Teachers are increasingly leaving their profession. Leslie Pableo / The National
Teachers are increasingly leaving their profession. Leslie Pableo / The National
Teachers are increasingly leaving their profession. Leslie Pableo / The National
Teachers are increasingly leaving their profession. Leslie Pableo / The National

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Teachers deserve our full respect and support

Our readers have their say about teachers, South Africa's new leader, Grumpy Cat and IM Pei

Letters to the Editor

May 18, 2019

  • English
  • Arabic

I write to you in reference to your editorial Our children's future depends on happy teachers (May 16). This piece does a good job at explaining the importance of teachers' contribution to society, especially in regards to our children's future. It is truly alarming that so many talented educators are tempted to leave the profession. This can only have a detrimental impact on the younger generation. The UAE already has plans to give teachers better pay so as to retrain talent. I do hope that this will no longer be an issue in the near future, and that teachers will be encouraged to stay in their profession.

K Ragavan, Bengaluru

South African new leader has a long list of issues to solve

I write to you in reference to your article South African president vows to purge ANC of 'bad tendencies' (May 13). After 25 years of governance, the ANC is no longer able to lead the country in the right direction. South Africans are also getting fatigued by their leaders' incompetence. This is particularly obvious when you look at the polls. For the first time in decades, the ANC scored less than 60 per cent of the total votes. 
Fifteen months after Cyril Ramaphosa took centre stage, the country is still in need of reforms.
Racial and religious tensions, growing wealth discrepancies, joblessness, economic decline, profligacy, cadre deployment, all these pressing concerns must be addressed by South Africa's new leader.
A R Modak, Johannesburg

Farewell Grumpy Cat, you will be missed

I write to you in reference to you article Grumpy Cat, whose scowl launched a million memes, dies age 7 (May 17).

I actually think Grumpy Cat looks very cute with that frown on his face. I will miss him very much.

Raj Jheeta, Al Ain

I think this poor cat must have had a very difficult and stressful life. After becoming an internet sensation, Grumpy Cat had to go to a myriad of events, shows, photoshoots and whatnot when he was unwell in the first place. I believe this poor creature was exploited from the very beginning, just so that his owner could make money.

Shaheen Hamadani, UK

IM Pei is a true legend, his legacy will never be forgotten

I write to you in reference to Sophie Prideaux's article IM Pei, architect behind Louvre pyramids, dies age 102 (May 17).

His creative mind will certainly be missed all over the world. Nowadays, architects are not as brilliant as they used to be.

David Martinez de Castro, Abu Dhabi

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Which honey takes your fancy?

Al Ghaf Honey

The Al Ghaf tree is a local desert tree which bears the harsh summers with drought and high temperatures. From the rich flowers, bees that pollinate this tree can produce delicious red colour honey in June and July each year

Sidr Honey

The Sidr tree is an evergreen tree with long and strong forked branches. The blossom from this tree is called Yabyab, which provides rich food for bees to produce honey in October and November. This honey is the most expensive, but tastiest

Samar Honey

The Samar tree trunk, leaves and blossom contains Barm which is the secret of healing. You can enjoy the best types of honey from this tree every year in May and June. It is an historical witness to the life of the Emirati nation which represents the harsh desert and mountain environments

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.”

Results
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStage%203%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Einer%20Rubio%20(COL)%20Movistar%20Team%20-%204h51%E2%80%9924%E2%80%9D%3Cbr%3E2.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%20Quick-Step%20-%2014%22%3Cbr%3E3.%20Adam%20Yates%20(GBR)%20UAE%20Team%20Emirates%20-%2015%22%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EGeneral%20classifications%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%20Quick-Step%3Cbr%3E2.%20Lucas%20Plapp%20(AUS)%20Ineos%20Grenaders)%20-%207%22%3Cbr%3E3.%20Pello%20Bilbao%20(ESP)%20Bahrain%20Victorious%20-%2011%22%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
  1. Join parent networks
  2. Look beyond school fees
  3. Keep an open mind
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

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

The Word for Woman is Wilderness
Abi Andrews, Serpent’s Tail

Results

Ashraf Ghani 50.64 per cent

Abdullah Abdullah 39.52 per cent

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar 3.85 per cent

Rahmatullah Nabil 1.8 per cent

While you're here
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed

Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.

Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.

The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.

One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.

That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.

AfricaUAEAl AinAbu Dhabi