Ras Al Khaimah is inviting digital nomads and remote workers to swap their Zoom backgrounds for the sandy beaches and relaxed vibes of the city, as part of its extended Live Rak Play programme. Under the initiative, professionals from around the world can live and work in the emirate for up to 12 months.
The campaign, which was announced last year, has been extended and now runs until September 30. It features a range of long-stay offers across hotels as well as discounts on dining, laundry, telephone calls and car rental. Participating hotels include the Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah, DoubleTree by Hilton Resort & Spa Marjan Island and Hilton Ras Al Khaimah Beach Resort, to name a few.
To make the most of downtime or weekends, those who book will also receive complimentary tickets to Jais Adventure Peak, home to the world's longest zipline, or the Suwaidi Pearls farm and the Bear Grylls Explorer Camp for a half-day mountain excursion.
“We’ve seen first-hand the impact of remote working on employee well-being,” said Raki Phillips, chief executive of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority. “Our own company culture, which reflects a host of workplace initiatives to help our people both professionally and personally, has given employees the space to focus on their mental wellbeing.
“As the government entity with the Happiest Work Environment in Ras Al Khaimah and a ‘Great Place to Work’, we’re driven to create even more opportunities and ‘Live RAK Play’ taps into this culture by giving remote workers the chance to call our beautiful emirate home.”
The list of participating hotels
Hilton Ras Al Khaimah Beach Resort
DoubleTree by Hilton Resort & Spa Marjan Island
Hampton by Hilton Marjan Island
Radisson Resort Ras Al Khaimah, Marjan Island
Jannah Hotel Apartments and Villas
Hilton Garden Inn Ras Al Khaimah
DoubleTree by Hilton Ras Al Khaimah
Citymax Hotel Ras Al Khaimah
Action Hotel Ras Al Khaimah
Activities included
Al Hamra Golf Club
Adventure Sports
The Dunes (camping and safari)
Adventurati Outdoor
Suwaidi Pearls farm
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
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- Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
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The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
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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.”
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THE SPECS
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