RAS AL KHAIMAH // The mix of worshippers at Sheikha Jaziah Al Sabah mosque is a reflection of the eclectic neighbourhood of Mamourah that surrounds it.
Its bulbous minarets are dwarfed by loudspeakers that strain to push the call to prayer over the din of pigeon keepers, fish hawkers and carpenters sawing SpongeBob SquarePants-shaped bed frames.
Residents say the mosque was built before the mayhem, in the 1960s, when the neighbourhood was the sole preserve of fishermen and areesh houses.
The mosque matured with the neighbourhood. Residents say the current building - erected beside the old one about 15 years ago with a pillared hall and Mughal-inspired minarets - can hold 300 worshippers.
The old mosque, which held only 30 worshippers, was converted into the imam's house. In 1978, the imam's house became a cafeteria.
Abdul Kalam, 27, took over when his father died 10 years ago and runs Al Badr restaurant with his younger brother, Mohammed.
Mr Kalam knows that prayer makes people hungry. "On Fridays the streets are full all the way to this shop, people pray on the street," Mr Kalam said. "First they go to the masjid, then they come to the restaurant. When I go to the masjid I give thanks for Muslims."
His cafeteria closes five times a day for prayer and donates thousands of samosas and pakoras to the mosque during Ramadan. During the rest of the year business begins after fajr prayer but in Ramadan the shop becomes nocturnal, serving from 4pm until 3am.
Neither Mr Kalam nor any of his long-standing patrons know about the mysterious Sheikha Jaziah, the mosque's first patron. Yet none are surprised that a Kuwaiti royal would have donated here.
In the 1960s, before the UAE was formed, Kuwait was already investing in RAK's teachers, hospitals and, of course, mosques.
"The tribes with RAK had a strong connection," said Ali Al Mehry, a resident. "Before, 30 years ago, RAK was not developed as it is now. Sheikha Jaziah visited RAK and she saw that."
The mosque has enjoyed new popularity this year, thanks to an enormous iftar tent set up by the Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation.
Every night, volunteers serve fruit, laban, water and 50 huge platters of biryani to 230 workers. The cooks, visibly exhausted after a day of fasting and cooking, pour out the biryani with enormous ladles. They begin work at 6am and their shift does not end until every man is seated in front of a pile of rice.
Some lower income families park their cars outside the tent, and their children run in for plates of takeaway.
Shortly after the call to prayer, the shoes and their owners migrate en masse from the iftar tent to the mosque.
As the prayers begin, Emirati men and boys come from the dark streets into the mosque through the back door. Fishermen, some nearly blind, arrive clutching canes. Elderly men are in wheelchairs, escorted by their sons. Boys arrive early, teenagers run in late.
"God said we must help the poor," said Mahmoud Al Heshmi, 23, an Emirati volunteer who comes to the tent with his brother Abdulla.
The imam nodded his head. "All people in Ramadan learn ethics, education and patience," said Sheikh Hosni Husseini, 41.
Saleh Al Mehry, 60, knows the importance of charity. He can usually be found sipping sweet cardamom tea after evening prayers at Al Badr cafeteria. His life was not always such a treat.
Mr Al Mehry worked as a pearl diver and fisherman on Yemen's Socotra island, and as a waiter at a Lebanese restaurant in Bahrain before he settled in Mamourah to work for the electricity department in 1969.
Asked about charity, he says: "It is from God, it purifies. Whenever I found poor people who had no work I gave them zakat."
And when others ask what Ramadan means, he does not hesitate.
"Eating! Rice. Food. What else?"
"Nothing else?" asked his neighbour. "Prayers? Taraweeh?"
"Oh right, that too," he said.
azacharias@thenational.ae
@ For more on RAMADAN visit thenational.ae/topics
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The story of Edge
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, established Edge in 2019.
It brought together 25 state-owned and independent companies specialising in weapons systems, cyber protection and electronic warfare.
Edge has an annual revenue of $5 billion and employs more than 12,000 people.
Some of the companies include Nimr, a maker of armoured vehicles, Caracal, which manufactures guns and ammunitions company, Lahab
WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: N2 Technology
Founded: 2018
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Startups
Size: 14
Funding: $1.7m from HNIs
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More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Financial considerations before buying a property
Buyers should try to pay as much in cash as possible for a property, limiting the mortgage value to as little as they can afford. This means they not only pay less in interest but their monthly costs are also reduced. Ideally, the monthly mortgage payment should not exceed 20 per cent of the purchaser’s total household income, says Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching.
“If it’s a rental property, plan for the property to have periods when it does not have a tenant. Ensure you have enough cash set aside to pay the mortgage and other costs during these periods, ideally at least six months,” she says.
Also, shop around for the best mortgage interest rate. Understand the terms and conditions, especially what happens after any introductory periods, Ms Glynn adds.
Using a good mortgage broker is worth the investment to obtain the best rate available for a buyer’s needs and circumstances. A good mortgage broker will help the buyer understand the terms and conditions of the mortgage and make the purchasing process efficient and easier.
THE SPECS
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series
All matches at the Harare Sports Club:
1st ODI, Wednesday, April 10
2nd ODI, Friday, April 12
3rd ODI, Sunday, April 14
4th ODI, Tuesday, April 16
UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed
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The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
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Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
