Events
November 18
Emirates Kids Marathon
Sign up your children for the Emirates Kids Marathon, which aims to prevent obesity by inspiring kids to get involved in physical activities for a lifetime of healthy living. The event includes races of various lengths as well as fun activities such as face-painting, competitions and more. It's open to those between the ages of 5 and 13, and will be held at Al Mamzar Park, Dubai, from 2pm to 9pm. Register at www.emirateskidsmarathon.com.
November 18-19
YogaFest Middle East
This annual event features classes by Dechen Thurman, who is actress Uma Thurman's brother, plus cooking demonstrations, Arabic classes, body art and more than 150 talks, workshops, concerts, shopping and more. The event is free and will be held at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre each day from 7am to 7pm. Search for "Yogafest 2016" at www.eventbrite.com.
November 24
TrainZSC
Run the stairs at TrainZSC and enjoy a vertical training session in the cooler weather at the National Stadium at Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi, in this initiative by Daman's Activelife. Challenge yourself to the 884-stair course, or run or walk around the pitch. Children can enjoy the inflatable play area, and Daman will also offer free health checks. The event runs from 6pm to 9pm, and is free by registering online at www.trainzsc.com.
November 25
The Unity Run
Take part in this celebratory 3-kilometre run and 7km walk to raise money for Al Noor Training Centre for Persons With Disabilities, and raise awareness for those with special needs. Athletes of all ages – able-bodied and disabled – will participate together. The event will be held at Al Mamzar Beach, Dubai, from 10am. Visit www.theunityrun.com for more information.
December 1-3
Journey of Hope
Cycle through all seven emirates and see some of the UAE's most iconic sights on the Journey of Hope. Cyclists of all abilities can take part in the three-day road event that raises money for patients requiring emergency surgery and is sanctioned by the UAE Cycling Federation in association with Emirates Red Crescent. The event starts in Fujairah at 6am on day one; goes from Ras Al Khaimah to Sharjah on day two; and Dubai to Abu Dhabi on day three. For more details or to register, visit www.premieronline.com.
December 2
UAE Solidarity Walk
Be part of the 3km UAE Solidarity Walk, on UAE National Day, and celebrate the country's 45th birthday with a fun community event, where you can enjoy the fresh air and festivities with family and friends. The event will be held from 8am at the Mamzar Beach Tracks in Dubai. For more details or to register, visit www.premieronline.com.
December 2
Yas Mall Family Walkathon
Bring the family to Yas Mall for the Family Walkathon and enjoy a 10km walk inside the mall to celebrate a healthy community and UAE National Day. Dress in the colours of the UAE flag, but be sure to dress in practical sportswear for comfort and physical activity. The event will be held from 8am at Town Square, Yas Mall, Yas Island. For more details or to register, visit www.yasmall.ae.
NEWS
Fallouts of vitamin B12 deficiency
Children born to mothers who have vitamin B12 deficiency during pregnancy may be more likely to develop metabolic problems such as type 2 diabetes, researchers at the University of Warwick’s Warwick Medical School have discovered.
B12 is naturally found in animal products, including fish, meat, eggs and milk, and those deficient in the vitamin are more likely to be following a vegan diet.
The researchers found that maternal B12 deficiency may lead to high levels of the hormone leptin, which tells us whether we are full after eating, in children.
“The nutritional environment provided by the mother can permanently programme the baby’s health,” said Dr Ponnusamy Saravanan, senior author of the study, which was presented at the Society for Endocrinology’s annual conference in Brighton earlier this month. “We know that children born to under- or over-nourished mothers are at an increased risk of health problems, such as type 2 diabetes, and we also see that maternal B12 deficiency may affect fat metabolism and contribute to this risk.”
Are you addicted to social media?
Ever wondered if you’re addicted to social media? James Roberts, smartphone-addiction researcher and professor of marketing at Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business in Texas, says there are six questions people can ask themselves to determine whether they spend too much time on social media. The questions are based on the core components of substance and behavioural addictions.
1. Salience: Is your social-media use deeply integrated into your daily life?
2. Euphoria: Do you depend on social-media use for excitement throughout the day?
3. Tolerance: Do you need to spend more time to get a “buzz” from social media?
4. Withdrawal symptoms: Do you get nervous when you are not on social media?
5. Conflict: Does your use of social media cause you trouble?
6. Relapse: Have you tried to cut back on your use of social media, but failed?
“If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to three or more of these questions, you might need to reconsider your use of social media,” Roberts says.
With input from Amanda Tomlinson
efortini@thenational.ae
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
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.”
The Bio
Hometown: Bogota, Colombia
Favourite place to relax in UAE: the desert around Al Mleiha in Sharjah or the eastern mangroves in Abu Dhabi
The one book everyone should read: 100 Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. It will make your mind fly
Favourite documentary: Chasing Coral by Jeff Orlowski. It's a good reality check about one of the most valued ecosystems for humanity
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
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
MATCH INFO
Euro 2020 qualifier
Croatia v Hungary, Thursday, 10.45pm, UAE
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
FIGHT CARD
Welterweight Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Tohir Zhuraev (TJK)
Catchweight 75kg Leandro Martins (BRA) v Anas Siraj Mounir (MAR)
Flyweight Corinne Laframboise (CAN) v Manon Fiorot (FRA)
Featherweight Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Bogdan Kirilenko (UZB)
Lightweight Izzedine Al Derabani (JOR) v Atabek Abdimitalipov (KYG)
Featherweight Yousef Al Housani (UAE) v Mohamed Arsharq Ali (SLA)
Catchweight 69kg Jung Han-gook (KOR) v Elias Boudegzdame (ALG)
Catchweight 71kg Usman Nurmagomedov (RUS) v Jerry Kvarnstrom (FIN)
Featherweight title Lee Do-gyeom (KOR) v Alexandru Chitoran (ROU)
Lightweight title Bruno Machado (BRA) v Mike Santiago (USA)
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
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A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
