Visitors to Sharjah Safari will need a keen eye to spot one of the 600 or so animals wandering the property, for the park is four times the size of Monaco.
And that is exactly the spirit of discovery the new attraction’s designers are hoping for in a bid to replicate a real African safari.
Visitors to the Albridi Reserve, almost an hour from Dubai in Al Dhaid City, are in for a treat – as long as they have the patience and an eagle eye to look out for lions, giraffe and rhino roaming the vast landscape.
The 800-hectare park claims to be the largest outside Africa, and has been seven years in the making. It will welcome its first paying visitors this weekend.
Developed by the Environment and Protected Areas Authority (EPAA) in Sharjah in partnership with Maguari-One Zoo and Wildlife Consultants, Sharjah Safari will feature 12 different environments that represent the life and terrain in Africa.
It is the new home for animals and birds with a special section for giraffes, 15 of which were released in the wild to adapt to the safari atmosphere, and another section for rhinos and lions.
South African Kevin Budd is the operations manager for animals at Sharjah Safari and has worked for the EPAA for 24 years.
“In terms of the UAE it is big, but the design and layout is accurate to what you would see – it feels like you are in Africa,” he said.
“Our key species are the eastern black rhino, but there are others also important for conservation. like the giraffe, tortoises and a few unique bird species."
Through the EPAA, the park will become a centre for international captive breeding programmes for key species, and will partner with the European association of zoos and aquaria.
There are areas not on display to the public that will house some of the animals during the hot summer months, but others will remain outside all year round.
"Places like Botswana and the Sahel are hot, but we know it can be even hotter here in the summer, so we have had to be sensitive to that," Mr Budd said.
The park's inhabitants have enough shade, water and food for them to live all year. The more sensitive species will be brought inside for the summer.
Currently, about 600 animals are roaming the park, with about 300 more expected to arrive later this month and in March.
By the end of the year, the numbers are expected to grow to more than 1,000.
“By the time we reopen in October after the summer, we hope to be fully stocked,” Mr Budd said.
"A lot of animals are coming direct from South Africa, or from elsewhere in Europe from zoos we have partnerships with.
“We don’t have the full complement of animals because several shipments have been repeatedly delayed because of the pandemic.
“There was a shortage of cargo freight and a big increase in the associated costs."
When it came to the experience of visiting the park, Mr Budd said that you might feel as though you have travelled abroad.
“This safari is authentic. When you drive around early morning or late in the afternoon, you forget you are in the UAE – it feels as if you are in Africa.”
Depending on the package visitors pay for, there are protected areas where they can leave their vehicles and visit crocodiles and lions on foot.
A bronze ticket for a three-hour walking tour of the park with a guide costs Dh40, and just Dh15 for under 12s.
A silver ticket offers one seat on a six-hour bus tour of the park for over 12s at Dh120. Children under 12 pay just Dh50 for a silver ticket, while groups of 20 or more pay Dh100 each.
For a ride around the park in a luxury car, visitors can buy a gold ticket for Dh275, Dh120 for under 12s or Dh1,500 for a group of six people.
There is a safari camp for vehicles to stop, where guests can buy refreshments and visit other animals.
Security and animal welfare key concerns of designers
A perimeter fence secures the animals inside Sharjah Safari, with each section having its own security boundary to stop animals from leaving the park.
Dr Koen Brouwer of Maguari-One Zoo and Wildlife Consultants, a specialist design company that works with animal enclosures, said the project is unique.
“This was unlike anything we had done before,” he said.
“People can go on a journey to Africa when they visit.
“It was quite challenging, and not just about fencing off 800 hectares and releasing animals – this took seven years of work to create this feeling where animals are comfortable and respected, and guests can have a pleasant and educational visit.
“We had to work with lions and rhinos, so security was very important.
“From day one, we decided to create a separate area for lions where they and the visitors would be safe.”
More than 50,000 browse trees have been planted to provide food for giraffe and antelope, while each area has its own security fence to stop animals breaking out on to the nearby E611.
One animal to look out for is Bridi, the first African female giraffe born at Sharjah Safari, whose parents arrived from South Africa five years ago.
The vastness of the park will make it tricky to spot animals lurking in the undergrowth, but the possibility of snatching a glance of a rare marabou stork or radiator tortoise will make it all worthwhile, Dr Brouwer said.
“Animals have a lot of space in these areas, and a lot of choice, and that is very important for their welfare.
“Safari is supposed to be an adventure of discovery, you are lucky if you see something.
“It is the thrill of driving through the park, with a good guide who can talk about landscape and conservation, as well as the animals.
“This does not happen in a regular zoo, we did not want to create a feeling of seeing nothing but of something totally different – a real adventure.”
Sharjah Safari will be open daily from 8.30am until 6.30pm. Last entry is 2pm for gold and silver ticket holders and 4pm for those with bronze tickets.
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
RESULTS
5pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
Winner: Samau Xmnsor, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Ottoman, Szczepan Mazur, Abdallah Al Hammadi
6pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Sharkh, Patrick Cosgrave, Helal Al Alawi
6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 85,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner: Yaraa, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
7pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Maaly Al Reef, Bernardo Pinheiro, Abdallah Al Hammadi
7.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Jinjal, Fabrice Veron, Ahmed Al Shemaili
8pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 70,000 (D) 1,000m
Winner: Al Sail, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
The%20Woman%20King%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Gina%20Prince-Bythewood%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Viola%20Davis%2C%20Thuso%20Mbedu%2C%20Sheila%20Atim%2C%20Lashana%20Lynch%2C%20John%20Boyega%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
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.”
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 290hp
Torque: 340Nm
Price: Dh155,800
On sale: now
The biog
Family: wife, four children, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren
Reads: Newspapers, historical, religious books and biographies
Education: High school in Thatta, a city now in Pakistan
Regrets: Not completing college in Karachi when universities were shut down following protests by freedom fighters for the British to quit India
Happiness: Work on creative ideas, you will also need ideals to make people happy
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre supercharged V8
Power: 712hp at 6,100rpm
Torque: 881Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 19.6 l/100km
Price: Dh380,000
On sale: now
Warlight,
Michael Ondaatje, Knopf
RESULTS
Tottenham 1
Jan Vertonghen 13'
Norwich 1
Josip Drmic 78'
2-3 on penalties
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
Five expert hiking tips
Always check the weather forecast before setting off
Make sure you have plenty of water
Set off early to avoid sudden weather changes in the afternoon
Wear appropriate clothing and footwear
Take your litter home with you
