The Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize
This year’s winners of the US$4 million Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize will be recognised and rewarded in Abu Dhabi on January 15 as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainable Week, which runs in the capital from January 13 to 20.
From solutions to life-changing technologies, the aim is to discover innovative breakthroughs to create a new and sustainable energy future.
The Zayed Future Energy Prize finalists have made a huge difference in providing access to power for communities around the world.
The World Bank has said more than a billion people are without electricity and 1.2 billion more have no reliable access.
“I am very concerned about high rates of maternal mortality around the world,” said Dr Laura Stachel, co-founder and executive director of finalist We Care Solar. “In 2008, after working as an obstetrician for 14 years, I went to northern Nigeria to study why so many women died in pregnancy and child birth. At the time, 500,000 women around the world died from childbirth complications and 11 per cent of these deaths were in Nigeria, which is the same as two 747s filled with pregnant women crashing every day.”
Dr Stachel decided to conduct research in a state hospital for two weeks to find out what could help in lowering the rates of maternal death. “I saw that electricity was available for no more than 12 hours a day,” she said. “They couldn't use diagnostic equipment, didn’t have a way to store blood and there was no light for much of each evening. Electricity would go off during c-sections, procedures were postponed or cancelled."
The hospital had 150 deliveries a month and they lost between three and eight mothers a month.
Her husband, a solar educator, suggested designing a solar electric system for the hospital and it reduced maternal deaths by 70 per cent. “We developed a small solar power kit that I could carry in my suitcase on each of my trips to Nigeria and that’s how the solar suitcase started.”
Soon after, the initiative was picked up by the New York Times and requests started flooding in from around the world. Today, they are present in 2,800 health centres in more than 20 countries, including Sierra Leone and the Philippines.
For Anshul Patel, the 33-year-old vice president of business development at Bboxx, energy is very much a necessity and a fundamental part of any economy. Mr Patel, who was born in London and raised in Kenya before pursuing his studies in the UK, said, "Most developing market governments don't have the resources to electrify their population and in any case, the traditional forms we've all been used to are very expensive in comparison to what we have to offer for exactly the same service."
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Bboxx designs manufactures and supports hardware and software solutions needed for the off-grid energy market, predominantly in Africa. It also builds businesses there. Seven years ago, Mr Patel went back to Kenya to join the solar revolution. “We provide solar energy on a service model and customers make daily or weekly payments in exchange for a service from us, like lights or TVs,” he said. “It starts from US$6 on a monthly basis.”
Around 160,000 households have been impacted by their work. “We’re looking at leveraging our technology in water, cooking and metering applications within mini grids,” Mr Patel said.
Sunna Design’s solar street lights are another finalist – a project that has helped a number of people in Mali. “I did volunteer work for a very large electrification organisation in India in 2009,” said Thomas Samuel, the company’s chief executive. “It was a very big market at the time, but there were some technological barriers that led to technical failures in the field and in providing good quality long-lasting products.”
The company’s concept is an integrated solar street light manufactured in collaboration with governments, municipalities and industries who want access reliable and sustainable products suited to their environment. Seven more projects are planned next year, including one in the UAE.
“It took us €10 million and three years of research to be able to develop and industrialise what we consider today the best [solar street lights] in the world,” he said. “It is an honour to have come this far in the Zayed Future Energy Prize. We are proud and it is the confirmation that we are on the right track to positive global impact.”
Super heroes
Iron Man
Reduced risk of dementia
Alcohol consumption could be an issue
Hulk
Cardiac disease, stroke and dementia from high heart rate
Spider-Man
Agility reduces risk of falls
Increased risk of obesity and mental health issues
Black Panther
Vegetarian diet reduces obesity
Unknown risks of potion drinking
Black Widow
Childhood traumas increase risk of mental illnesses
Thor
He's a god
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
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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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Carly Lewis (captain), Emily Fensome, Kelly Loy, Isabel Affley, Jessica Cronin, Jemma Eley, Jenna Guy, Kate Lewis, Megan Polley, Charlie Preston, Becki Quigley and Sophie Siffre. Deb Jones and Lucia Sdao – coach and assistant coach.
The Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize
This year’s winners of the US$4 million Sheikh Zayed Future Energy Prize will be recognised and rewarded in Abu Dhabi on January 15 as part of Abu Dhabi Sustainable Week, which runs in the capital from January 13 to 20.
From solutions to life-changing technologies, the aim is to discover innovative breakthroughs to create a new and sustainable energy future.
