Technology

Ministry launches portal to improve accountability

The system, named ADAA after the Arabic word for performance, was custom made for the UAE by Microsoft and unveiled at the Gitex.

Keach Hagey

October 19, 2008

An online Arabic management portal that allows all Federal entities to submit performance reports electronically has been set up by the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs to better monitor the Government's progress and boost accountability. The system, named ADAA after the Arabic word for performance, was custom made for the UAE by Microsoft and unveiled at the Gitex Technology Week conference in Dubai yesterday. It has been in use since the beginning of the year.

"It is the first integrated electronic portal in the region," said Ohood al Roumi, the executive director of the Prime Minister's Office. The ministry sought the online solution after it was instructed to find a way to ensure that plans outlined in the Federal Government Strategy for 2008 to 2010 were implemented effectively. That strategy was launched in April last year with the goal of realising sustainable and balanced development and providing a higher standard of living for citizens.

Given the size of the task, Ms Roumi said: "We thought we needed an electronic system." The one they asked for was online and highly secure, she added. It provides detailed reports to each ministry and authority and a main dashboard for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The system has 160 users from 36 Federal Government entities. It includes more than 3,000 "key performance indicators" that represent the goals and initiatives included in the Federal Government Strategy. Performance indicators measure elements including customer satisfaction with government services and the level of training within a certain ministry. Progress towards objectives is measured numerically, and shows up in graphical form designed to look like a website.

"It allows us to have a clear picture of the level of government performance," Ms Roumi said. The system is in its first phase, which provides a centralised system in the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs. The second stage will be introduced next year and will include pilot projects and the use of ADAA internally within departments. By 2010, the system will be employed internally at all levels of government, down to measuring individual employees' performances and aligning those performances with organisational goals.

These tactics were common in the private sphere, Ms Roumi said, but were groundbreaking for government in the region. khagey@thenational.ae

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While you're here

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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