Follow the latest updates on Expo 2020 Dubai here
India's pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai has been unveiled, as the countdown continues to the grand opening of the global event.
The National was on hand for a tour of the five-storey structure, which is expected to be among the most popular attractions at the world fair.
India is celebrating its participation in the first expo to be held in the Middle East in style.
We want people to get a one shot glimpse of India, not only in terms of our heritage and traditions but also the amazing opportunities
Pavan Kapoor,
India’s ambassador to the UAE
Visiting dignitaries admired the spectacular light show held in honour of the first viewing of the impressive pavilion on Wednesday evening.
Pavan Kapoor, India’s ambassador to the UAE, outlined his hope that the Expo would provide business opportunities for Indian firms.
“We want people to get a one shot glimpse of India,” he said after the preview.
“This is not only in terms of our heritage and traditions but also the amazing opportunities and cutting edge technologies. The investment opportunities are absolutely tremendous from space, to hi-tech areas.
“We are looking at business meetings but also for people to come and enjoy themselves and see a bit of Indian culture.”
India UAE trade was valued at close to $59 billion in 2019-20, and dipped to about $43bn last year as a consequence of the coronavirus pandemic. Both nations seek to boost trade to $100bn over five years.
A night of brilliant light
Colourful images of Indian dancers, musicians and top tourist haunts were beamed on the facade of the pavilion after sunset.
The vibrant production was the first of many visual stories to be shared every day during the event in homage to India's 75 years as an independent nation.
The visuals were projected across the massive facade of the pavilion that is made up of 600 moving blocks.
The 15-minute show was not without glitches as the audio muted a few minutes after the preview began. This was ironed out in screenings that followed.
Architects designed the blocks in muted shades to serve as a backdrop for the dramatic show. Each block is controlled by computers to enable the entire row, column or wall to rotate.
The interior features large displays of planets, stars in a nod to the country’s space programme. A large section on the lower floor is dedicated to yoga with audio-visual displays detailing the benefits of different asanas or postures.
A model of the Hindu temple being constructed in Abu Dhabi is among the displays, and heritage sites and historical locations in states across the country are part of the large video displays within.
The Indian pavilion is a dynamic, continually moving structure that retells stories about the country’s past and plans for the future.
It will mean no two visits to India's Expo 2020 offering will be the same.
The architect who designed the India pavilion at Expo 2020 said his aim was to capture constant change in the country.
“The kinetic facade helps us to keep changing the story so the building talks to people,” Dikshu Kukreja, managing principal at CP Kukreja Architects, told The National recently.
“The multidimensionality and dynamism of the facade allows us to tell a different story of India every time. We wanted to show movement and transformation.
“The moving blocks metaphorically represent an India that is changing constantly."
The pavilion is among a select few structures that will remain after the Expo ends in March next year.
FIXTURES
Fixtures for Round 15 (all times UAE)
Friday
Inter Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
Saturday
Atalanta v Verona (6pm)
Udinese v Napoli (9pm)
Lazio v Juventus (11.45pm)
Sunday
Lecce v Genoa (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Cagliari (6pm)
SPAL v Brescia (6pm)
Torino v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Parma (9pm)
Bologna v AC Milan (11.45pm)
Gender pay parity on track in the UAE
The UAE has a good record on gender pay parity, according to Mercer's Total Remuneration Study.
"In some of the lower levels of jobs women tend to be paid more than men, primarily because men are employed in blue collar jobs and women tend to be employed in white collar jobs which pay better," said Ted Raffoul, career products leader, Mena at Mercer. "I am yet to see a company in the UAE – particularly when you are looking at a blue chip multinationals or some of the bigger local companies – that actively discriminates when it comes to gender on pay."
Mr Raffoul said most gender issues are actually due to the cultural class, as the population is dominated by Asian and Arab cultures where men are generally expected to work and earn whereas women are meant to start a family.
"For that reason, we see a different gender gap. There are less women in senior roles because women tend to focus less on this but that’s not due to any companies having a policy penalising women for any reasons – it’s a cultural thing," he said.
As a result, Mr Raffoul said many companies in the UAE are coming up with benefit package programmes to help working mothers and the career development of women in general.
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
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.”
Name: Peter Dicce
Title: Assistant dean of students and director of athletics
Favourite sport: soccer
Favourite team: Bayern Munich
Favourite player: Franz Beckenbauer
Favourite activity in Abu Dhabi: scuba diving in the Northern Emirates
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
INFO
What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.
The years Ramadan fell in May
more from Janine di Giovanni
Match info:
Burnley 0
Manchester United 2
Lukaku (22', 44')
Red card: Marcus Rashford (Man United)
Man of the match: Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)
PREMIER LEAGUE FIXTURES
Tuesday (UAE kick-off times)
Leicester City v Brighton (9pm)
Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United (11.15pm)
Wednesday
Manchester United v Sheffield United (9pm)
Newcastle United v Aston Villa (9pm)
Norwich City v Everton (9pm)
Wolves v Bournemouth (9pm)
Liverpool v Crystal Palace (11.15pm)
Thursday
Burnley v Watford (9pm)
Southampton v Arsenal (9pm)
Chelsea v Manchester City (11.15pm)
Normal People
Sally Rooney, Faber & Faber
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