I remember being on a press trip in Germany in early 2009, sitting in my hotel room watching the news. European media outlets had fixated on how Dubai was faring during the global financial crisis, and were showing images on repeat of cars that had been abandoned at the airport, half-drunk coffees left in their cup-holders, as if the owners had fled in some kind of frenzied, post-apocalyptic exodus. That was the narrative that stuck, the story that captured the imagination. For months afterwards, my friends from abroad would reference those abandoned cars – as if they were an emblem of Dubai’s perceived fall from grace.
Then, as now, I had trouble reconciling what I saw on the news with my own experiences. Yes, 2009 was a difficult year, but what about all of us that buckled down and stayed, those of us who were lucky enough to keep our jobs, who laid down roots and made this place home, even when the going got tough? Those cars were only one part of the story – but they were the only part that the world wanted to know. It was the same when the now infamous "sex on the beach" story broke; or in 2011, when the late A A Gill wrote a gleefully derogatory story about Dubai in Vanity Fair, where he glibly concluded that "Dubai is a cautionary tale about what money can't buy: a culture of its own".
In truth, there has been a long tradition of Dubai-bashing in the international media. And this week's coverage of a woman who was allegedly held in jail for three days for having a single glass of wine is continuing that tradition. International news outlets have been quick to print the woman's side of the story, inflammatory headlines and all.
Needless to say, there was less of a rush to publish the official account of events provided by the UAE’s authorities.
The outside world takes great satisfaction in cutting Dubai down to size – but let’s not pretend that these one-sided portrayals of the city are fuelled by anything other than narrow-mindedness and racism. In turn, those of us who live here are often accused of being overly defensive, as if we have drunk the Kool-Aid and are no longer capable of rational thought. But more times than not, we have to be defensive.
By default, overwhelmingly negative perceptions of Dubai extend to the people who live here. When they mistakenly write Dubai off as shallow, money-obsessed, close-minded or uncultured, the haters are also making a value judgement on those of us who choose to live here, are they not?
While on holiday a couple of weeks ago, I had the extreme misfortune of attending a lunch party with a gentleman who was all too comfortable expressing his anti-Arab sentiment. "That place would have been nothing if us Brits hadn't pulled it out of the desert," he said as I spluttered on my drink. I can only imagine the satisfaction brought to him by this week's headlines.
One-sided news coverage about the region feeds into the myriad misconceptions that people have about the UAE, with no regard for how diverse, multi-cultural, tolerant and innovative this country is. Some people may be able to see beyond the negative headlines, but many others will not, as the distasteful gentleman at that lunch party proved.
I am not saying Dubai is perfect. And there is always more than one side to every story.
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Read more of Selina's thoughts:
Missing out on milestone events in the lives of family and friends. Is this the real expat tax?
Beach holidays: a major bore or the ultimate escape? I'm about to find out
The eternal quest for the perfect work-life balance
Paying tribute to the extraordinary life of my dad, the ultimate expat
Why eating meat makes me feel like a hypocrite
Phone etiquette? I need some guidelines please
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
What can you do?
Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
Seek professional advice from a legal expert
You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor
You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline
In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20WallyGPT%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2014%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESaeid%20and%20Sami%20Hejazi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20raised%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%247.1%20million%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2020%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%20round%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
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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.”
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
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Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million