The first shelter for male victims of human trafficking is to open in Abu Dhabi.
Ewa'a shelters, which has been aiding women and child victims of human trafficking since 2008, is awaiting approval to begin working on a shelter for men.
"We are in the final stages of approvals from the highest authorities. Once we get that, we will begin looking for a suitable location," said Sara Shuhail, director of Ewa'a.
Ms Shuhail said that not having a shelter for men has been one of the main criticisms the UAE receives from international bodies.
"We have yet to receive any cases of male victims but this is just a precautionary measure and, hopefully, with this new shelter it will encourage the victims to step forward," she said.
Ewa'a was set up by the UAE Red Crescent Authority in cooperation with the UAE National Committee to Combat Human Trafficking. It operates shelters in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah.
"Human trafficking is not an easy problem to solve, not just here but globally," Ms Shuhail said. "That said, we don't want to open new shelters, we want to fix this problem so that we can close these shelters, that's our goal."
The shelters provide everything from psychological and medical care to support, through the process of prosecuting traffickers.
Rehabilitation for victims includes activities such as handicrafts, swimming and drawing, to try to restore a sense of normality.
"The most difficult part of what we do is seeing the effects of this on children. It is very difficult to heal the psychological scars of human trafficking on children, many of whom enter the country on forged papers," Ms Shuhail said.
The shelters also provide vocational training for victims so they can find a source of income when they return home.
"We have had cases where the victim's country would not have been a safe place for them to return to. In such cases we have worked with international bodies to relocate them to countries willing to provide them citizenship and a chance at a normal life."
Mohammed Al Hammadi, deputy chairman of the Emirates Human Rights Association, said authorities were coming across more cases of human trafficking.
"Every year we are seeing an increase in the cases of human trafficking," he said. "This is not to say that human trafficking is getting worse here, it shows that our methods of detection and enforcement of the laws are improving."
The community's perception of the victims of human trafficking has also changed over the past few years.
"People now understand that these people are victims not accomplices or criminals," Mr Al Hammadi said.
"I just want to ask everyone to try to help as much as you can, don't just look away," added Ms Shuhail.
malkhan@thenational.ae
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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BABYLON
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Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
