tv World Business PBS December 19, 2010 11:30am-12:00pm PST
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>>this week on world business... >>home to the world's longest river but still water stressed; how egypt is managing this precious resource. >>the potential savings on the programme of water measurement which we started averages between 20 to 30 per cent. >>singapore is a strong draw for skilled workers from malaysia, so what can the country do to stop the brain drain. >>it is not just about bringing people back, it is about retaining malaysians as well in the system. >>and driving into india as the country embraces golf. >>if you look at delhi golf club or some of the other popular golf clubs, there is a waiting list ofabout 35
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years. >>hello and welcome. i'm raya abirached and this is world business, your weekly insight into the global business trends shaping our lives. it's been said that egypt is the gift of the nile. certainly life without it would be unimaginable, but the nile's waters are a limited and capped resource and the population is growing rapidly. so how will the country be able to cope? >>reporter: egypt, with a per capita water supply each year of seven hundred and fifty cubic metres already exists in state technically described as water poverty. and with global warming and a possible rise
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in sea levels the situation looks set to get worse. dr el quosy is on the country's leading experts on water management. >>ahmed el quosy: the supply is fixed and the demand is rocketing. the egyptian population only two hundred years backwas two point five million and now we are one hundred million and obviously this brings down steeply the per capita share. >>reporter: that population is increasing at more than eight per cent a year. to feed them it's been estimated the country will need to cultivate an extra two and a half million more acres of farmland by the end of the next decade alone. all of which will need to be irrigated. >>reporter: the government has started, with so far limited success, trying to get famers to manage their water supplies better -
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using closed rather than open drainage pipes and drip instead of flood irrigation.another solution is to encourage farmers to grow less water intensive crops. >>ahmed el quosy: you produce one kilogramme of wheat per m3 of water but you might produce 5kg of citrus and you might produce ten kg of vegetables for the same cubic metre of water. >>reporter: another problem is that many of the country's farms are inefficient small holdings - sometimes as little as half or quarter of an acre. the government has set up a scheme, covering an initial five hundred thousand acres, to persuade farmers to collaborate and better manage their water supplies. >>abu-zeid: part of it is working with the farmers and initiating farmers' associations on the field level and those associations are elected among the users and they take responsibility of maintenance, of management
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using less water. >>reporter: saving on agriculture is just the start though; the country also needs to better handle water wastage from its growing urban population. >>abu-zeid: the amount of water used is about 5 or 6% but the losses are up to 50% >>reporter: all told, according to dr. abu-zeid, the country's former minister of irrigation, the government plan could drastically improve efficiency. >>abu-zeid: the potential savings on the programme of water measurement which we started averages between 20 to 30 per cent. >>reporter: analysts argue that the introduction of water saving devices could make a significant difference. one study, in alexandria, has shown how much can be saved. >>abu-zeid: we are looking at least 20% in the current demand this could be achievable in the current assessments
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we are working on. >>reporter: yet despite all its conservation efforts the country will still need to find re water. one route is desalination - which has already begun to play a role. >>abu-zeid: if you look at the tourism sector in egypt in south sinai, the red sea resorts all of these are actually using desalination for their main water supply >>reporter: ten more desalination plants are up for tender and the hope is that, desalinated water will eventually provide for ten per cent of the country's needs. yet another problem egypt needs to address though is the demands from the other up stream countries in the nile basin for a greater share of the river's water - all of whom reject treaties putin place by the british - which gave egypt and sudan full rights over all the nile's water. >>blair: egypt had used rather bellicose language when the upstream countries started the discussion about having a new treaty - bellicose language won't get it any
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where any more because these countries are both stronger, they're more efficient and with the world's media looking at the region there isn't any alternative except a negotiated treaty. >>reporter: however many of country's water experts are optimistic that a new deal can be reached and - that much more of the nile's water can be utilised. >>abu-zeid: we have been negotiating a new treaty for the past 10 years - what is encouraging is that the water that falls on the nile basin is annually 1,600 billions cubic metre a year and the amount of water used right now is just five per cent of that. >>abu-zeid: there is a lot of water that is being lost in swamps in many areas - and this water could be developed for the benefit of all the countries sharing the nile river basin. >>reporter: there's no doubt that egypt
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must manage its water resources better in the coming years but there's also no doubt that it's taking steps to bring this about. reality is that it has no choice - the country's survival depends on it. >>the loss of talent known as the brain drain is a serious challenge to many developing countries. for malaysia the worry is more acute because it sits righ next door to singapore, one of the most attractive places for skilled expats. but the government is acting now to try and stem both the outflow of local talent and attract more foreign skilled workers. >>reporter: they are calling it the talent corporation. and though its task is far from simple, its mandate is clear: to find ways to boost the pool of skilled workers to help malaysia become a fully-developed country by 2020. >>razak: there is broad agreement that malaysia must look at all sources of talent including malaysians, our malaysian
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diaspora and foreigners, both in malaysia and abroad. in undertaking an economic transformation, malaysia must build both world class companies and world class talent." >>reporter: as malaysia has begun placing greater emphasis on developing its services sector, the talent shortfall has been laid bare. and it's a clear impediment to private investment -- both foreign and domestic. >>bardan: of course it is very much a concern of the malaysian employers' federation because there are many complaints by our members that they don't get the right talent to man their human resource requirements. >>reporter: an estimated 700-thousand malaysians, almost all of them skilled, are currently working abroad. thebulk is just next door in singapore. and it's not only the proximity, the cultural similarities orthe higher wages that are responsible for the exodus.
