ABU DHABI // The demographics of the UAE and its labour system are among issues legislators hope to discuss in the coming months, as Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, opens the new session of the Federal National Council today.
In the next three months the FNC is also expected to discuss rising commodity prices and legislation regulating media activities.
As the council prepares to sit today, a long-serving member said the body must become more effective and make changes that affect the lives of UAE citizens. Ali Jasem, the second deputy speaker, said he was not satisfied with the council's performance. He said it should be more specific in the recommendations it makes to the country's leaders.
In his opening speech, Sheikh Mohammed is expected to outline some of the Government's policies and its expectations for the FNC. Today's session follows the council's summer break, which lasted for nearly five months.
Some members are hoping that more powers will be given to the FNC, with the expectation that the council could be extended for two more years. It would be the first extension since the legislative body was created in 1972 and would require a constitutional amendment.
Some members expect such an amendment to be made during a meeting of the UAE's Supreme Council - made up of the rulers of each emirate - which could sit as soon as next month.
The 40-member council is otherwise scheduled to dissolve in February.
Although half of FNC members were elected in 2006, the UAE does not have an electoral law. Instead its members are chosen by a hand-picked group of Emiratis, who vote from a list of candidates. The other half of the members are appointed by rulers of each emirate.
Mr Jasem said if another election were to be held, legislation to regulate the process would be necessary.
He added that the council needed to do more to ensure it was effective.
"As the longest-serving member of the council, I don't think the current parliament has achieved any tangible things that we can see on the ground, that can serve our citizens."
Other councils, he said, had brought to being programmes such as the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme and the Marriage Programme.
"The current council was not even able to increase the budget of the housing programme and the value of the loans."
The Government today will respond to a set of recommendations on housing passed earlier this year by the FNC. Some of these called on local authorities to provide land for housing projects.
Mr Jasem added that no significant achievements were made in areas such as health and education, rising commodity prices or the issue of the population imbalance
He said the way recommendations were formulated had to be changed. "There are many recommendations," he said, suggesting it could have been easier for the Government to handle fewer and more specific recommendations.
Another drawback, he said, was that the FNC had not been empowered.
"If the council is not given more mandate, it will not make any tangible changes, such as suggesting new laws and approving the budget.
At present, the FNC can only suggest changes and vote on laws drafted by federal ministries and bodies. The President gives the final approval.
The council is only informed of the state budget, without having the power to suggest changes.
Mohammed Zaabi, a member from Sharjah said the work of the FNC should be evaluated by external parties such as parliamentary experts and the media. He added, however: "Personally, I think the performance was good. Given its mandate, its treatment of the different issues was balanced and reasonable."
He said the council had discussed and passed several laws with changes made by the members. One of the most controversial recommended by the FNC was legislation banning the use of frozen embryos for fertility treatment.
"According to my information, the Government has reacted to our recommendations," he said.
Dr Anwar Gargash, the Minister of State for FNC Affairs, will today hand more than half a dozen letters outlining the Government's position on issues the council earlier this year discussed and passed recommendations on.
One letter advises the council not to discuss the jurisdictions of the federal government.
@Email:mhabboush@thenational.ae
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.”
How The Debt Panel's advice helped readers in 2019
December 11: 'My husband died, so what happens to the Dh240,000 he owes in the UAE?'
JL, a housewife from India, wrote to us about her husband, who died earlier this month. He left behind an outstanding loan of Dh240,000 and she was hoping to pay it off with an insurance policy he had taken out. She also wanted to recover some of her husband’s end-of-service liabilities to help support her and her son.
“I have no words to thank you for helping me out,” she wrote to The Debt Panel after receiving the panellists' comments. “The advice has given me an idea of the present status of the loan and how to take it up further. I will draft a letter and send it to the email ID on the bank’s website along with the death certificate. I hope and pray to find a way out of this.”
November 26: ‘I owe Dh100,000 because my employer has not paid me for a year’
SL, a financial services employee from India, left the UAE in June after quitting his job because his employer had not paid him since November 2018. He owes Dh103,800 on four debts and was told by the panellists he may be able to use the insolvency law to solve his issue.
SL thanked the panellists for their efforts. "Indeed, I have some clarity on the consequence of the case and the next steps to take regarding my situation," he says. "Hopefully, I will be able to provide a positive testimony soon."
October 15: 'I lost my job and left the UAE owing Dh71,000. Can I return?'
MS, an energy sector employee from South Africa, left the UAE in August after losing his Dh12,000 job. He was struggling to meet the repayments while securing a new position in the UAE and feared he would be detained if he returned. He has now secured a new job and will return to the Emirates this month.
“The insolvency law is indeed a relief to hear,” he says. "I will not apply for insolvency at this stage. I have been able to pay something towards my loan and credit card. As it stands, I only have a one-month deficit, which I will be able to recover by the end of December."
The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level
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