ABU DHABI // All crowded places will have to conform to new safety and security rules to ensure public safety from crime and terrorism is maintained as the emirate grows.
The guidelines, detailed by the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council (UPC), will apply from Wednesday for any planned developments, such as hotels and malls.
Existing gathering places that do not follow the new rules will have to be upgraded.
Poorly lit spaces, lack of surveillance, uncontrolled escape routes and inadequate access for emergency vehicles are among the checklist developers and owners will have to address.
“We want to create communities free of the fear of crime,” said Hassan Al Hassani, senior associate planner of safety and security at the UPC.
Mr Al Hassani said the rules, outlined in the Safety and Security Planning Manual, aimed to keep the emirate safe and secure as its population grew under its Vision 2030 plan.
“Everyone knows Abu Dhabi is a safe and secure place and that is the purpose of this manual – to ensure that Abu Dhabi remains safe and secure as our country grows and diversifies,” he said.
“The manual will ensure the creation of safe, secure and sustainable communities for new developments and existing areas.”
The rules were drawn up in collaboration with agencies including Abu Dhabi Police, the Armed Forces and Civil Defence.
Sultan Al Ketbi, associate of safety and security planning at the UPC, said there were three aspects to any crime – the location, the victim and the offender.
“What we are focusing on is location,” Mr Al Ketbi said. “We do not deal with criminals or victims because other entities deal with those elements.
“Our mandate is to deal with location from the planning and design practice. The location and design of buildings and areas have a contribution to reduce crime.”
UPC officers will inspect existing developments and those being built to determine which do not meet the new criteria.
A deadline for when each development must conform to the rules will be determined case by case, said Mr Al Hassani. Any retrofitting costs will have to be met by the developer.
Falah Al Ahbabi, general manager of the UPC, said the guidelines would cover access and connectivity, structure and spatial layout, ownership, surveillance, activity, physical security, public image and adaptability.
Mr Al Ahbabi said the manual, which took nine months to compile, followed a major study of community safety and protective security at international, regional and local levels.
“While the manual does not set out to offer detailed guidance for each sector, it presents fundamental principles and guidance that are applicable to a large geographical area and a wide range of projects,” he said.
“It intends to be a clear starting point to identify those projects that shall be treated with high priority in regards to the incorporation of safety and security features.”
Maj Gen Obaid Al Ketbi, deputy general commander of Abu Dhabi Police, said the guidelines would mean fewer victims of crime.
“It is a vital tool to help enhance living standards and national identity by promoting safety and security in building and landscape design in new and existing communities,” Gen Al Ketbi said.
The rules will apply to hotels, resorts, restaurants, cafes, shopping malls, souqs, markets, leisure clubs, exhibition centres, tourist attractions, religious sites and places of worships, transport stations, cinemas and schools and universities.
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Ahmad El Sayed is Senior Associate at Charles Russell Speechlys, a law firm headquartered in London with offices in the UK, Europe, the Middle East and Hong Kong.
Experience: Commercial litigator who has assisted clients with overseas judgments before UAE courts. His specialties are cases related to banking, real estate, shareholder disputes, company liquidations and criminal matters as well as employment related litigation.
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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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Six tips to secure your smart home
Most smart home devices are controlled via the owner's smartphone. Therefore, if you are using public wi-fi on your phone, always use a VPN (virtual private network) that offers strong security features and anonymises your internet connection.
Keep your smart home devices’ software up-to-date. Device makers often send regular updates - follow them without fail as they could provide protection from a new security risk.
Use two-factor authentication so that in addition to a password, your identity is authenticated by a second sign-in step like a code sent to your mobile number.
Set up a separate guest network for acquaintances and visitors to ensure the privacy of your IoT devices’ network.
Change the default privacy and security settings of your IoT devices to take extra steps to secure yourself and your home.
Always give your router a unique name, replacing the one generated by the manufacturer, to ensure a hacker cannot ascertain its make or model number.
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