Minister of State Dr Sultan Al Jaber looks on as Federica Mogherini speaks at the opening of the EU mission in Abu Dhabi. Wam
Minister of State Dr Sultan Al Jaber looks on as Federica Mogherini speaks at the opening of the EU mission in Abu Dhabi. Wam

European Union Mission to the UAE officially inaugurated



ABU DHABI// The European Union mission to the UAE has been officially opened in the capital.

Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of State, met Federica Mogherini, the EU foreign secretary and vice president of the European Commission, at the inauguration ceremony at Etihad Towers.

“The UAE is a country we work hand in hand with on bilateral issues in an excellent manner,” said Ms Mogherini.

“It’s the only Arab country that has a visa waiver regime with the EU, and a country with whom we have so much in common, from energy and climate change to trade and culture relations.”

The ceremony included a high-profile guests including the Speaker of the FNC, Dr Amal Al Qubaisi, Chief of Protocol Shihab Al Faheem, and officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.

Representatives from other government organisations and the ambassadors of countries including Canada, Argentina, Macedonia and EU member states also attended.

Ms Mogherini said she was looking forward to Expo 2020 in Dubai.

“This is why we indicate in our global strategy that we need to work together the Gulf countries,” she said. “There are many challenges and opportunities we can work on together,” she said.

“Let me add that you are a source of inspiration for having the first woman president of the Federal National Council.”

Patrizio Fondi, EU ambassador to the UAE, said the ceremony was a moment of celebration.

“This delegation is a symbol and a tangible instrument of friendship and remarkable momentum in EU-UAE relations,” Mr Fondi said.

He praised the UAE’s increasingly active role in the region and around the world.

newsdesk@thenational.ae

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SPECS
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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Ticket prices

General admission Dh295 (under-three free)

Buy a four-person Family & Friends ticket and pay for only three tickets, so the fourth family member is free

Buy tickets at: wbworldabudhabi.com/en/tickets

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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LIVING IN...

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Rating: 4/5

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