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>>robert walters is an international human resources company. >>raj: our neighbour has actually gotten the cream of our crop. you get government sectors that go in at the pre-university level so they actually offer scholarships to high-potential students depending on their results and these talents are bonded with the organization, and hence when you graduate you come back and you work for that particular government for say 10 years and that's how they keep the talent." >>reporter: singapore companies and government agencies also recruit malaysian and other foreign talent directlyfrom top western universities. >>some malaysian agencies are now taking a similarly pro-active approach to luring malaysian talent home. >>wilson wong was doing his law degree in the uk when the malaysian securities commission approachedhim. >>wong: "i was still in my student
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house writing my paper when i got an e-mail. i was surprised. they asked me to come to london for an interview. i went and i got the offer then and there. >>reporter: and it's not just a case of losing or not grooming enough local talent to drive the economy forward. >>bardan: the figures as far as the foreign experts are in 2000 it is something like 80-thousand of them working in malaysia but the current figure is slightly less than 40-thousand. so it seems that thus far malaysia is not able to attract the talented workforce." >>reporter: one obvious reason is that malaysian wages are lower than more advanced economies. but that doesn'tmean it can't be very attractive to expatriates. >>andy davison is the publisher of the expat magazine. he also gave input to the government as it looked to set up the talent corporation.
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>>davison: the cost of living is one of the big plusses that most expats talk about and the overall lifestyle, the fact that you can live in landed property, the fact that you've got lots of tourist destinationsyou can go to, a good choice of cuisine, the shopping malls. there's just a long list of things that they like." >>maelzer: "historically, malaysia hasn't made it easy for skilled foreigners to come and work here, let alone to stay on if they decide they like it. work permits have been tied to specific jobs and have needed to be renewed frequently. spouses of permit holders haven't been allowed to work. and to get permanent resident status could easily take a decade or more." >>reporter: the government is now tackling those obstacles. it's set to begin issuing 10-year passes for skilledforeigners, which will also allow them to switch jobs and also allow their spouses to work. >>davison: i must say they've been very very receptive to very often negative feedback on the subject and everything that i'm hearing is that there is going to be major changes. and i'm very encouraged by it because it looks like they've
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finally decided now, yes we do need more foreigners to come in here, that it's necessary for the economic growth of the country." >>reporter: the government is also making it easier for malaysians abroad who have given up their citizenship toreturn with their families. >>one key reason people are migrating is because they believe their kids will get a better educationelsewhere. >>improving post-secondary education here would also reduce the number of students first studying, then settling overseas....as well as producing more skilled locals. >>razak: "there are two strands to it. it not just about bringing people back it's also about retaining malaysians as well in the system. you cannot gauge talent corporation's performance based only on the number of malaysians that come back. it's also about retaining malaysians who would otherwise have gone abroad." >>reporter: wong, at least, feels he made a sound decision to return. >>wong: "we are really opening up, liberalization is the word these days and it's really
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given renewed senseof enthusiasm for graduates from overseas to come back home and be part of this exciting time." >>reporter: it will be music to the ears of the talent corporation, who'll be hoping to find many other malaysians singing a similar tune/sharing those sentiments. >>still to come on world business... >>we meet the former president of the european bank for reconstruction and development, jacques attali, at a time when the eurozone seems to be falling apart. >>the rough and ready sports of shinty and hurling clash together to form an interesting hybrid. >>and india is the land of cricket and hockey, but the country could soon be getting into the swing of golf. >>tee time... and the rest in just a moment on world business...
