ABU DHABI // The UAE will back Australia's bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council this autumn, the Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed has confirmed.
The confirmation was made on Tuesday during a visit by the Australian foreign minister, Bob Carr, to the country to sign a nuclear supply deal between the two nations.
"The relations between our two countries extend beyond trade and cultural ties as we have extended our political relations," said Sheikh Abdullah.
Mr Carr said: "I am grateful to the UAE for backing our bid. Our relations are strong as they are our biggest business partner in the Middle East with AUS$6.4 billion [Dh24.6bn] in two-way trade.
"We are not America or Europe. We will bring forth our outlook and approach to world issues."
Mr Carr hoped that Australia's approach to the crisis in Syria would help force a peaceful resolution.
"We would push for a ceasefire to be enforced and get both sides at the table to talk. We are distressed that the problem could spill over and are seeking for a fast and final resolution before the problem expands," he said.
He added that Australia's bid for a UN Security Council seat was based on its multilateral approach and previous history in peacekeeping operations as well as its "generous foreign aid programme".
According to the Australian ministry of foreign affairs, the UN Security Council's work in the immediate future on issues such Afghanistan, forthcoming elections in East Timor and a referendum in Bougainville, is directly relevant to a number of core Australian national security interests.
"Because of our capacity to make a difference as a middle power with global influence, as an effective voice for small and medium- sized countries, and to do what we say we are going to do, a 2009 Lowy Institute poll found that nearly three quarters of Australians support the Security Council bid," said the United Nations Association of Australia, a UN entity based in Canberra.
Australia is competing with Finland and Luxembourg for the Western Europe and Other Countries seat.
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In Full Flight: A Story of Africa and Atonement
John Heminway, Knopff
The biog
Born: High Wycombe, England
Favourite vehicle: One with solid axels
Favourite camping spot: Anywhere I can get to.
Favourite road trip: My first trip to Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan. The desert they have over there is different and the language made it a bit more challenging.
Favourite spot in the UAE: Al Dhafra. It’s unique, natural, inaccessible, unspoilt.
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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Through Her Lens: The stories behind the photography of Eva Sereny
Forewords by Jacqueline Bisset and Charlotte Rampling, ACC Art Books
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Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
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Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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While you're here
The National Editorial: The fragile future of jobs in the Middle East
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
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