Parents in Dubai have supported the plan for schools to end all distance learning in October.
They said it was important for children to return to school as they were missing interaction with classmates and teachers, which was affecting their social skills.
But a few families in the emirate told The National they had questions about how schools would manage a safe return for pupils in October.
All pupils at Dubai's private schools must return to classrooms on October 3, the Dubai Government Media Office announced this week.
Maddy Apostol, 36, a home maker, said she would ensure her nine-year-old daughter was vaccinated before returning to in-person learning.
“I am happy that all children have been allowed to go to school for face-to-face learning but I am worried," Ms Apostol said.
“Last year, I knew most of the parents had chosen distance learning. With 100 per cent pupils back, we are getting our daughter vaccinated tomorrow."
Ms Apostol expects her daughter to receive the Sinopharm vaccine.
A third-year pupil at a private school, the child studied remotely last year but will go back to in-person classes on Sunday.
“I feel confident sending her back to school now as so many people in the country are vaccinated including all the staff at the school” Ms Apostol said.
She was concerned because she did not yet know how many pupils would be in her daughter's class.
School vehicles can run at full capacity, as long as they are ventilated and cleaned after journeys, according to the new protocols.
Last year, capacity for school buses was capped at 50 per cent.
Ms Apostol said she was considering transport alternatives for her daughter.
She said she was being cautious as her daughter had been infected with the coronavirus in March.
Despite this, she said was happy to send her daughter back to in-person classes.
Ms Apostol said her child would go to school for three days a week and then study from home on the other two during the first five weeks of the new term.
“I see the impact of having no interaction with peers on my child," she said.
“There was no social connection and her behaviour changed especially when it came to talking to people.
“Being at home most of the time in front of a screen, she would rather use her iPad or play games than talk to people.”
Health authorities said 96 per cent of Dubai's private schoolteachers had been vaccinated, and 70 per cent of children aged 12 to 17 received coronavirus shots.
Nisha Kumar, an Indian psychiatrist and mother of one in Dubai, said on-site learning was important for children.
Her five-year-old son, who goes to Deira International School, returned to in-person classes last year.
“Being around grown-ups is not enough. My son needs to be around and play with someone his age so that they can explore things together," Ms Kumar said.
“I can be his mother and his teacher but I don’t have the professional qualification to be one. I can only teach him what the teacher tells me to.
“I thought his handwriting was not OK but the teacher said he was doing a great job. Even if I correct him, I may do it the wrong way."
At the end of last term, just 52 per cent of private school pupils in Dubai were in classrooms, and the rest opted to study from home.
The mother said children should be in schools.
“If I am taking him to the mall and the play areas, so why not school?”
“This [the pandemic] is not going to go away in the next year or so."
While taking precautions, she encouraged parents to send their children to school.
Ola Uwaezu, 32, a home maker and mother of two girls aged 4 and 6, said she supported the plan to get all pupils back to school.
“I am for it 100 per cent. My daughters were attending classes in person last year," Ms Uwaezu said.
It was important for pupils to meet their friends, she said.
"I was apprehensive initially but the schools followed all the protocols," Ms Uwaezu said.
"My younger daughter was in nursery, where protocols were very stringent."
She said her children were placed in bubbles at school and there was no mixing, so she felt they were safe.
"I would not get my children vaccinated at this age," she said.
She has been trying to ensure her children do not develop social anxiety by taking them out for walks and having conversations with them about the virus.
Heads of schools welcomed the plan to begin in-person classes in October.
Simon Crane, the headmaster at Brighton College Dubai, said even innovative online learning could not replicate human-to-human connection.
"When you have a screen and technology there are natural barriers to learning," he said.
"Yes you might be able to teach some academics, but the social and emotional development of pupils, you can only really achieve that by having human connection."
Shiny Davison, academic director at Gulf Model School, said some parents were concerned about a full return.
For the first five weeks of the term, the school will follow a blended learning model.
"All pupils will come back in October and we know this has to happen. There is reluctance from some parents. I cannot deny that," she said.
"We are already getting phone calls and emails from parents.
"There are some parents who visited the school to talk to us about this."
"We are trying to explain to them that there is a sanitisation programme at the school, and teachers have been vaccinated.
"I think we can resolve these issues and come back to a full opening of schools."
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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Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
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Tottenham 1
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Norwich 1
Josip Drmic 78'
2-3 on penalties
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
The First Monday in May
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Starring: Anna Wintour, Karl Lagerfeld, John Paul Gaultier, Rihanna
Three stars
England v South Africa schedule:
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- Second Test: July 14-18, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 2pm
- Third Test: The Oval, London, July 27-31, 2pm
- Fourth Test: Old Trafford, Manchester, August 4-8
The burning issue
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Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
The bio
Favourite vegetable: Broccoli
Favourite food: Seafood
Favourite thing to cook: Duck l'orange
Favourite book: Give and Take by Adam Grant, one of his professors at University of Pennsylvania
Favourite place to travel: Home in Kuwait.
Favourite place in the UAE: Al Qudra lakes
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
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December 2024
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May 2025
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July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
KYLIAN MBAPPE 2016/17 STATS
Ligue 1: Appearances - 29, Goals - 15, Assists - 8
UCL: Appearances - 9, Goals - 6
French Cup: Appearances - 3, Goals - 3
France U19: Appearances - 5, Goals - 5, Assists - 1
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Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
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The biog
Title: General Practitioner with a speciality in cardiology
Previous jobs: Worked in well-known hospitals Jaslok and Breach Candy in Mumbai, India
Education: Medical degree from the Government Medical College in Nagpur
How it all began: opened his first clinic in Ajman in 1993
Family: a 90-year-old mother, wife and two daughters
Remembers a time when medicines from India were purchased per kilo
Pakistan Super League
Previous winners
2016 Islamabad United
2017 Peshawar Zalmi
2018 Islamabad United
2019 Quetta Gladiators
Most runs Kamran Akmal – 1,286
Most wickets Wahab Riaz –65
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5pm: Sweihan – Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (Turf) 2,200m
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6pm: Shakbout City – Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m
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6.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup – Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 1,200m
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7.30pm: Khalifa City – Maiden (TB) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner: Ranchero, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
