ABU DHABI // The audience in the grandstand at the Sheikh Zayed Heritage Festival on Sunday burst into applause when King Salman of Saudi Arabia arrived to watch the Union March.
Thousands in the crowd waved UAE and Saudi flags on his arrival at the festival.
Spectators said the monarch’s presence to mark the UAE’s National Day was a moment of pride, signifying both countries’ unity.
Sitting beside King Salman were Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
The performances held in honour of the king included a poetry recitation of welcome and praise, horse and camel stunts featuring the UAE and Saudi flags, and the long tribal march with participants from across the emirates.
“It’s a great honour for us all and we are highly delighted that King Salman arrived in the UAE to take part in our celebration,” said Ibrahim Al Amri, an Emirati from Abu Dhabi.
“All GCC nations are our brothers and we strive to be more united and far better than other countries when it comes to being united.”
The Union March brought together thousands of people from tribes across the UAE after the National Day celebrations on Friday.
King Salman arrived in the UAE on Saturday afternoon as part of a regional tour that includes Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait.
Before the march started, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid toured the festival, praising it as a melting pot for Arab and world cultures. He said it was a key contributor to efforts towards instilling in youth a sense of national loyalty and identity.
He was accompanied by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed, Deputy Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. Other Sheikhs were also present.
Some GCC nationals visited the UAE to attend the Union March.
Saqar Al Hashmi came from Oman to take part, after learning about the festival on social media. He said that with the participation of King Salman and high-profile Sheikhs from the UAE, it was a great show of unity.
“All people of GCC countries work under the guidelines from their Sheikhs and Rulers in unity, and this is an example of that unity among us all,” said Mr Al Hashmi. “All Gulf countries are one.”
Another Omani, Majid Al Hashmi, was glad to see King Salman for the first time and said his presence further boosted the morale of people from Arabian Gulf countries.
“This was a grand show of being one family and all brothers from the entire GCC,” he said.
Emirati Maryam Al Bereiky travelled from Al Ain with her family to take part in the parade. “We felt very proud that a great country, Saudi Arabia, celebrates our National Day with us,” she said.
“It signifies that we are one hand against any risk and dangers posed to us. This signals a strong message to those who even think of putting the GCC countries in danger.”
The festival is held in honour of Sheikh Zayed, the Founding Father, to recognise his role in preserving the country’s history as a gateway to the future. This year’s theme is the UAE as a Crossroads to Civilisations.
It takes place daily from 3pm to 10pm until January 1 on the fairgrounds in Al Wathba, on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi.
anwar@thenational.ae
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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