ABU DHABI // Strolling through historic streets, sipping coffee and enjoying the leafy surroundings as musicians play for the crowds.
This image will soon be reality for Abu Dhabi residents and tourists who have welcomed news that the site of Qasr Al Hosn, the symbolic birthplace of Abu Dhabi and longtime home to the ruling Al Nahyan family, will undergo a year-long renovation.
The masterplan features the conservation of the site and National Consultative Council and the preservation of the Cultural Foundation buildings.
The plan will also entail wider development of the surrounding area, said Mohamed Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of TCA Abu Dhabi.
“The 400 square metre site will become a cultural park-scape, landscaped with indigenous plants and trees including palms and ghaf trees,” he said.
“Alongside the annual festival, the site will play host to concerts, exhibitions and cultural events, with new cafes and gathering spaces for residents and tourists alike, to enjoy the space.
“It will be reinstated as the cultural heart of the city and people from across the nation will be drawn by its appeal.
“Blending modernity alongside the emirate’s maritime and desert heritage, the buildings on either side contrast the Abu Dhabi of today, with that of its past.”
Qasr Al Hosn was built in 1760 as a watchtower to defend the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.
The tower was later expanded and took its present shape after a major extension into the palace.
Following conservation work in the 1970s and 1980s, it was turned into a museum displaying archaeological collections, artefacts and pictures representing the history of Abu Dhabi and the Arabian Gulf area.
A new, permanent exhibition at the Qasr Al Hosn Centre tells the story of Abu Dhabi and its people through the building.
Dr Cody Morris Paris, associate professor of tourism and deputy director of Middlesex University Dubai, said the plans were hugely significant for Qasr Al Hosn, “an iconic heritage attraction of significant cultural and historical importance”.
“With Qasr Al Hosn at the centre, the development plans of the wider surrounding cultural quarter will continue to transform the area into a destination that engages and educates citizens, residents, and tourists and provides visitors with an authentic experience of Emirati culture, heritage, pride and identity,” he said.
Indian expat Nicole Simoes, 24, grew up studying in the Cultural Foundation library, which was demolished several years ago.
“I love the idea of opening the space to residents again,” she said. “Abu Dhabi needs a space like it, something new and different with a hint of local heritage.”
Mahmoud Manna, 24, a Jordanian engineer has lived in Abu Dhabi since birth. He said he looked forward to the city having a focal point.
“The re-opened space will bring back that feeling we had growing up in Abu Dhabi,” he said.
“The location of Al Hosn is exactly in the centre of the island, which also means easy access for all residents in Abu Dhabi and a place for a nice walk, which is exactly what we need.”
British expat, David Fox, 50, welcomed the more traditional space to spend time.
“There are not enough places in Abu Dhabi like a cultural village, so it is great to have one, but we seriously don’t need more cafés,” he said.
“The likes of Starbucks and Costa would ruin what the fort is trying to bring back. I hope they have traditional restaurants with traditional food.”
Italian expat and parent, Shahnaz Bazliel, 46, said the area help expats better connect with local culture.
“Most expats here do not have their family and friends to fall back on to nourish a child’s curiosity about where they live and how it all came together,” she said.
“A lot of residents are raised here still have very little local knowledge. I hope there will be a rotation of cultural events there like basket making, cooking lessons and story telling that proves to be a perfect day out for the family.”
Saif Al Qaydi, professor of economic geography at UAE University, said the site would draw in tourists, a major area of development as Abu Dhabi diversifies its economy.
“Qasr Al Hosn is an important centre for people to learn about the culture of the UAE, which is a very rich culture, from its farming to its fishing culture, but very few people coming to the UAE know about that.”
He said such developments lead to new infrastructure which benefits the city, from transport to roads.
Though it will inevitably cause some disruption, as areas around the site even are upgraded, he said: “Any new project might cause some disturbances for the people used to using certain routes but using new technology and planning theories, it’s getting easier to minimise these.”
mswan@thenational.ae
mmannan@thenational.ae
Race%20card
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
The%20specs
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
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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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
