Arab men and women who have made their mark in the fields of science and technology, innovation, entrepreneurship and humanitarian work were recognised in a special ceremony held in Abu Dhabi.
The Takreem Foundation awards, which were being held for the 12th time, honoured 12 bright Arab minds from around the world in a glittering ceremony at the Cultural Foundation auditorium in Abu Dhabi.
A non-profit organisation in Lebanon, Assameh — Birth and Beyond, which specialises in the rehabilitation and running of children's wards in government hospitals, and the Palestine-based Atfaluna Society for Deaf Children won awards in the category of humanitarian and civic services.
Palestinian Samer Said Khoury, president of engineering and construction of the Consolidated Contractors Company was recognised for his corporate leadership.
Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, managing director of the Environment Agency — Abu Dhabi, won a Takreem award. She won in the environmental development and sustainability category.
Hala Zreiqat, a professor from Jordan won the scientific and technological achievements award, while businessman Ahmed AlZaini of Saudi Arabia was selected for the young enterpreuner honour.
Ghada Feghali, an education figure from Lebanon, Dr Nasser Shamma from Iraq, an oud virtuoso, and Prof Manahel Thabet of Saudi Arabia, an economist, were other award winners.
Leonardo Education Organisation, based in the US, won the international contribution to Arab society category.
The winners were selected by a board of jury comprising eminent Arab personalities.
The award night was followed by a gala dinner.
Shining the spotlight on talent
Takreem was established in 2009 with the aim of honouring Arab accomplishments and bringing Arab achievers to the forefront of the global stage.
Since its inception, the foundation has honoured and recognised laureates from almost every Arab country.
It built bridges between North Africa, the Middle East, the Gulf and Arab diaspora, creating a community of like-minded people and acting as a gateway for the region’s cultural, educational, scientific, environmental, humanitarian, social and economic excellence.
In the past, Takreem awards ceremonies were held in cities like Beirut, Doha, Manama, Paris, Marakesh, Dubai Cairo, Amman, and Kuwait before it went online in 2020. Beirut hosted the 11th edition of Takreem in 2021 despite the political and economic upheaval in Lebanon.
“This year, the foundation looks forward to working closely with new partners to set a new standard in how the Arab world celebrates its success stories, connects its trailblazers, gives back to its community and strives to support and its hope for a brighter future,” said the organisers in a press release.
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THE BIO
Favourite author - Paulo Coelho
Favourite holiday destination - Cuba
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Role model - My Grandfather
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About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped
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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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