Sheila Shadmand moved to Dubai from Washington, DC in 2008 to open the Middle East offices of her law firm, Jones Day. The Iranian-American, 40, specialises in international litigation, arbitration and US regulatory compliance including anti-corruption. Here she talks about perceptions of corruption in the UAE and how the Middle East culture of hospitality can coexist with anti-corruption laws.
Why anti-corruption work?
I find it very interesting as a substantive area of law but I also think that corruption in general is harmful for public society and, in particular, harmful for public society in parts of the world where they don’t necessarily have access to a strong judicial system or strong rule of law. The people who suffer are the people who are in impoverished nations and people who don’t have a stronger voice. I conduct training programmes for clients all over the world and one of the things I often get asked is why the US government is trying to impose its policies on the rest of the world. I try to explain that corruption is something that really does touch all of us. For example, in India and Bangladesh we’ve had a few tragic examples where buildings have collapsed and people have been killed; those things happen and they can be bred to happen when you have an environment where public officials are being paid [bribed] to sign off on the health and safety code of a building when it’s not up to health and safety standards.
Is it correct to say the UAE is perceived as having low levels of corruption?
Transparency International [the global civil society organisation fighting corruption] does rank the UAE and Qatar pretty closely together and pretty closely with other western nations such as the US as having a low corruption perception. The perception of corruption is what prohibits people from investing; if a country has a high perception there many be a number of businesses and internationals who don’t want to take the risk and don’t invest in those countries. The perception of corruption can actually be harmful to a country’s economy.
Is the UAE putting the right legislation in place to create an environment free of corruption?
I definitely think so and I think that is reflected in why the UAE has a relatively low corruption perception. It is what makes investors feel much more comfortable with bringing their business to the UAE instead of some other Middle Eastern or Gulf country. Having a strong regulatory environment is very helpful; the DIFC is a perfect example of that. It’s a regulatory beacon in the Middle East where investors from around the world feel there is a strong and enforced regulatory environment. It makes people more comfortable when talking about investment. The stability of the government is a big factor as well. Understanding that there is a strong economy and a stable economy helps people understand that corruption is not a necessary means of doing business but rather the inverse is true: that it’s a strong competitive environment where the best goods and services are winning at the end of the day.
Is there any sense that people with the right political connections will win more deals here?
What the UAE has done very well is try to make sure the best of the world is here and what that engenders is the type of competition where the best goods and the best service is probably going to win the bid. When you have an economy that is as open as it is here, when it is open to international companies and international business, that provides a somewhat level playing field. That helps promote competition, fairness and further investment because people feel that if they have a better service or product they can come to this country and legitimately compete for it.
Is the Middle Eastern culture of hospitality and gifts at odds with efforts to eradicate corruption and bribery?
To some extent at surface level it is. But corruption is very much focused on the intent behind the gift and UAE anti-corruption laws are very much focused on that. So if you are generally promoting your service and product without that corrupt intent or [in expectation of a] quid pro quo or to unlawfully try to endure someone to change their mind about something through the gift or the hospitality, then that would be a violation of the laws. You can have an environment where gifts and hospitality of a reasonable nature are still allowed to legally coexist with a strong anti-corruption compliance programme. A number of companies here do have that. It’s just a matter of knowing what your policies are and setting out very standard procedures where clear lines are drawn, where there is no grey area.
lgutcher@thenational.ae
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How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
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Our family matters legal consultant
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Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Stage result
1. Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 4:42:34
2. Sam Bennett (Irl) Bora-Hansgrohe
3. Elia Viviani (Ita) Ineos Grenadiers
4. Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) BikeExchange-Jayco
5. Emils Liepins (Lat) Trek-Segafredo
6. Arnaud Demare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
7. Max Kanter (Ger) Movistar Team
8. Olav Kooij (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
9. Tom Devriendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
10. Pascal Ackermann (Ger) UAE Team Emirate
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Company%20Profile
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Super 30
Produced: Sajid Nadiadwala and Phantom Productions
Directed: Vikas Bahl
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Srivastav, Mrinal Thakur
Rating: 3.5 /5
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
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Our legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
