President Sheikh Mohamed received Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Abu Dhabi. Photo: @MohamedBinZayed / X
President Sheikh Mohamed received Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Abu Dhabi. Photo: @MohamedBinZayed / X
President Sheikh Mohamed received Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Abu Dhabi. Photo: @MohamedBinZayed / X
President Sheikh Mohamed received Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in Abu Dhabi. Photo: @MohamedBinZayed / X

UAE

President Sheikh Mohamed receives Dutch Prime Minister in Abu Dhabi

UAE leader and Mark Rutte reviewed efforts to boost ties between the nations

The National

September 26, 2023

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  • Arabic

President Sheikh Mohamed on Tuesday discussed efforts to "foster growth and progress" between the UAE and the Netherlands during talks with the country's outgoing prime minister in Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Mohamed and Mark Rutte reviewed the long-standing ties between the friendly nations during the meeting.

Mr Rutte was received by the UAE leader at Al Shati Palace as part of a one-day visit to the Emirates.

The head of state underlined the UAE's commitment to bolstering bilateral links in a message posted on social media.

"Today I met with the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to review the long-standing ties between the UAE and the Netherlands," Sheikh Mohamed wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

"We are keen to further strengthen these relations and harness opportunities to foster growth and progress for both our nations and our people."

Talks between the leaders centred on co-operation across the economy, education, culture, technology and science, state news agency Wam reported.

Renewable energy, sustainable development and climate action were also on the agenda.

The European nation is expected to have a significant voice at the Cop28 climate conference in Dubai.

Both sides spoke of the need for joint efforts to safeguard the planet.

Mr Rutte is expected to leave office before the end of the year after 13 years in power. He submitted his resignation in July, setting the stage for a general election, due to be held in November.

The two countries are key trading partners and are working together to help combat climate change.

The Netherlands is an agricultural powerhouse and the second largest global exporter of food after the US.

The total value of goods and services trade between the Netherlands and the UAE was €10.2 billion (Dh40.8 billion) in 2022.

Dutch exports to the UAE are largely of food, animals, machinery, transport equipment and chemicals.

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•   Choose the right level of risk. Don't gamble by investing in get-rich-quick schemes or high-risk plays. Don't play it too safe, either, by leaving long-term savings in cash.

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He entered parliament in 2014 and served as a member of the human rights and finance committees until 2017. In August last year he was appointed governor of Anbar, a role in which he has struggled to secure funding to provide services in the war-damaged province and to secure the withdrawal of Shia militias. He relinquished the post when he was sworn in as a member of parliament on September 3.

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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.”

Updated: September 26, 2023, 1:09 PM
UAESheikh Mohamed bin ZayedAbu Dhabi