Widespread political misogyny that precludes women from peacemaking and international negotiations will lead to longer and more frequent conflicts that will affect future generations, the head of UN Women warned on Thursday.
Addressing the UN Security Council during its annual debate on women, peace and security, UN Women's executive director Sima Bahous said 612 million women and girls are now affected by conflict worldwide, marking a 50 per cent increase compared to a decade ago.
She said women's participation in decision-making and peace processes remains stagnant, with their representation in peace negotiations averaging below 10 per cent, and under 20 per cent in UN-led processes over the past decade.
“Women are frustrated by the meetings they are invited to in the margins of actual decision-making, the many consultations with no outcome, the strategies with no funding,” Ms Bahous said. "They want to see the Women, Peace and Security agenda implemented and resourced.
“The weaponisation of misogyny for political gain is extracting a price we will pay for generations. That price will be more conflicts, longer conflicts, more devastating conflicts.”
She said there had been a 50 per cent rise in conflict-related sexual violence cases and a 35 per cent increase in serious violations against girls.
Ms Bahous said one in two women and girls in conflict zones are suffering from moderate to severe food insecurity, while 61 per cent of global maternal deaths occur in 35 war-affected countries, where maternity wards are bombed, reproductive health care is blocked and sexual violence is escalating.
Ahead of the meeting, the Security Council urged all member countries, the UN and stakeholders to increase political and financial backing for women-led peace-building efforts at all levels.
“Peace agreements are more enduring when women are involved, reducing the costs and suffering of prolonged conflicts in this world,” it said.
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Jumanji: The Next Level
Director: Jake Kasdan
Stars: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Jack Black, Nick Jonas
Two out of five stars
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On Women's Day
Dr Nawal Al-Hosany: Why more women should be on the frontlines of climate action
Shelina Janmohamed: Why shouldn't a spouse be compensated fairly for housework?
Justin Thomas: Challenge the notion that 'men are from Mars, women are from Venus'
The National Editorial: Is there much to celebrate on International Women's Day 2021?
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
The Meg
Director: Jon Turteltaub
Starring: Jason Statham, Bingbing Li, Rainn Wilson
Two stars
Brief scoreline:
Wales 1
James 5'
Slovakia 0
Man of the Match: Dan James (Wales)
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COMPANY PROFILE
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.”
COMPANY PROFILE
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
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