Read next: UAE announces start date for Eid Al Adha 2025
Workers in the UAE could be in line for a four-day break next month after astronomers predicted Eid Al Adha will begin on Friday, June 6.
It is forecast that the long holiday weekend will start on Thursday, June 5, with Arafat Day, followed by Eid Al Adha on Friday, June 6, running until Sunday, June 8.
Celebrated by millions of Muslims around the world, Eid Al Adha begins on the 10th day of Dhu Al Hijja, the last month in the Islamic calendar.
The first day of the Islamic month is expected to coincide with Wednesday, May 28, said Ibrahim Al Jarwan, chairman of Emirates Astronomy Society.
The moon crescent marking the start of Dhu Al Hijja would have appeared on Tuesday, May 27, at 7.02am, Mr Al Jarwan added, but it will be difficult to see with the naked eye.
“The crescent will be visible after sunset for 38 minutes. It means that Wednesday, May 28, will be the first day of Dhu Al Hijja and Eid Al Adha will likely be on Friday, June 6,” Mr Al Jarwan told The National.
The exact Eid Al Adha dates will be confirmed in the UAE by its Moon-sighting committee closer to the time.
Arafat Day, the second day of the week-long Hajj pilgrimage, falls on Dhu Al Hijja 9 in the Islamic calendar, one day before Eid.
What is Eid Al Adha?
Eid Al Adha – which means “festival of the sacrifice” – is when Muslims commemorate how the Prophet Ibrahim was asked by God in a dream to sacrifice his son, Ismail, as a test of his faith.
As with other religious holidays in the Emirates, it is a time for friends and family to gather, often over meals, and reflect on their lives and faith.
It is customary for families who have the means to slaughter a goat or sheep and share the meat with relatives and the less privileged.
How long is the public holiday?
Both public and private sector employees will have days off work for the holiday this year.
If initial predictions are accurate and Arafat Day falls on June 5, employees look set to have a four-day weekend.
This is because June 5 is a Thursday, and the following three days will be set aside to mark Eid Al Adha, amounting to two working days off.
It means the public holiday is likely to run from Thursday, June 5, and conclude on Sunday, June 8, with employees returning to work on Monday, June 9.
What is Hajj?
Millions of pilgrims travel to Makkah to perform Hajj each year, with many also heading further north to the city of Madinah.
All Muslims able to do so are required to perform Hajj at least once in their lifetime. Hajj and the other four pillars of Islam form a foundation of life in the religion. The event is a deeply spiritual experience.
Eid Al Adha 2024 - in pictures
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The years Ramadan fell in May
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Northern Warriors v Team Abu Dhabi, 3.30pm
Bangla Tigers v Karnataka Tuskers, 5.45pm
Qalandars v Maratha Arabians, 8pm
Three ways to limit your social media use
Clinical psychologist, Dr Saliha Afridi at The Lighthouse Arabia suggests three easy things you can do every day to cut back on the time you spend online.
1. Put the social media app in a folder on the second or third screen of your phone so it has to remain a conscious decision to open, rather than something your fingers gravitate towards without consideration.
2. Schedule a time to use social media instead of consistently throughout the day. I recommend setting aside certain times of the day or week when you upload pictures or share information.
3. Take a mental snapshot rather than a photo on your phone. Instead of sharing it with your social world, try to absorb the moment, connect with your feeling, experience the moment with all five of your senses. You will have a memory of that moment more vividly and for far longer than if you take a picture of it.
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World Test Championship table
1 India 71 per cent
2 New Zealand 70 per cent
3 Australia 69.2 per cent
4 England 64.1 per cent
5 Pakistan 43.3 per cent
6 West Indies 33.3 per cent
7 South Africa 30 per cent
8 Sri Lanka 16.7 per cent
9 Bangladesh 0
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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Family: six sons in Dubai and a daughter in Faisalabad
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Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
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