• A girl dances to traditional Emirati music by Al Mazyood Band at a National Day event at Mohammed bin Rashid Library, next to Dubai Creek. All photos: Khushnum Bhandari / The National
    A girl dances to traditional Emirati music by Al Mazyood Band at a National Day event at Mohammed bin Rashid Library, next to Dubai Creek. All photos: Khushnum Bhandari / The National
  • Boys are tutored in traditional Emirati music and dance by Al Mazyood Band
    Boys are tutored in traditional Emirati music and dance by Al Mazyood Band
  • A Dubai Police dog in a demonstration
    A Dubai Police dog in a demonstration
  • A young ceramic artist tries her hand at traditional Emirati crafts
    A young ceramic artist tries her hand at traditional Emirati crafts
  • A traditional grocery counter recreated at Mohammed bin Rashid Library
    A traditional grocery counter recreated at Mohammed bin Rashid Library
  • Citizens and residents are encouraged to come together to celebrate 51 years since the founding of the UAE
    Citizens and residents are encouraged to come together to celebrate 51 years since the founding of the UAE
  • A young dollmaker practises her skills
    A young dollmaker practises her skills
  • A pottery colouring workshop helps keep traditional crafts alive
    A pottery colouring workshop helps keep traditional crafts alive
  • Children meet a police dog and its handler at the library event
    Children meet a police dog and its handler at the library event
  • A doll-making workshop as part of National Day celebrations at the library
    A doll-making workshop as part of National Day celebrations at the library
  • A library visitor and a police dog make friends at the event
    A library visitor and a police dog make friends at the event
  • Traditional items on display
    Traditional items on display
  • A young dancer at the event
    A young dancer at the event
  • A traditional grocery counter recreates old Emirati culture outside of the library, which contains about 400,000 volumes
    A traditional grocery counter recreates old Emirati culture outside of the library, which contains about 400,000 volumes
  • Young library visitors sample a taste of Emirati tradition
    Young library visitors sample a taste of Emirati tradition
  • Visitors could also quite literally sample a taste of Emirati tradition at the cooking stall
    Visitors could also quite literally sample a taste of Emirati tradition at the cooking stall
  • A visitor take photos against a backdrop of UAE flags
    A visitor take photos against a backdrop of UAE flags
  • A young ceramic artist at work
    A young ceramic artist at work

Culture

Music & On-stage

Mohammed Bin Rashid Library celebrates National Day with immersive events

Emirati culture and heritage, including poetry and workshops, was showcased

Maan Jalal
Maan Jalal

November 30, 2022

  • English
  • Arabic

The Mohammed Bin Rashid Library in Dubai's Al Jaddaf celebrated the UAE’s 51st National Day on Wednesday with a series of cultural and entertainment events.

From poetry and musical performances to national exhibitions, along with workshops and lectures, many of the events centred around celebrating the UAE’s heritage and Emirati culture. This included folk dances, singing the UAE national anthem, as well as Dubai Police’s military, musical and cavalry performances. There were also workshops for making vintage puppets, colouring pottery and live traditional cooking and showcasing local produce and groceries.

“The National Day holds a precious occasion to our hearts,” said Mohammed Salem Al Mazrouei, board member of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Library Foundation.

“As part of our social responsibility at Mohammed Bin Rashid Library, we strive to instil the values of unity, solidarity, and patriotism in the hearts of future generations through all our cultural and entertainment activities that cater to all segments of society.”

Mohammed Bin Rashid Library also organised a photography and art exhibition in collaboration with the National Archives, showcasing the UAE's journey towards modernisation. A Poetry Hour was also on the agenda with poets Ali Al Khawar and Hassan Al Obaidly.

Since its opening in June, Mohammed Bin Rashid Library has organised a number of activities and initiatives which encourage reading and celebrate national events and Emirati heritage such as falconry, equestrian arts, camel racing and pearl hunting.

“We believe in our great responsibility to contribute, side by side, towards consolidating loyalty and a sense of belonging to our homeland,” said Al Mazrouei.

“Which is why we designed the Emirates Library with more than 15,000 books about the history, literature and heritage of the UAE, shedding light on the country’s various historical and cultural aspects, from the ancient civilisations that populated the region until our prosperous present.”

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
Quick pearls of wisdom

Focus on gratitude: And do so deeply, he says. “Think of one to three things a day that you’re grateful for. It needs to be specific, too, don’t just say ‘air.’ Really think about it. If you’re grateful for, say, what your parents have done for you, that will motivate you to do more for the world.”

Know how to fight: Shetty married his wife, Radhi, three years ago (he met her in a meditation class before he went off and became a monk). He says they’ve had to learn to respect each other’s “fighting styles” – he’s a talk it-out-immediately person, while she needs space to think. “When you’re having an argument, remember, it’s not you against each other. It’s both of you against the problem. When you win, they lose. If you’re on a team you have to win together.” 

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Updated: November 30, 2022, 2:18 PM
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