Shaima al Habsi is 28, educated, and has a successful career in finance.
She is also divorced, one of the many young Emiratis who have failed to beat the increasing odds against making marriage work.
"The high divorce rate here is shocking, and there are different angles as to why it's so high," she said.
"I think the fact that so many women are getting a higher education is one reason. The woman wants to achieve more, she wants more education, but the husband resists. So this creates tension and contributes to divorce."
Some say family friction is the most dangerous thing happening to Emirati society. With four out of 10 marriages failing, according to the Marriage Fund, the country has the highest rate of divorce in the Arab region, and arguably one of the highest in the world.
A number of organisations hold heavily attended classes aimed at saving crumbling or difficult marriages, sponsored by organisations including the Women's Association in Dubai, the General Women's Union, as well as the Marriage Fund. Local colleges regularly hold lectures teaching soon-to-be graduates what to expect from marriage, while each week hours are spent on religious radio stations examining the hot topic of how marriages can be saved.
Sheikh Rashid al Mansori is an expert in Islamic family science and a director at Al Farha Academy in Dubai, which delivers lectures, seminars and counselling to couples and families.
"Divorce spiralled out of control in the past several years," he said. "It's a disaster."
He cited a study by Al Farha Academy that showed the number one cause of divorce in the UAE was marital infidelity from either side.
"I'm convinced if divorce rates in our society reach 50 per cent, then I think it will be irreversible and that will be the end of our society as we know it."
There are many reasons why infidelity can emerge and marriages fail, with contributing factors appearing to include parental interference, the patriarchal nature of society and the changing role of women in Emirati society.
Maha (who to protect her family's privacy did not use her real name) believes her marriage failed because her young husband could not live with her success.
"I made more money and he couldn't accept it, or the fact that I was getting promoted and loved my work," she said.
Men also share the burden of divorce. As one expert puts it, the inherently patriarchal culture may put a greater stigma on the divorced woman than on the man, but a failed marriage is a stain on a man's record. Society identifies qualities such as leadership, rationality and the ability to rule and defuse conflict as masculine, and in the Islamic tradition this is what qualifies men to have the default right to initiate a divorce.
"Women feel the effects in the short term, right after they're divorced," said Sheikh al Mansori. "They become depressed and withdrawn and so on."
"But for the men? It sneaks up on them in the long run. They feel like a failure, as if they are incompetent managers, or failed heads of household. And that takes a big toll on their sense of masculinity."
The expectation put upon men to be the boss in a marriage often erodes it, according to Afraa al Hai, the director of Women's Association in Dubai.
She said she receives about 500 calls every month from nationals and expatriates inquiring about the association's counselling services.
According to her, one of the highest contributing factors to divorce after infidelity is interference from family and friends.
"They tell the husband, 'Oh come on, be the man. You're the boss. Don't let her step all over you. Divorce her.' "
Mothers-in-law in particular can be problematic, especially when so many brides live with their husband and his family. And even when this is not the case, local culture holds high expectations for young couples to keep strong ties to the family. It is not unusual for a young couple to share a meal with the in-laws every day of the week if they live in the same town.
"Some mothers-in-law, they think of the new wife as the woman who stole their boy away," said Suzan al Ansi, 36 and unmarried.
Younger couples are more likely to get divorced. Sheikh al Mansori attributes this to technology.
"They all use computers now, and they learnt if you don't like something, they just press the delete button. It's the same for them in marriage. They press delete."
But waiting for maturity to set in before tying the knot also seems to have its own set of problems, as does waiting for Mr Right.
"I think it's a waste of time, and wasteful for the young woman to wait. No one is perfect and there is no Mr Right," said Ms al Ansi.
As for Ms al Habsi, remarrying is definitely an option, but only under certain conditions. She finds the older she gets, the more choosy she becomes and the slimmer are her chances.
"I think the late age of getting married makes women less flexible, more independent and picky," said
"I know from myself, for example, the older I get the more demanding I become. And to be honest, even though I would like to remarry, I don't think I'll have the opportunity to do it. There is a reason that so many accomplished female leaders are divorced or never married."
relass@thenational.ae
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Hoopla%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EDate%20started%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMarch%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Jacqueline%20Perrottet%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2010%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20required%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24500%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
HIV on the rise in the region
A 2019 United Nations special analysis on Aids reveals 37 per cent of new HIV infections in the Mena region are from people injecting drugs.
New HIV infections have also risen by 29 per cent in western Europe and Asia, and by 7 per cent in Latin America, but declined elsewhere.
Egypt has shown the highest increase in recorded cases of HIV since 2010, up by 196 per cent.
Access to HIV testing, treatment and care in the region is well below the global average.
Few statistics have been published on the number of cases in the UAE, although a UNAIDS report said 1.5 per cent of the prison population has the virus.
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%20PROFILE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Eco%20Way%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20December%202023%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ivan%20Kroshnyi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EIndustry%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Electric%20vehicles%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Bootstrapped%20with%20undisclosed%20funding.%20Looking%20to%20raise%20funds%20from%20outside%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
What is double taxation?
- Americans living abroad file taxes with the Internal Revenue Service, which can cost hundreds of dollars to complete even though about 60 per cent do not owe taxes, according to the Taxpayer Advocate Service
- Those obligations apply to millions of Americans residing overseas – estimates range from 3.9 million to 5.5 million – including so-called "accidental Americans" who are unaware they hold dual citizenship
- The double taxation policy has been a contentious issue for decades, with many overseas Americans feeling that it punishes them for pursuing opportunities abroad
- Unlike most countries, the US follows a citizenship-based taxation system, meaning that Americans must file taxes annually, even if they do not earn any income in the US.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
Ticket prices
- Golden circle - Dh995
- Floor Standing - Dh495
- Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
- Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
- Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
- Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
- Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
- Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
Fire and Fury
By Michael Wolff,
Henry Holt
Business Insights
- Canada and Mexico are significant energy suppliers to the US, providing the majority of oil and natural gas imports
- The introduction of tariffs could hinder the US's clean energy initiatives by raising input costs for materials like nickel
- US domestic suppliers might benefit from higher prices, but overall oil consumption is expected to decrease due to elevated costs