterated the importance of measuring the success of implementation, as a primary tool to assess the ability of institutions in achieving their respective objectives, in addition to the importance of the governance process that is associated with the new system of returning to work to ensure its effectiveness. 

 Speaker AlHamad leads the institutional risk management and business continuity management system. She has assumed a number of other positions and has an accumulated experience of 15 years in BAPCO. She has worked as a Senior Occupational Hygienist, and Leader of Operational Excellence. She is also a member of the Corona Pandemic Crisis Management Team at BAPCO, and holds an MBCI certification by the British Business Continuity Institute, and an International Enterprise Risk Management Certificate by the British Risk Management Institute. 

The seminar was broadcast via the direct link http://tiny.cc/37gwrz . 

Experts discussed ways to overcome the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic through digital transformation at a seminar organized by University of Bahrain in cooperation with Prince Songla University, the Kingdom of Thailand.

The seminar’s aim was to exchange visions, ideas, experiences and challenges facing all sectors, in light of the pandemic, at both global and local levels. It also aimed to highlight the importance of a transformation to maintain the continuity of work, and the provision of services at the required level of quality.

The speakers believe that the current COVID-19 pandemic constitutes an opportunity to test the systems, procedures, policies, regulations and instructions related to the digital community. It produced a state of confidence in the ability of institutions in the private sector to facilitate their work remotely.

The speakers also believe that the pandemic is a global challenge facing the application of the digital economy, or the information economy. This pandemic requires people to be educated about the challenge by providing a constantly developed infrastructure, and advanced protection systems. They indicated that accepting and overcoming this challenge is the only way to proceed into the future.

The speakers presented papers entitled ‘The Importance of Controlling the Current Situation in Light of the Pandemic and its Impact on Local Societies and Economies of Countries’, ‘How to Protect Companies and Institutions from Hacking and Cyber-Attacks in Light of the Pandemic’, and ‘The Organization and Continuation of Work Through Digital Means’. In addition, speakers displayed a digital device that measures people’s temperature to help detect any person infected with COVID-19.