ABU DHABI // When Gharib Al Saridi found his name among the 130,000 residents in the electoral college in 2011, he knew he wanted to be a member of the Federal National Council.
Unlike his fellow elected council peers, Mr Al Saridi, who lives in the mountains of Fujairah, did not have a big election campaign. Even so, he was the most popular candidate in the emirate, wining more votes than any of his 20 competitors.
“It was not easy, nor was it difficult,” he said. “I and my group of close companions hold an [intimate] majlis almost daily. Around 20 people come a day. We sit and talk about life, religion and society.”
His attributed his success in part to the support of his tribe and a relative, Dr Sultan Al Moazzin, an outspoken former member of the council popularly known for his defiant nature in the council and who sought greater powers for the FNC.
“Dr Sultan Al Moazzin is a strong man, with a strong opinion,” Mr Al Saridi, 54, said. “He passed on some of his experience to me. But I am not the same. He insists on his opinion. Me, I’m an old man. I’ve seen a lot in my life. I like to consult others. I don’t like clashing with others.”
The soft-spoken former Armed Forces officer describes himself as a spiritual man with a love for nature. He believes it is always best to deal with issues diplomatically “even when I know I am right”, and away from the media spotlight.
After winning election, Mr Al Saridi looked forward to the first session, to be attended by the President, Sheikh Khalifa.
But to everyone’s shock, Mr Al Saridi suffered a heart attack and his participation was delayed by several weeks.
“I wanted to join the council [because] I thought ‘here is a way to serve people and the society’,” he said.
After he made a full recovery and claimed his seat, he was noted to be absent a few times from public sessions.
He insisted it was not down to illness, but because of his work on sustainable energy research.
On the council, Mr Al Saridi remains passive, but an attentive listener. Issues relating to retirement and pensions always grabbed his ear, he said.
“A lot of cases have come to our majlis in Fujairah,” he said.
“Being on the council has helped me to understand why the Government does certain things in such ways. Sometimes we would ask why they would do this or that. Now we understand.”
Many of the cases he has brought to council have been found to be long-standing issues in his emirate, including poor school infrastructure and poor medical services. An issue he has yet to speak up about was the vagueness of port borders with Oman, leading to the arrest of sailors.
“The two governments need to solve this,” he said.
But even so, he insists that problems are limited because the country’s rulers “have not left us needing anything”.
“All it is, is just wanting greater prosperity. The world is good, we are good, everything is good.”
While Mr Al Saridi is grateful to have been elected, he does not wish to return for a second term, preferring instead to give others the opportunity.
However, without stronger financial support to members, he fears other candidates might be sidelined by lack of funds.
The absence of transport support for members, particularly those coming from the Northern Emirates to the capital for sessions, has been a financial strain.
“The financial support is weak,” he said. “Only the rich might be the ones who end up joining the council.”
osalem@thenational.ae
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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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