Volunteer Sara al-Abdullah with orphaned children at a camp in the northern Syrian village of Ain Issa. Delil Souleiman / AFP
Volunteer Sara al-Abdullah with orphaned children at a camp in the northern Syrian village of Ain Issa. Delil Souleiman / AFP
Volunteer Sara al-Abdullah with orphaned children at a camp in the northern Syrian village of Ain Issa. Delil Souleiman / AFP
Volunteer Sara al-Abdullah with orphaned children at a camp in the northern Syrian village of Ain Issa. Delil Souleiman / AFP

Feedback

The world must not stand idle as conflict continues to rip Syria apart

Our readers have their say about Syria, mental health and cricket

Letters to the Editor

October 07, 2019

  • English
  • Arabic

I refer to Janine di Giovanni's opinion piece As the Syrian Civil War drags on, the world must not turn its back on it (October 7): the civil unrest in Syria is leading to one of the worst man-made calamities of the century. The conflict has already claimed the lives of half a million innocent civilians in the past eight years and has forced one third of all Syrians to flee the country.

Those remaining on Syrian soil await their turn to become the victims of a wider regional conflict, in which their country has become a convenient arena.

Syrians had been leading normal lives before the war and now they are suffering greatly. The violence has caused immense stress and psychological damage to the younger generation, especially small children.

War brings agony beyond belief to ordinary people as the world watches on, helplessly witnessing yet another humanitarian crisis.

The question is: can the world afford to sit idle anymore?

Ramachandran Nair, Muscat

We need better insurance coverage for mental health treatment in UAE

I write to you in reference to Justin Thomas's op-ed Treating depression as a person is a good way to recover from the mental health problem (October 7).

We need to make mental health treatments more affordable in Dubai and the UAE as a whole.

There is still a lack of understanding and a lot of stigma surrounding mental health. Doctors’ fees are always too high and insurance plans do not always cover them.

I struggled for months and used my credit card one too many times, just so I could pull myself out of depression.

Arjun Mangol Kanoth, Dubai

Mohammed Shami and Ravindra Jadeja played an impressive game

I write to you in reference to  your article Mohammed Shami and Ravindra Jadeja guide India to huge win over South Africa in first Test (October 6).

I was really happy to read this piece. India won the first Test match against South Africa at Visakapatnam with a 203 runs lead, a laudable score. Jadeja and Shami are the star bowlers of this victory.

Spinner Ravichander Ashwin took one wicket and his test wickets totalled 350, together with Muthiah Muralidharan of Sri Lanka.

What an amazing game it was. Kudos to Jadeja, Shami and Ravichander Ashwin.

K Ragavan, Bengaluru

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. 

Mobile phone packages comparison
A timeline of the Historical Dictionary of the Arabic Language
  • 2018: Formal work begins
  • November 2021: First 17 volumes launched 
  • November 2022: Additional 19 volumes released
  • October 2023: Another 31 volumes released
  • November 2024: All 127 volumes completed
The team

Photographer: Mateusz Stefanowski at Art Factory 
Videographer: Jear Valasquez 
Fashion director: Sarah Maisey
Make-up: Gulum Erzincan at Art Factory 
Model: Randa at Art Factory Videographer’s assistant: Zanong Magat 
Photographer’s assistant: Sophia Shlykova 
With thanks to Jubail Mangrove Park, Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi 

 
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?

1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull

2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight

3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge

4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own

5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed

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.”

South AfricaIndiaSyriaDubai