Sarkozy to strengthen ties with UAE

Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, will open a naval base, lay the foundation stone for the Dh1 billion ($US272 million) Abu Dhabi Louvre Museum and discuss progress on the sale of up to ?8bn (Dh41.11bn) worth of fighter jets during a visit to the UAE this week. The ties between the two countries are being strengthened as several French companies campaign for multibillion-dirham contracts in the Emirates. Areva, GDF Suez and Total are bidding to supply the UAE with the technology for its first atomic energy programme. Dassault is proposing to sell the UAE its latest multi-role jet fighter, the Rafale. The deal could involve 60 Rafale jets worth between ?6bn and ?8bn. When the naval base is opened, France will join the US and Italy in having military bases in the UAE. The US occupies part of the Al Dhafra Air Base outside Abu Dhabi, and Italy has 100 servicemen at Bateen Air Base on Abu Dhabi Island to co-ordinate relief flights to troops in Afghanistan. Stronger relations with France will help the UAE diversify its source of military support and supplies and make it less dependent on one country, such as the US, for technology, said Dr Theodore Karasik, the director of research and development at the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA) in Dubai. "The UAE has been very clever in using one country against the other to get the best possible deal in the defence and industrial realm," Dr Karasik said. The close relationship between France and the UAE started with the Emirates' first major defence contract in 1998, when the Armed Forces bought 63 Mirage 2000-9 combat planes from Dassault that are expected to be phased out from 2013. In 2007, a partnership of two other firms based in France, the aerospace giant EADS and Thales, won a $1.66bn dual satellite communications system awarded by Yahsat, a subsidiary of Mubadala Development, an investment arm of the Government. The UAE has also bought about $1bn of Exocet missiles from MBDA of France, according to the Baynuna Group, which is based in Abu Dhabi, and in February set up a joint venture with MBDA on establishing a local missile maintenance centre. As well as military and cultural links, a French diplomatic source said that other business agreements would be announced during the visit. "There will be an important project involving the creation of a fund to invest in France," the diplomat said, confirming it would probably involve the new French sovereign wealth fund and Mubadala. "The fund was launched early this year by president Sarkozy to support sovereign wealth funds in their investment strategies in France," the diplomat said. "This can happen through takeover of businesses or stakes in French businesses that can develop specific technologies. With Mubadala this necessarily would mean a return on investments for the UAE. We are talking about important Emirati investments in the technology and health." UThe industrial and property group MAG, based in the UAE, is reportedly in "initial" talks with the German car parts maker Continental to buy its factory in France. Last March, the Government-run Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) renewed its onshore gas concession with Royal Dutch Shell, Total and Partex for 20 years. Last year, total French investments in the UAE amounted to ?2bn, mainly in the banking sector, finance and energy. UAE investments in France, mainly in property and investments in companies, totalled ?1.1bn. The UAE is France's largest customer in the Middle East, with exports, excluding military equipment, reaching ?3.5bnlast year. France imports about ?1bn worth of oil and oil-related products from the UAE each year. ngillet@thenational.ae igale@thenational.ae

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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:

- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools

- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say

- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance

- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs

- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills

- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month

- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues

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.”

The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat

UAE SQUAD FOR ASIAN JIU-JITSU CHAMPIONSHIP

Men’s squad: Faisal Al Ketbi, Omar Al Fadhli, Zayed Al Kathiri, Thiab Al Nuaimi, Khaled Al Shehhi, Mohamed Ali Al Suwaidi, Farraj Khaled Al Awlaqi, Muhammad Al Ameri, Mahdi Al Awlaqi, Saeed Al Qubaisi, Abdullah Al Qubaisi and Hazaa Farhan

Women's squad: Hamda Al Shekheili, Shouq Al Dhanhani, Balqis Abdullah, Sharifa Al Namani, Asma Al Hosani, Maitha Sultan, Bashayer Al Matrooshi, Maha Al Hanaei, Shamma Al Kalbani, Haya Al Jahuri, Mahra Mahfouz, Marwa Al Hosani, Tasneem Al Jahoori and Maryam Al Amri

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