Twenty-eight students from across the Emirates visited some historical sites in Ajman and Fujairah on Saturday, before returning to Abu Dhabi to celebrate Tuesday’s National Day as part of the Journey of the Union tour.
On the ninth day of their 10-day tour of the UAE, the youngsters first visited Ajman Museum before arriving in Fujairah.
As with many of the other students, Mariam Al Shamsi admired the Al Yazra’a technique in the museum where an example of an old irrigation technique was displayed.
“Ajman Museum is unique and huge, especially when you can observe the old rooms of the Ruling Family as it was once the ruler’s palace. I was impressed when I saw the old irrigation technique that they used and how they used to take water from deep wells,” said the 15-year-old from Ajman.
“We couldn’t spend much time in Fujairah Museum, but I enjoyed the tour and I learnt some historical information about my country. I marvelled at how in old times they used to be buried beside their personal belongings.”
Humad Al Shamsi from Ras Al Khaimah also admired the old irrigation technique and the variety of the displays in the museum that showcase ancestral history and heritage.
“I liked the Al Yazra’a technique and the illustration of it in Ajman Museum. I loved the variety of the old things displayed here in Fujairah, such as the old weapons that were used in hunting, the old cutleries made of ceramics, the things that showed the way people lived in the past,” said the 16-year-old.
The museum features a large number of artefacts that were discovered in different parts of the Emirate and the building was expanded to acommodate the collection, according to Huda Rashed, a Fujairah Museum tour guide. “The museum was expanded in 1998 and consists of two large halls for antiques and three halls for heritage.
“We have very rare collections, including ancient weapons and costumes, as well as utensils used in the past,” she said.
The students then had the chance to visit the oldest and possibly smallest mosque in the UAE, Al Badiyah Mosque .
Upon their arrival at the mosque, the students were thrilled to witness a National Day celebration being held in front of the historical site.
Once they entered the site the boys rushed to participate in a traditional Al Yola dance that started upon their arrival.
“I never expected to find the National Day celebration here. I was really surprised like the rest. We participated in an Al Yola traditional dance holding a stick and we danced to the rhythms of the drums,” said Mansoor Al Marzoq, 15. “This is my first visit to Al Badiyah Mosque and I really enjoyed it. The weather is amazing.”
The students then went up the hill to explore the lookout towers, holding the UAE flag and singing the national anthem before doing Al Maghreb prayer in the mosque.
“As part of our national belonging we raised our flag and sang the national anthem, it was an indescribable moment,” said a Mr Mansoor from Dubai.
“The mosque has a unique structure inside and out with a ventilation system that keeps the inside cold during the hot weather,” said student Ali Al Shawi from Umm Al Quwain.
“I encourage all the students to participate in this initiative next year. I learnt so many things about my country’s achievements and history and made new friends.”
rhaza@thenational.ae
The Birkin bag is made by Hermès.
It is named after actress and singer Jane Birkin
Noone from Hermès will go on record to say how much a new Birkin costs, how long one would have to wait to get one, and how many bags are actually made each year.
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Gertrude Bell's life in focus
A feature film
At one point, two feature films were in the works, but only German director Werner Herzog’s project starring Nicole Kidman would be made. While there were high hopes he would do a worthy job of directing the biopic, when Queen of the Desert arrived in 2015 it was a disappointment. Critics panned the film, in which Herzog largely glossed over Bell’s political work in favour of her ill-fated romances.
A documentary
A project that did do justice to Bell arrived the next year: Sabine Krayenbuhl and Zeva Oelbaum’s Letters from Baghdad: The Extraordinary Life and Times of Gertrude Bell. Drawing on more than 1,000 pieces of archival footage, 1,700 documents and 1,600 letters, the filmmakers painstakingly pieced together a compelling narrative that managed to convey both the depth of Bell’s experience and her tortured love life.
Books, letters and archives
Two biographies have been written about Bell, and both are worth reading: Georgina Howell’s 2006 book Queen of the Desert and Janet Wallach’s 1996 effort Desert Queen. Bell published several books documenting her travels and there are also several volumes of her letters, although they are hard to find in print. Original documents are housed at the Gertrude Bell Archive at the University of Newcastle, which has an online catalogue.
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.”
