Syrian authorities need to prove goodwill
On Tuesday, the newly appointed Syrian cabinet approved draft legislation to lift the state of emergency, abolish the state security court and allow peaceful protest, observed the London-based Al Quds al Arabi daily in its editorial.
From a theoretical point of view, this was a good move on the part of the Syrian government. It is a positive response to the ever-growing popular demands that came as a reaction to decades of unbridled oppression.
Since promising to lift martial rule within a week during his most recent speech, President Bashar al Assad has proved to be true to his word.
"The Syrian president's response to his people's justified demands is commendable. But, doubts as to the seriousness of this unprecedented measure are expected to continue until the people see tangible results."
The people's uncertainty is grounded in the fact that this sizable concession by the Syrian government has never been witnessed in the past. Many sceptics think it is a ploy to gain time and contain the protests; an opinion not to be brushed aside considering the performance of the government and its security apparatus in the past.
"Despite this, the Syrian people must give their authorities a chance to prove their goodwill in implementing this legislation and taking further steps towards fulfilling popular demands."
Nato alliance losing credibility in Libya
Colonel Muammar Qaddafi's ability to withstand the offensive and even take back a number of the towns that the pro-democracy fighters were able to capture during the early days of the revolution came as a surprise to many, wrote the columnist Fahd el Fanek in his article for the Jordanian Al Rai daily.
The Libyan colonel was on the brink of squashing the uprising if it weren't for the UN Security Council and the Nato alliance decision to assist the rebels.
However, it seems that matters have reached a standstill. Nato hasn't resolved the battle yet. State-run radios and TV channels are still working uninterrupted. The delay in resolution reveals dissent among the members of the Nato alliance. The objective of the military operations remains unclear. Should the regime be toppled in favour of the rebels or should the state of balance be preserved in a way that prolongs the fight indefinitely?
In the absence of a definitive solution and in case a ceasefire was reached, Libya risks becoming divided between a Qaddafi-run west and a revolutionary east.
"The protection of civilians is nothing but a pretext. Civilians are more at risk with the ongoing conflict."
If the military operations were to continue without a clear end, the Nato alliance would have to bear the blame, especially as it risks losing credibility and justification for interference.
Many hurdles in the way of the revolution
There is no denying that what has happened in Egypt was close to a miracle that not even the staunchest of optimists could have predicted, commented the Emirati newspaper Al Bayan in its editorial.
The Egyptian revolutionaries must now move forward and overcome hard obstacles that still hinder the full realisation of their democratic objectives.
These are problems that require a high level of coordination to solve, not least of which is the recent report by the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces about the "stark and alarming" deteriorating economic situation in Egypt and the sharp rise in public debt and inflation.
"If we add these facts to Egypt's previous shortages, we realise that there are many internal impediments to the fulfilment of the revolution's objectives. Should this situation continue, there will be those in Egypt who will long for the pre-revolution days."
Meanwhile, Egypt faces many external challenges. Its relationship with the Nile Basin states is in question, as it has yet to guarantee its quota of the river's water to maintain its agricultural resources. Add to that, the events in adjacent Libya are sure to impact Egypt at least economically seeing that the remittances from Egyptian workers was approximately $2 billion.
The Arab League HQ must stay in Cairo
There has been a great debate about the leadership of the Arab League since the incumbent secretary general Amr Moussa announced that he would not seek to renew his tenure and rather run for office in Egypt's upcoming presidential elections, wrote Tareq al Homayed, the editor-in-chief of the London-based Asharq al Awsat newspaper.
The question that keeps coming up is: must the post of secretary general be filled by another Egyptian official, or is it time for a change?
"The state of affairs in the region now dictates that not only should the leadership of the Arab League remain with the Egyptians, but also its headquarters must stay in Cairo.
"For neither is Iraq prepared as yet to hold an Arab League summit, nor are relations between Arab states favourable to a change of the venue."
If the venues are made to rotate in this particular phase, Arab League summits would turn into "shows" and "lectures" depending on the host country's interests and agendas.
"There is a need now to limit all summits to the headquarters in Cairo, which will be more practical."
Besides, there is a unanimous Arab acceptance of Egypt as a key player in Arab affairs.
* Digest compiled by Racha Makarem
rmakarem@thenational.ae
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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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