ABU DHABI // All seven children injured in a school-bus accident in which a driver was killed on Monday returned to class today.
The bus, belonging to Model School in Mussaffah, was carrying 45 pupils from the Tourist Club on Monday morning when it collided with another bus, owned by Al Ghazal Transport.
The driver of the Al Ghazal bus died and several children had minor injuries.
The Abu Dhabi Education Authority (Adec) and parents of injured pupils have commended the school management's swift action in ensuring the safety of the children.
"We immediately rushed to the spot when we found out about the accident," said Dr Abdul Kader, the principal.
"The six children were immediately transferred to the hospital as they had back and neck sprains. One child had to get stitches."
Dr Abdul Kader said the other children were sent back to continue with classes.
"We stayed in the hospital until all the children were discharged," he said.
Brian Fox, the division manager for private school licensing and accreditation at Adec, said the school was quick to call an ambulance and parents.
"All the students were given the required medical assistance, collected by their parents and arrived safely to their homes," Mr Fox said.
Salim Illias, the father of a Grade 10 pupil who was in the bus, said he was grateful for the prompt response.
"They took care and ensured the children went back to school in another bus immediately, and gave them time to recover in the clinic," Mr Illias said.
But he said even minor injuries could have been avoided if the children had been wearing seat belts.
"While you cannot predict such things, they will happen and the effect can be reduced," Mr Illias said.
Sumesh Suresh, 16, who hurt his back in the collision, said there was a lot of panic among the younger children when the accident happened.
"One boy fell down and was bruised," Sumesh said. "But the police came soon and the principal and headmaster were also there to take care of things."
He said he missed some classes that day while recovering in the clinic.
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The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable
Amitav Ghosh, University of Chicago Press
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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Dirham Stretcher tips for having a baby in the UAE
Selma Abdelhamid, the group's moderator, offers her guide to guide the cost of having a young family:
• Buy second hand stuff
They grow so fast. Don't get a second hand car seat though, unless you 100 per cent know it's not expired and hasn't been in an accident.
• Get a health card and vaccinate your child for free at government health centres
Ms Ma says she discovered this after spending thousands on vaccinations at private clinics.
• Join mum and baby coffee mornings provided by clinics, babysitting companies or nurseries.
Before joining baby classes ask for a free trial session. This way you will know if it's for you or not. You'll be surprised how great some classes are and how bad others are.
• Once baby is ready for solids, cook at home
Take the food with you in reusable pouches or jars. You'll save a fortune and you'll know exactly what you're feeding your child.
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