Declaring an independent southern Yemeni state would pave the way for entering the Abraham Accords, the deputy chairman of Yemen's Presidential Council Aidarous Al Zubaidi told The National in an interview.
The president of the Southern Transitional Council said all the conditions were in place for statehood and added that secession would allow the south to make its own foreign policy decisions, including the option of joining the Abraham Accords.
“Before the events in Gaza, we were advancing towards joining the Abraham Accords,” he said. “If Gaza and Palestine regain their rights, the Accords will be essential for stability in the region. When we have our southern state, we will make our own decisions and I believe we will be part of these accords.”
Israel has repeatedly attacked Yemen in air strikes on Houthi militants, notably in the rebel-held capital Sanaa and the port of Hodeidah. The Houthis regularly fire missiles at Israel, achieving a relatively rare hit on Wednesday when a drone fell in the city of Eilat.
Yemen's eight-member Presidential Council leads the anti-Houthi, internationally recognised government in exile in Aden. The secessionist Southern Transitional Council holds three of those eight seats.
Mr Al Zubaidi spoke to The National in New York as the UN General Assembly meets, with the Middle East high on the agenda. A group of aid workers called on leaders to take "urgent and decisive action" to address a humanitarian crisis in Yemen after years of conflict.
Mr Al Zubaidi stressed that southerners in Yemen see themselves as ready for independence. “The south is liberated and we are protecting our borders,” he said. “Politically and geopolitically, we are ready. We only need to announce independence and for others to recognise us”.
He argued that independence would not only isolate the Houthis in the north but also provide clarity for international partners.
“As the situation becomes more complicated, we feel we could announce [independence] at any time. Southerners already control their land, the army and the police are there,” he explained.
From 1967 until unification in 1990, the country was divided between North Yemen and the socialist People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen in the south. That history, he said, makes the idea of two Yemeni states again neither unusual nor impossible.
“The main challenge is asking our partners to approve our right of self-determination and begin the transition phase,” he said. “We are hopeful that supporting countries will help liberate the north from the Houthis, and the south to gain its independence.”
Peace process 'frozen'
Mr Al Zubaidi described the peace process as stalled. “The peace process has stopped and is frozen," he said. "After the Houthis’ attacks, there is no real prospect. The attacks changed the whole calculus. We are in a state of neither war nor peace."
He welcomed decisions to designate the Houthis as a terrorist group, calling them weakened and isolated.
“The Houthis tried to invest in their regional role by attacking Israel, but their attacks are weak and not impactful,” he said. "They are now in a very weak position, and their actions have only added to the misery of the Yemeni people."
Mr Al Zubaidi acknowledged the economic hardship facing Yemen’s internationally recognised government. With oil making up 70 per cent of the state budget, revenue has been slashed since Houthi strikes on export facilities.
“The Prime Minister and the government are trying their best but the situation is very difficult and very expensive,” he said. “We need serious efforts to restart exports again, so we can improve conditions for our people.”
He credited Saudi Arabia and the UAE with keeping the economy afloat. “They have provided a lot over the years, financially and in energy. Without their help, everything would have collapsed."
On security, he highlighted the challenges of Yemen’s southern coastline. “We are trying to maintain security with what we have, but the main challenge is confronting extremist cells,” he said. “The coast is very long, and there is migration and narcotics smuggling. Many countries are helping us but the plans to improve border security are very limited.”
Mr Al Zubaidi framed independence not just as a local aspiration but as part of a wider commitment to stability in the region. “We support the two-state solution – a Yemeni state in the north and in the south – and a Palestinian state alongside Israel,” he said. “Self-determination is a right. All people have the right to determine their future.”
Citizenship-by-investment programmes
United Kingdom
The UK offers three programmes for residency. The UK Overseas Business Representative Visa lets you open an overseas branch office of your existing company in the country at no extra investment. For the UK Tier 1 Innovator Visa, you are required to invest £50,000 (Dh238,000) into a business. You can also get a UK Tier 1 Investor Visa if you invest £2 million, £5m or £10m (the higher the investment, the sooner you obtain your permanent residency).
All UK residency visas get approved in 90 to 120 days and are valid for 3 years. After 3 years, the applicant can apply for extension of another 2 years. Once they have lived in the UK for a minimum of 6 months every year, they are eligible to apply for permanent residency (called Indefinite Leave to Remain). After one year of ILR, the applicant can apply for UK passport.
The Caribbean
Depending on the country, the investment amount starts from $100,000 (Dh367,250) and can go up to $400,000 in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take between four to five months to receive a passport.
Portugal
The investment amount ranges from €350,000 to €500,000 (Dh1.5m to Dh2.16m) in real estate. From the date of purchase, it will take a maximum of six months to receive a Golden Visa. Applicants can apply for permanent residency after five years and Portuguese citizenship after six years.
“Among European countries with residency programmes, Portugal has been the most popular because it offers the most cost-effective programme to eventually acquire citizenship of the European Union without ever residing in Portugal,” states Veronica Cotdemiey of Citizenship Invest.
Greece
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Greece is €250,000, making it the cheapest real estate residency visa scheme in Europe. You can apply for residency in four months and citizenship after seven years.
Spain
The real estate investment threshold to acquire residency for Spain is €500,000. You can apply for permanent residency after five years and citizenship after 10 years. It is not necessary to live in Spain to retain and renew the residency visa permit.
Cyprus
Cyprus offers the quickest route to citizenship of a European country in only six months. An investment of €2m in real estate is required, making it the highest priced programme in Europe.
Malta
The Malta citizenship by investment programme is lengthy and investors are required to contribute sums as donations to the Maltese government. The applicant must either contribute at least €650,000 to the National Development & Social Fund. Spouses and children are required to contribute €25,000; unmarried children between 18 and 25 and dependent parents must contribute €50,000 each.
The second step is to make an investment in property of at least €350,000 or enter a property rental contract for at least €16,000 per annum for five years. The third step is to invest at least €150,000 in bonds or shares approved by the Maltese government to be kept for at least five years.
Candidates must commit to a minimum physical presence in Malta before citizenship is granted. While you get residency in two months, you can apply for citizenship after a year.
Egypt
A one-year residency permit can be bought if you purchase property in Egypt worth $100,000. A three-year residency is available for those who invest $200,000 in property, and five years for those who purchase property worth $400,000.
Source: Citizenship Invest and Aqua Properties
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In-demand jobs and monthly salaries
- Technology expert in robotics and automation: Dh20,000 to Dh40,000
- Energy engineer: Dh25,000 to Dh30,000
- Production engineer: Dh30,000 to Dh40,000
- Data-driven supply chain management professional: Dh30,000 to Dh50,000
- HR leader: Dh40,000 to Dh60,000
- Engineering leader: Dh30,000 to Dh55,000
- Project manager: Dh55,000 to Dh65,000
- Senior reservoir engineer: Dh40,000 to Dh55,000
- Senior drilling engineer: Dh38,000 to Dh46,000
- Senior process engineer: Dh28,000 to Dh38,000
- Senior maintenance engineer: Dh22,000 to Dh34,000
- Field engineer: Dh6,500 to Dh7,500
- Field supervisor: Dh9,000 to Dh12,000
- Field operator: Dh5,000 to Dh7,000
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MATCH INFO
Syria v Australia
2018 World Cup qualifying: Asia fourth round play-off first leg
Venue: Hang Jebat Stadium (Malacca, Malayisa)
Kick-off: Thursday, 4.30pm (UAE)
Watch: beIN Sports HD
* Second leg in Australia scheduled for October 10
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
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.”
