DUBAI // A charity event organised by the children's agency Unicef raised more than US$1 million (Dh3.67 million) for victims of Pakistan's floods.
The fundraiser was attended by 650 guests and featured speeches by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak, the Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Shaukat Aziz, the former Pakistani prime minister, Engin Soysal, the UN special envoy for assistance to Pakistan and the former Pakistan cricket captain and humanitarian, Imran Khan.
Video: Pakistan floods 2010
Taimur Khan, reporting from Pakistan's worst flood affected regions in 2010, speaks to Claudia Charlton about the progress in delivering aid and the plight of stranded villagers and refugees.
Watch this video in full screen here
Many members of the Pakistani community also attended the event at Burj Khalifa's Armani Hotel on Friday.
Sheikh Nahyan, who described the relationship between Pakistan and the UAE as one of "common heritage and culture", donated Dh1 million to the cause.
"I admire such strong advocacy for the children and we are blessed with the presence of dignitaries and humanitarians who are helping those who are suffering and in need," he said.
More than 2,000 people died and two million were made homeless by the floods that began in late July and covered one-fifth of the country's surface. An estimated 20 million people suffered from destruction of property, loss of livelihood, damage to infrastructure or a combination of these.
"On behalf of my fellow citizens I offer my condolences and express our grief for your massive loss," Sheikh Nahyan said.
Mr Aziz highlighted the importance of continued efforts towards recovery.
"The area that [was] covered by the floods is the size of Italy," he said. "Pakistan has tremendous potential, especially because more than half the population is aged under 25. We must stand together and support each other."
Mr Khan spoke about his experiences and relief efforts, highlighting the acute need for funding.
"As I travelled through the villages washed away by the floods, I saw displaced families scattered in the makeshift shelters without food, adequate clothing and health services," he said.
"I saw distressed families squatting together in the most unhygienic conditions. I could see the unfolding tragedy and knew that in order to cope with devastation of such … magnitude and severity, we all needed to lend a helping hand.
"The response to the tragedy was similar to our cricket team - brilliant at times and disappointing at others," he said. "The brilliance came from the people who opened their homes and supported the victims."
Mr Khan also criticised mainstream media, saying the disaster and its aftermath had "disappeared from the media".
Describing the calamity and destruction, Mr Soysal said: "Villages from the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea were devastated, the main loss came to Pakistan's farming community and two million people have lost their homes."
Premium seats at the event were sold at Dh2,000 and general seats cost Dh1,000.
A raffle draw featured prizes valued at more than $150,000 and a live auction offered seats at Manchester United and Barcelona Champions League games.
Mr Aziz announced during the event that Dh367,000 had been pledged to the cause by expatriate Pakistanis.
Mr Khan presented for auction a signed cricket bat used during Pakistan's 1992 World Cup win. It fetched Dh60,000.
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Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
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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