More than 2,000 people have been invited to the coronation service for King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla at Westminster Abbey, among them a young Syrian and a Jordanian who have benefitted from The Prince's Trust.
In addition to members of the royal family, heads of state and civil society members, 400 young people representing charitable organisations will have the opportunity to watch the coronation service and processions from inside St Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey.
King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan have confirmed that they will attend. The royal couple spoke movingly of their admiration for Queen Elizabeth II after her death and said they were looking forward to celebrating the new king's reign.
Two young people from the Middle East who have received support from The Prince's Trust have been invited to the coronation service.
Hassan Alkhawam, 24, sought sanctuary in Northern Ireland with his family in 2017 after escaping the conflict in Syria and was supported by The Prince’s Trust to fulfil his dream of studying software engineering at university.
As well as working part time and studying, Mr Alkhawam volunteers to help others who have experienced similar challenges.
The UK prepares for the coronation of King Charles III - in pictures
He is a founding member and voluntary director of social enterprise NI Hyatt, which helps refugees and migrants in Northern Ireland to create social connections, gain access to learning opportunities and gain recognition for their skills and experience so they can more easily become integral members of their community.
“The help and encouragement I received was amazing,” Mr Alkhawam said.
“I’m grateful to The Prince’s Trust for all their support in helping me achieve a better life, not just for me, but for my family.”
In 2021, Mr Alkhawam was awarded The Prince’s Trust Young Achiever Award at The Daily Mirror Pride of Britain Awards, in partnership with TSB.
Sara Arah Abu Al Wafa, 26, also benefited from the Tariqi programme Prince’s Trust International ran in partnership with the Business Development Centre in Jordan.
As a result of her time in the programme, she was able to take on a role working in the insurance sector and currently works an account manager at Gulf Insurance Group.
Ms Abu Al Wafa is one of the top achievers in her organisation.
Armed forces rehearse for king's coronation - in pictures
Prominent international figures will attend the coronation. About 100 heads of state, as well as representatives from 203 countries, are expected in London.
Amazonian leaders are set to present the monarch with a feathered crown in recognition of his commitment to protecting the rainforest and promoting harmony between humanity and nature.
Uyunkar Domingo Peas, leader of the Achuar Nation of the Ecuadorean Amazon, met the king in February and presented him with a symbolic seed necklace.
In addition to the Amazonian leaders, King Charles will hold an audience with the Ashanti King from Ghana, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, and welcome Canadian indigenous leaders, Chief Roseanne Archibald, Natan Obed, and Natalie Caron.
Celebrities including Lionel Richie and Ant and Dec have also been invited to attend the coronation service due to their work with The Prince's Trust.
Edward Enninful, editor-in-chief of British Vogue, will also be in attendance due to his role as global ambassador at the trust.
Jay Blades, a Prince’s Foundation ambassador best known as the presenter of hit BBC series The Repair Shop, has also been invited to the royal event.
He presented The Repair Shop: A Royal Visit, which was filmed in 2021 and shone the spotlight on the work being done by The Prince's Foundation to preserve traditional craft skills that are at risk of being lost.
The coronation coaches - in pictures
Kelly Jones, lead singer of band Stereophonics, is also attending the coronation service. His band were supported by The Prince’s Trust before they were signed to a record deal.
The trust gave the band a grant for them to buy new equipment so they could perform live and they credit the trust with “helping them to be heard”.
Shortly after they received this support, they signed a record deal and made their way on the path to fame.
World-renowned magician Dynamo, whose real name is Steven Frayne, started his career through support, advice and a business start-up loan from The Prince’s Trust.
“The Prince’s Trust gave me the support no one else would and it changed my life — that’s real magic,” Dynamo said.
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The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
%3Cp%3EFirst%20ODI%20-%20Sunday%2C%20June%204%20%0D%3Cbr%3ESecond%20ODI%20-%20Tuesday%2C%20June%206%20%0D%3Cbr%3EThird%20ODI%20-%20Friday%2C%20June%209%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EMatches%20at%20Sharjah%20Cricket%20Stadium.%20All%20games%20start%20at%204.30pm%0D%3Cbr%3E%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EMuhammad%20Waseem%20(captain)%2C%20Aayan%20Khan%2C%20Adithya%20Shetty%2C%20Ali%20Naseer%2C%20Ansh%20Tandon%2C%20Aryansh%20Sharma%2C%20Asif%20Khan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Ethan%20D%E2%80%99Souza%2C%20Fahad%20Nawaz%2C%20Jonathan%20Figy%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Lovepreet%20Singh%2C%20Matiullah%2C%20Mohammed%20Faraazuddin%2C%20Muhammad%20Jawadullah%2C%20Rameez%20Shahzad%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Sanchit%20Sharma%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
THE%20SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%203-litre%20V6%20turbo%20(standard%20model%2C%20E-hybrid)%3B%204-litre%20V8%20biturbo%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20350hp%20(standard)%3B%20463hp%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20467hp%20(S)%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20500Nm%20(standard)%3B%20650Nm%20(E-hybrid)%3B%20600Nm%20(S)%0D%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh368%2C500%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Groom and Two Brides
Director: Elie Semaan
Starring: Abdullah Boushehri, Laila Abdallah, Lulwa Almulla
Rating: 3/5
Simran
Director Hansal Mehta
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Soham Shah, Esha Tiwari Pandey
Three stars
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- Margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars
- Energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- Infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes
- Many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
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