There are some obvious political, social, cultural and climatic differences between Ireland and the UAE, but when Enda Kenny, the Irish taoiseach (prime minister), arrives in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday he will surely be more aware of the similarities.
Both countries are in the second tier of global economies. According to the IMF, the UAE is rather larger than the Irish, with Emirati GDP at US$359 billion in 2012, compared to Ireland’s $210bn; oil production accounted for most of the difference.
Ireland is at number 46 in the global GDP tables, the UAE at number 33; per capita, the Emirates, with a population of 8.5 million, is better off with $49,000 income per year per head, compared with Ireland’s $41,000 per head for its 4.5 million people.
Both are exporting economies, each accounting for just over 1 per cent of total world trade, making them comparatively big actors in global commerce, relative to their size.
It was this skill in exporting that made Ireland one of the models of economic development studied by Abu Dhabi some years in the preparation of its 2030 strategy plan.
But perhaps the biggest the two economies share in common now is that both have gone through the ravages of the global financial crisis and the economic downturn that followed, and appear to be coming out the other end.
The Irish experience has been by far the more severe. The property-fuelled years of the Celtic Tiger ended in a 2008 collapse in property prices that had immediate and severe implications for the country’s banking system, which had to be taken over by the government.
It’s worth noting that both the Irish and UAE governments at an early stage in the financial crisis decided to guarantee bank deposits; the difference was that the UAE had the capital to make the guarantee meaningful.
Ireland had to appeal to the European Union and IMF for help, and a $90bn package saw it through the crisis, but only at a bitter cost: public spending had to be slashed, public-sector jobs cut and taxes raised. Property valuations collapsed.
The UAE crisis experience was not so harrowing, but was significant nonetheless. Dubai needed some help with its financial liabilities back in 2010, and this was provided by the capital; there was a period of contraction in economic growth, and the UAE went through its own version of an “austerity programme” in 2010-2011 when public-sector projects were cancelled or shelved and existing projects scaled back.
But the UAE, with capital reserves vastly bigger than Ireland’s and a much better international credit rating, was able to get through the downturn with less noticeable pain.
Ireland did it the hard way. Property prices are still 50 per cent off their pre-crisis peaks; bailing out its banks has led to huge levels of public debt that will weigh on the economy for years to come; unemployment and emigration are running at high levels.
But last month Ireland became the first European nation to exit the bailout package provided by the EU and IMF. It has regained control of its own public finances after a gruelling five-year slog. Now it is time to get the economy growing again.
This is part of the reason for Mr Kenny’s visit to the UAE. Ireland needs inwards investment to encourage growth, and Irish firms need export markets.
The Irish leader will not be appealing directly to UAE financial institutions to inject capital into its bust banks or prop up the property market, though if any Emiratis felt so inclined he would probably be grateful.
Rather, he will be looking for investment in those industries that Ireland is already good at: pharmaceuticals manufacture, food and agriculture, leisure and tourism, for example.
What can Ireland do in return to cement ties between the two economies? Irish businessmen have already made a significant contribution to the economic development of the UAE, with involvement in some of the growing country’s most impressive success stories.
But one area of opportunity is food. Ireland produces enough to feed 30 million people per year; the UAE has been scouring the world to find safe and secure food supplies. The synergies are obvious, especially if Ireland were to adopt halal standards for exported foodstuffs.
The two economies have much more in common than is apparent at first glance, and Mr Kenny’s visit can only encourage them to closer co-operation on the future.
fkane@thenational.ae
10 tips for entry-level job seekers
- Have an up-to-date, professional LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have a LinkedIn account, set one up today. Avoid poor-quality profile pictures with distracting backgrounds. Include a professional summary and begin to grow your network.
- Keep track of the job trends in your sector through the news. Apply for job alerts at your dream organisations and the types of jobs you want – LinkedIn uses AI to share similar relevant jobs based on your selections.
- Double check that you’ve highlighted relevant skills on your resume and LinkedIn profile.
- For most entry-level jobs, your resume will first be filtered by an applicant tracking system for keywords. Look closely at the description of the job you are applying for and mirror the language as much as possible (while being honest and accurate about your skills and experience).
