The plan will include preparing for possible dangers including fires, bomb threats and incidents involving hazardous materials.
The plan will include preparing for possible dangers including fires, bomb threats and incidents involving hazardous materials.

Emergency response plans compulsory by year's end



DUBAI // A new municipal regulation will require companies to set up emergency response plans by the end of the year.

All businesses, from small companies to shopping malls, will be required to comply.

Inspectors will immediately notify businesses and hand out a detailed emergency planning booklet for a swift process, said Sultan Essa Al Suwaidi, the head of the public health and safety department at the municipality.

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The booklet will be divided into four sections, and will be used as a guideline for procedures.

The plan will include preparing for possible dangers including fires, bomb threats and incidents involving hazardous materials.

"If the company fully understands and evaluates each risk such as chemical leaks, fires or outbreaks of bacteria, correct preventative measures including safety systems, equipment and gear will be in place," Mr Al Suwaidi said.

Unnecessary calls to Dubai Police or Civil Defence can also be reduced if the situation could be dealt with internally, said Arnel Capili, a corporate emergency specialist at the municipality.

"What we tend to see is many companies calling government services for minor issues without trying to handle it themselves," Mr Capili said.

Mr Al Suwaidi said although the level of safety in Dubai was one of the highest, an upgrade using an emergency response plan would help to maintain public safety.

"I want all companies to be ready. It's very important because we are talking about safety," he said. "Dubai Municipality inspectors will communicate with establishments across the board in order to change behaviour to then have the plan implemented by the end of 2011."

The four sections of the emergency preparedness booklet are: establishing the plan; organising a team; training and equipping the team; and testing and reviewing the plan.

"This should be simple for organisations based on risk assessment and depends on the nature of services," Mr Capili said.

"Identifying how they will co-ordinate with police, care for victims, administer first aid, assess damage and inform the public is crucial."

Mr Al Suwaidi said the team must be set up from within the company.

"This committee will be no use if not trained and fully equipped," he said. "The team is to be first responders in order to manage the emergency before it gets out of hand."

The team will be trained in evacuation procedures, basic firefighting and hazardous materials. After that, evacuation drills with or without emergency workers can be carried out. A liaison should also be appointed to deal with staff, clients, customers and the public.

"A crisis communication plan means no misinformation," Mr Capili said. "The liaison should deliver clear information on what happened, what is being done and the next step."

In case of evacuation, accounting for everyone is essential. Some of the most fatal fires have started in nightclubs abroad, he added.

"This has not happened in Dubai but such plans will prevent unnecessary tragedies," Mr Capili said.

Paul Nock, the director of training at the health and safety consultancy Sheilds ME: "Creating a safer work and public environment is the basis of a well-defined modern metropolis."

The initiative, Mr Nock said, would raise awareness.

"It will create a safety culture, making everybody responsible for themselves and those around them, which in turn will make the city a safer place to live, work and raise families," Mr Nock said.

"Having properly trained staff is the easiest way to assess dangers and risks associated with your industry."

Four points to be addressed

Establish a plan: Core elements include organisational structure, protective action, caring for victims, assessing damage, informing the public and restoring essential services.

Organise your team: The team is in charge of developing, implementing and reviewing the emergency plan.

Train and equip your team: Training will occur according to types of threat and will include basic firefighting, evacuation and dealing with hazardous materials.

Test and review plans: This can include table-top exercises, evacuation drills, and full-scale drills involving emergency services.

* Source: Dubai Municipality

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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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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

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