Yemen's warring parties have committed to a set of measures to implement a nationwide ceasefire, improve living conditions in the country and engage in preparations for the resumption of an inclusive political process under United Nations supervision, the world body said on Saturday.
Yemen’s war began when the Iran-aligned Houthi movement ousted the government from the capital, Sanaa, in late 2014. More than 150,000 people have since been killed by the violence and three million displaced.
Saturday's announcement follows a series of meetings with the parties, including the President of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad Al Alimi, and the Houthis' chief negotiator Mohammed Abdul Salam, in Riyadh and Muscat, the office of the UN special envoy for Yemen said in a statement.
“Thirty million Yemenis are watching and waiting for this new opportunity to provide for tangible results and progress towards lasting peace. The parties have taken a significant step,” said UN envoy Hans Grundberg.
Mr Grundberg will now engage with the parties to establish a road map under UN auspices that includes these commitments and supports their implementation, the office said.
The UN road map will include the parties’ commitment to implement a nationwide ceasefire, pay all public sector salaries, resume oil exports, open roads in Taiz and other parts of Yemen, and further ease restrictions on Sanaa Airport and the Hudaydah port.
It will also establish implementation mechanisms and prepare for a Yemeni-owned political process under UN auspices.
Mr Grundberg expressed his deep appreciation for the key roles of Saudi Arabia and Oman in supporting the parties to reach this point.
He urged all parties to exercise maximum restraint at this critical time to allow for a conducive environment for dialogue and for agreement on the road map.
The war in Yemen has killed tens of thousands of people and caused a dire humanitarian crisis with 80 per cent of its population reliant on aid.
The progress in talks comes after the Iran-backed group, a Hamas ally, attacked several ships in the Red Sea, claiming they were linked to Israel.
The Houthis have said they will continue their attacks on ships believed to be bound for Israel while the Israelis continue their war in Gaza, where more than 20,000 people have been killed.
In the months running up to the Israeli war on Gaza, following the Hamas attacks on October 7 which killed about 1,200 people, there had been relative optimism about the prospects for peace in war-torn Yemen, which has been ravaged by one of the world's largest humanitarian crises.
A UN-brokered ceasefire in April last year reduced fighting to a level that has largely held, despite the truce expiring six months later. In September, Saudi Arabia hosted Houthi representatives for several days of talks, in the first official visit by a Houthi delegation to the kingdom since 2014.
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Essentials
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct from the UAE to Geneva from Dh2,845 return, including taxes. The flight takes 6 hours.
The package
Clinique La Prairie offers a variety of programmes. A six-night Master Detox costs from 14,900 Swiss francs (Dh57,655), including all food, accommodation and a set schedule of medical consultations and spa treatments.
The specs: 2019 Infiniti QX50
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 268hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy: 6.7L / 100km (estimate)
Ferrari
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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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