- Keep your CV professional and in a simple format – make sure you tailor your cover letter and application to the company and role.
- Go online and look for details on job specifications for your target position. Make a list of skills required and set yourself some learning goals to tick off all the necessary skills one by one.
- Don’t be afraid to reach outside your immediate friends and family to other acquaintances and let them know you are looking for new opportunities.
- Make sure you’ve set your LinkedIn profile to signal that you are “open to opportunities”. Also be sure to use LinkedIn to search for people who are still actively hiring by searching for those that have the headline “I’m hiring” or “We’re hiring” in their profile.
- Prepare for online interviews using mock interview tools. Even before landing interviews, it can be useful to start practising.
- Be professional and patient. Always be professional with whoever you are interacting with throughout your search process, this will be remembered. You need to be patient, dedicated and not give up on your search. Candidates need to make sure they are following up appropriately for roles they have applied.
Arda Atalay, head of Mena private sector at LinkedIn Talent Solutions, Rudy Bier, managing partner of Kinetic Business Solutions and Ben Kinerman Daltrey, co-founder of KinFitz
AndhaDhun
Director: Sriram Raghavan
Producer: Matchbox Pictures, Viacom18
Cast: Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu, Radhika Apte, Anil Dhawan
Rating: 3.5/5
Company Profile
Company name: Namara
Started: June 2022
Founder: Mohammed Alnamara
Based: Dubai
Sector: Microfinance
Current number of staff: 16
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Family offices
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
INDIA'S TOP INFLUENCERS
Bhuvan Bam
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Kusha Kapila
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Diipa Khosla
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Diipa Khosla started out as a social media manager before branching out to become one of India's biggest fashion influencers, with collaborations including MAC Cosmetics.
Komal Pandey
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Komal Pandey is a fashion influencer who has partnered with more than 100 brands, including Olay and smartphone brand Vivo India.
Nikhil Sharma
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Nikhil Sharma from Mumbai began his online career through vlogs about his motorcycle trips. He has become a lifestyle influencer and has created his own clothing line.
Source: Hireinfluence, various
Sarfira
Director: Sudha Kongara Prasad
Starring: Akshay Kumar, Radhika Madan, Paresh Rawal
Rating: 2/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Company: Eco Way
Started: December 2023
Founder: Ivan Kroshnyi
Based: Dubai, UAE
Industry: Electric vehicles
Investors: Bootstrapped with undisclosed funding. Looking to raise funds from outside
Company profile
Name: WallyGPT
Started: 2014
Founders: Saeid and Sami Hejazi
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Investment raised: $7.1 million
Number of staff: 20
Investment stage: Pre-seed round
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
Sly Cooper and the Thievius Raccoonus
Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation 2 to 5
Rating: 5/5
Apple Mac through the years
1984 - Apple unveiled the Macintosh on January 24
1985 - Steve Jobs departed from Apple and established NeXT
1986 - Apple introduced the Macintosh Plus, featuring enhanced memory
1987 - Apple launched the Macintosh II, equipped with colour capabilities
1989 - The widely acclaimed Macintosh SE/30 made its debut
1994 - Apple presented the Power Macintosh
1996 - The Macintosh System Software OS underwent a rebranding as Mac OS
2001 - Apple introduced Mac OS X, marrying Unix stability with a user-friendly interface
2006 - Apple adopted Intel processors in MacBook Pro laptops
2008 - Apple introduced the MacBook Air, a lightweight laptop
2012 - Apple launched the MacBook Pro with a retina display
2016 - The Mac operating system underwent rebranding as macOS
2020 - Apple introduced the M1 chip for Macs, combining high performance and energy efficiency
2022 - The M2 chip was announced
2023 -The M3 line-up of chip was announced to improve performance and add new capabilities for Mac.
Profile of VoucherSkout
Date of launch: November 2016
Founder: David Tobias
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers
Sector: Technology
Size: 18 employees
Stage: Embarking on a Series A round to raise $5 million in the first quarter of 2019 with a 20 per cent stake
Investors: Seed round was self-funded with “millions of dollars”
Learn more about Qasr Al Hosn
In 2013, The National's History Project went beyond the walls to see what life was like living in Abu Dhabi's fabled fort: