US President Joe Biden ran a campaign that promised historic diversity at the helm of American policymaking — and his presidency has delivered so far, particularly for Arab Americans.
Almost half of Mr Biden's cabinet secretaries are non-white, 37 per cent of them are women, and the administration has overseen a range of historic diverse appointments, including Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson.
But that diversity begins to thin when it comes to Mr Biden’s most senior advisers, with a recent study finding, for example, that there is not sufficient black representation in key White House jobs that have more substantive policy influence, though less public visibility.
Although none of the President's senior cabinet members are Arab American, there are 20 serving in key positions throughout the administration.
Here are some of them:
Christine Abizaid, Director of the National Counter-terrorism Centre
Ms Abizaid, a Lebanese American, has previously served as a counter-terrorism intelligence official in the Defence Intelligence Agency and on the National Security Council.
During the administration of former president Barack Obama, she served as a senior policy adviser and assistant to the president for homeland security and counter-terrorism and became the deputy assistant secretary of defence for Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia.
According to the White House, Ms Abizaid participated in the West Wing meeting in preparation for a drone strike that killed Al Qaeda leader Ayman Al Zawahiri. Ms Abizaid told Congress that, with the death of Al Zawahiri, Al Qaeda's stronghold “is less acute than at any other time since 9/11".
Her father, John Abizaid, was the US ambassador to Saudi Arabia and she played football while studying at the University of California — San Diego.
Hady Amr, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Israel-Palestine at the US State Department
Mr Amr made his return to the State Department in a role that was created to specifically to boost US-Palestinian relations in what marks his fifth executive branch post.
The creation of the new post was also meant to improve the diplomatic representation as much as possible, given the US consulate in Jerusalem has yet to reopen.
Mr Amr, who was born in Lebanon, previously held posts at the Department of Defence, the Department of Homeland Security and USAID.
During the Obama administration, he served as deputy special envoy for economics and Gaza for the special envoy for Palestinian-Israeli negotiations.
He is a Brookings Institution fellow and has contributed to the Biden administration’s strategy on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. He was also a member of Mr Biden’s transition team at the State Department.
Nabeela Barbari, Director of Resilience and Response at the National Security Council
A Washington native, Ms Barbari is Palestinian American and has served as an executive with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency as well as the Department of Homeland Security during both the Obama and Trump administrations.
Ms Barbari was appointed to the Biden administration under the Executive Office of the President in February 2021.
She is part of the team given the task of strengthening the nation’s security infrastructure against physical and cyber threats. Policy development, emergency management and preparedness against national security threats — from cyber criminals or by natural disaster — are a few of her responsibilities.
Sara Minkara, US Special Adviser on International Disability Rights at the Department of State
Sara Minkara was appointed as the special adviser on international disability rights at the State Department.
In this role, she leads the department’s strategy to promote and protect the rights of people with disabilities internationally.
Before joining the department, she founded and served as chief executive of Sara Minkara, LLC, which promotes authentic leadership and value-based inclusion.
She also established Empowerment Through Integration, a non-profit organisation committed to developing a more inclusive global society and transforming social and cultural stigmas against disability.
Ms Minkara is a graduate of Wellesley College and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Internationally, she has promoted disability rights, diversity, access and inclusion in a range of countries including Lebanon, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Rwanda, Thailand and the UK.
Brenda Abdelall, Assistant Secretary of Partnership and Engagement
The daughter of Egyptian immigrants, Ms Abdelall is a lawyer who has lobbied on behalf of Arab-American and Muslim communities in the US.
In 2014, she became a health policy lobbyist before serving as charities director for Muslim Advocates, an organisation formed in 2005, which aims to overcome political and social stigma against American Muslims.
During the 2020 presidential election, she served as one of the main volunteers for Mr Biden’s “Arab Americans for Biden” group.
Ms Abdelall also taught at New York University — Abu Dhabi, the University of Michigan Law School, and the University of the District of Columbia David A Clarke School of Law. Her courses focused on civil rights, with a focus on the first amendment.
Muslim and Arab-American midterms winners - in pictures
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.”
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
Tell Me Who I Am
Director: Ed Perkins
Stars: Alex and Marcus Lewis
Four stars
What sanctions would be reimposed?
Under ‘snapback’, measures imposed on Iran by the UN Security Council in six resolutions would be restored, including:
- An arms embargo
- A ban on uranium enrichment and reprocessing
- A ban on launches and other activities with ballistic missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons, as well as ballistic missile technology transfer and technical assistance
- A targeted global asset freeze and travel ban on Iranian individuals and entities
- Authorisation for countries to inspect Iran Air Cargo and Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines cargoes for banned goods
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Ethree%20three%20212.7kWh%20motors%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%201%2C000bhp%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E15%2C600Nm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERange%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20530km%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dh500%2C000%2B%20est%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Eearly%202023%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
If you go...
Flying
There is no simple way to get to Punta Arenas from the UAE, with flights from Dubai and Abu Dhabi requiring at least two connections to reach this part of Patagonia. Flights start from about Dh6,250.
Touring
Chile Nativo offers the amended Los Dientes trek with expert guides and porters who are met in Puerto Williams on Isla Navarino. The trip starts and ends in Punta Arenas and lasts for six days in total. Prices start from Dh8,795.
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Bob%20Marley%3A%20One%20Love
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Reinaldo%20Marcus%20Green%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EKingsley%20Ben-Adir%2C%20Lashana%20Lynch%2C%20James%20Norton%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A02%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
