Abu Dhabi's Al Wathba Wetland reserve to reopen in January

One of Abu Dhabi’s largest wetlands will reopen to the public from Friday after being closed for months because of the pandemic.

Al Wathba Wetland Reserve, known for its large population of greater flamingos, will receive visitors from 8am to 6pm until April 30. It will open daily except on Sundays and Mondays.

The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi said visitors will be expected to follow Covid-19 safety measures, such as wearing face coverings, maintaining physical distancing and following any other guidance issued inside the reserve.

To gain entry, visitors must also present a negative PCR test result received within the past month.

Children under 12 will not require a test result to enter the reserve.

Al Wathba Wetland Reserve is one of the first natural reserves to be established in Abu Dhabi. It was officially declared a protected area in 1998 by the UAE Founding Father Sheikh Zayed after proving an ideal habitat for migratory birds and a significant breeding site for the greater flamingo.

The reserve is home to more than 260 migratory bird species, including as many as 4,000 greater flamingos, as well as about 230 species of invertebrates, 11 mammals, 10 reptiles and 35 species of plant.

Since it opened to the public in October 2014, Al Wathba has attracted more than 20,000 visitors. Many are bird watchers, photography enthusiasts and others seeking to learn about the important species found in the reserve.

The reserve’s designated walking trails, of 1.5 and three kilometres, allow visitors to closely observe its natural habitats and wildlife. The reserve has a visitor centre, bird hide and a viewing platform.

Visitors can expect to encounter species including the black fat-tailed scorpion, greater spotted eagle, red fox, Egyptian spiny-tailed lizard, desert monitor lizard, Cape desert hare and purple-blushed darter, a winged insect.

The reserve is the only site in the Arabian Gulf region where flamingos have bred regularly since 2011. EAD researchers discovered three species of invertebrate new to science in the reserve, including a gasteruptiid wasp and a type of cuckoo wasp.

The reserve was recognised in the 2013 as a Ramsar site – one designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention established by Unesco.

It was also the first place in the region to be added to the International Union for Conservation of Nature green list in 2018, joining 40 such sites around the world.

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- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;

- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces

- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,

- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.

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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.”