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>>jacques attali, is one of the foremost french economists. he was an advisor to francois mitterrandfor a decade and was the founder and first president of the european bank for reconstruction and development. we caught up with him to get his take on the current situation in europe and finance in the developing world. >>reporter: jacques attali made his name as one of europe's leading economists but these days it's his observations as a futurologist that bring the crowds in. at this speech in front of hundreds of french business leaders, he warned that unless they worked together on new technological innovations rather than each fighting their own corner - they will be left behind completely within a decade.
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>>jacques attali launched one of the world's biggest micro-financing organizations several years before the concept really took off and believes technology played a vital role. >>attali: "micro-financing is using internet quite a lot in order to reduce the cost of intermediaries to finance the poor therefore its useful to reduce the cost of banking. it's useful to link data which is around the world and it's useful to transmit information by all means. it's a tremendous instrument to push the development of micro-financing." >>reporter: however right now micro-financing is facing a backlash with accusations of strong arm tactics from loan collectors, over inflated interest rates and reports of the very poor being coerced into taking loans against their will. the problem has been especially acute in india where more than 50 suicideshave been linked to unscrupulous lenders. >>reporter: big banks are also getting in on the action, sensing a business opportunity that focuses on the vulnerable.
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>>attali: it's a small problem which is linked to a very specific issue in some countries like india which is not well controlled and where people are not using the proper techniques to do it. you are not goingto get rid of credit because of sub-primes." >>reporter: throughout 2010 eurozone central bankers seemed to have been holed up in crisi meetings working outhow to keep the single currency from going into complete meltdown. he may feel rather lonely rightnow but in mr attali's view the opinion makers have read the situation wrong - it's not the euro facing collapse. >>attali: "no no no. the worst problem is dollars not euros. the euro is in a growth period. it's going to be very well. the real problem is with the dollar not the euro. >>bockman: really? in what sense? >>attali: the worst economy in the world is the us not the europeans. it's a country with huge debts, real problems, huge deficits, more than europe. europe has no debt at a federal level, zero debt while the us has 13 trillion dollars debt. "
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>>reporter: however he accepts the increasingly widespread view that the balance of economic power is now movingaway from the west for good, but that does not necessarily mean it will be hurt by that seismic shift. >>bockman: is the west to be relegated to second tier status as asia and brazil >>attali: "that's a fact. the lative growth of the euro zone does not mean that we are going to decline. we are going to grow and that is fine. we are going to create new demand for us and it's good for the future." >>reporter: in fact jacques attali sees threats elsewhere where the consequences could be much more severe. takenuclear energy. at the moment the west is trying to contain who has access. does it have a moral right to? he says we have no choice. >>attali: "there is a treaty and this treaty has to be implemented. that's it. we cannot accept a world with more countries without out democracies and nuclear weapons. a country with nuclear weapons and no democracy is the beginning of a nightmare."
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>>the celtic cross-code sport of shinty/hurling is an unusual hybrid. it has no dedicated leagues orclubs but is played at international level, has a unique rule book, opposing sides use different equipment, and even gives the ladies version of the same game a different name? we took a trip to dublin to find out more. >>reporter: in front of a 60-thousand strong crowd the ancient celtic sports of shinty and hurling combine to produce a thrilling spectacle in dublin's main stadium. >>the shinty sticks of the scottish national team are pitted against the hurleys of the irish in a clash as fierce as any ancient battle. >>cooney: we're all celts and it's important that we would try and get a game together to play against each other. for our players its important because it gives them recognition at the national level, gives them the opportunity to play under the irish jersey.
