Mauritanians have voted to abolish their senate and alter their national flag by referendum, the electoral commission announced on Sunday, in a clear victory for president Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz.
Although turnout was only 53.73 per cent, 85 per cent of voters on Saturday said "Yes" to changes that were put to a referendum after being defeated in the senate in March. It came despite fierce criticism from a boycott movement which organised mass protests during campaigning.
The boycott movement drew broad political support from figures as diverse as religious conservatives and anti-slavery activists.
Members of opposition parties spearheading the movement held a press conference on Sunday during which they denounced an "electoral farce which has given way to open-air fraud," adding that people "had clearly rejected the constitutional amendments".
They said they would not recognise the results of the referendum, having previously claimed the government would rig the vote.
The most contentious issue surrounding the vote, given that just one opposition party campaigned for "No" while the boycott campaign attracted several parties and civil society movements, was the turnout.
Turnout was just 36 per cent in the capital, Nouakchott, though was much higher in rural areas, at times hitting 80 per cent, the electoral commission said.
The boycott movement held several protests attracting thousands of supporters, but was also prevented from demonstrating by the security forces, who on Thursday shut down several planned rallies close to the capital with tear gas and beat protesters back with batons.
The United Nations Human Rights Office said on Thursday that "protest leaders were reportedly beaten up and a number of them were arrested" during campaign rallies in the last few weeks, urging the government to ensure fair and credible elections.
Around 1.4 million Mauritanians were eligible to vote, and celebrations were expected from the select opposition parties that did support the revision.
The opposition groups opposed to the measure say they are concerned that, despite Mr Aziz's claims to the contrary, he is laying the groundwork for a third term in power — with his own prime minister saying last month that he supported the idea.
Mr Aziz himself fuelled speculation on Saturday by saying that "in two years, or even 10 years other amendments could arise to adapt our constitution to reality", without elaborating.
The proposal to modify the constitution, which has been in force since 1991, was rejected by the senate in March, leading Mr Aziz to call the referendum to push through the changes.
Around 20 senators, who had held a sit-in for three days at their chamber, suspended their protest and said they would gather on Monday to consider the "fraud" committed by Mr Aziz and his supporters.
Mr Aziz came to power in a coup in 2008 and was elected to the post of president the following year. In 2014, he was re-elected for a second five-year term.
The Mauritanian flag will now feature red bands added to the current green flag with yellow Islamic crescent and star, to honour the blood spilt by those who fought for freedom from colonial master France.
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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 White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
