The protests in Iraq over a lack of basic services have dealt a blow to Iran’s influence in the country, experts say.
Residents of southern Iraq have taken to the streets since mid-July to vent their anger over the government's failure to provide clean water, reliable power supply and jobs. The unrest spread to cities across the south from Basra and even reached the capital, Baghdad.
Ordinary Iraqis see Tehran's support of the country’s political elite as an obstacle to reform in the country.
But many Iraqi Shiite politicians have also become anti-Iranian, leaving Tehran in a very delicate position, said Renad Mansour, senior research fellow at Chatham House.
The protests erupted after Iran cut off its electricity supply to Iraq in early July - the height of summer - over unpaid bills, leading to accusations that Tehran was seeking to create unrest in the country.
"Protest movements in the country have been anti-Iranian, they view Tehran as the occupying power and strongest foreign actor in Iraq," Mr Mansour told The National.
He said some Iraqis suspect the Iranian move was an attempt to influence the formation of Iraq’s next government following the May 12 general election.
Voters seeking change rejected many established political figures and gave the alliance led by populist Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr the most seats but not a majority, leaving the country in a political limbo.
“It seems every summer since 2003, with brutally hot temperatures, Iraqis take to the streets because the government can’t keep the electricity on," said Andrew Parasiliti, director of the Rand Centre for Global Risk and Security.
“This year the protests are more intense, and growing, coupled with frustration over corruption and inadequate social services."
_____________
Read more
Abadi sacks Iraq's electricity minister after protests
Iraq says Saudi to sell power at a fraction of Iran's price
Iraqi farmers fight to save cattle as drought tightens its grip
_____________
In Basra, demonstrators held signs calling for Iran to "get out" and set fire to the headquarters of the Badr Organisation, a political party with close ties to Iran.
Protesters also attacked offices of Dawa, Hikma, Fadhila, Kataeb Hezbollah and other parties that have close links to Iran and have electoral strongholds in the country's centre and south.
In Najaf, they stormed the airport, briefly halting air traffic. In Karbala, they set fire to the offices of Asaeb Ahl Al Haq, another party with close links to Iran.
"For the first time, protesters targeted the full spectrum of the [mainly Shiite] ruling elites, from former exiles backed by either the US or Iran to those who survived Saddam’s regime and have developed strong nationalist orientations," the International Crisis Group said in a report.
It said the unrest underlined the Iraqi population’s deep alienation from the political system.
"Iranian-backed groups did stir up existing resentments ahead of these protests, but as usual, Tehran failed to keep control of something it started in Iraq," Michael Knights, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told The National.
"Tehran’s own allies like Asaeb Ahl Al Haq and Badr look bad because it is their own guards who are shooting civilian protesters dead," he said.
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.”
Men from Barca's class of 99
Crystal Palace - Frank de Boer
Everton - Ronald Koeman
Manchester City - Pep Guardiola
Manchester United - Jose Mourinho
Southampton - Mauricio Pellegrino