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14" >>reporter: although both sports come from the same distant root - the rules of this cross-code game are unique. >>daly: what we've had to do is compromise as best we can ... obviously the shinty players have a differentstick, the hurlers have a different stick so we believe the best way of achieving balance is to notallow the players to handle the ball with the exception of the goal keeper so the shinty players can keep the traditional skills of playing the ball on the ground, the hurling players can lift it andstrike but it is not permitted to take the ball in the hand. >>reporter: that significant rule change from the game of hurling can be hard to hold to as irish centre forward, neil mcmanus explains. >>mcmanus: all those boys have been playing hurling since they're maybe three or four years of age so whenever a ball comes to you at chest height the natural instinct is to catch it. so you really have to thinkwhat you're doing and concentrate. >>muriel: but the fact is this shinty-hurling match is a warm up for the day's main attraction - another crosscode international between gaelic and australian rules football. sharing the limelight with ireland's most popular
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sport it is hoped will raise the profile of hurling and its sister sport in scotland- shinty. >>cameron: it's the only international that we have and we view this occasion as the ultimate in a pathway for our top players. for the players they have played for a club, for a region, for a district and now they are playing for their country ... we are still a minority sport and we don't have mass audiences. >>reporter: there are just 46 listed shinty clubs in scotland - compared to 2-thousand 500 hurling clubs in ireland - but both are amateur sports - and that's the way they are likely to stay. >>cooney: there was a push by players some years back that they wanted pay for play but now that's gone totally off the equation. we're working very closely with the gaelic players association in developing
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positive player welfare schemes and pay for play is not an issue. >>reporter: but winning sponsorship can be. >>innes: you cannot make a career out of an amateur sport - there's just no money in it for us. if there werethen obviously we'd be very, very happy >>reporter: scottish hydro-electric recently signed a second three-year contract with shinty's governing body as its main sponsor for an undisclosed sum - but every player on this pitch needs to hold down a day job in order to survive. >>reporter: former shinty international captain gary innes has an instrumental part to play in promoting his beloved sport. an image of him playing shinty was used by scottish celtic rock group runrig on a recentalbum cover - and he features playing the accordion on runrig's shinty tribute song 'clash of the ash' - a reference to the type of wood used to fashion the shinty stick.
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>>but when the whistle blows and the battle's done these shinty boys shine like the sun we don't play for fame, we don't play for cash we just play for the glory and the clash of the ash >>reporter: despite its ancient roots in thecottish highlands shinty is a sport undergoing change. >>innes: that's with great respect to the camanachd association putting money back into the sport and gettingit right back to grass roots levels in the cities. >>in a country where most people are cricket fans, india is seeing a rise in the popularity of golf.although still seen as a sport for the wealthy, young people and children in particular are now taking an interest and looking to play golf as a career. >>reporter: you know the economy is booming, when people take to the greens in increasing numbers. india may boast of only 150,000 people who play golf regularly - a tiny fraction of the population -
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but this is expected to grow rapidly. >>mehta: india as you know is a very promising market right now, especially for golf. there are a few things that are coming together for india. if you look at the economic development in the last few years, which has resulted in higher income levels - more and more people are looking for a game like golf tobe a part of their lifestyle. >>reporter: golf is still an expensive sport here, with the most basic golf set costing 3 months' salary for an average indian. but unlike traditional golf markets like the us, europe and japan where the sport isplayed by an older population, in india it is growing popular among youngsters from middle-class families, keen to take it up as a career. >>reporter: many junior players are regularly competing in tournaments, in india and abroad. parents, too, are keen to encourage their children to become career golfers. classes cost 130 dollars a month, but that's not stopped kids as young as 4 from being enrolled in training programs.
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>>chellani: i come from school and come here to play golf. mama says to play golf. i have to play 9 holes or 18 holes in a day. >>reporter: but building more golf courses is essential to increase the accessibility of the sport. there are only about 200 courses across india, and these are limited to the elite few who can afford expensive private clubs. a 5-year membership here can set you back 18,000 dollars. public courses do exist, where enthusiasts can play for just 6 dollars a day, but these are very few in number. >>mehta: if you look at delhi golf club or some of the other popular golf clubs, there is a waiting list of about 35 years. so that's not a happy situation at all for a brand like ours, but the way things are changing - there are almost 50 new golf courses and driving ranges which are either being planned orbuilt right now - that makes us very bullish about india.
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>>reporter: golf is also getting a boost from real estate developers, who are building luxury residences alongside golf courses. here at the dlf golf & country club outside delhi, the prices of apartments start at 1 million dollars. >>ohri: golf courses in isolation don't make money - worldwide - it's always the real estate around it that justifies for that kind of land to be used... >>reporter: big business is also getting involved in organizing tournaments, with the total prize money on offergoing up by over 250 percent in the last 3 years. the most anticipated one is the 2 million dollar avantha masters, which is a european tour event. >>thapar: more and more sponsors are coming in wanting to take up tournaments, and we are now facing the reverse problem, that we just don't have enough weekend slots available that we can give it to a sponsor.that is causing prize money to rise as sponsorship bids go up. it's a very aspirational sport, so any brand that is
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very aspirational in terms of high net worth individuals is very keen to do that. >>reporter: with the inclusion of golf in the 2016 olympics, the indian government is now expected to join the bandwagon and fund subsidised training programs. both golf enthusiasts and corporates will be bettingon this to boost the sport's popularity even further. >>that's it for this week's world business. thanks for watching. we'll see you again at the same time next week.
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