FUJAIRAH // The first stage of a Dh190 million mosque that will serve 28,000 worshippers is almost complete, the Ministry of Public Works has announced.
The Sheikh Zayed Mosque, a Ministry of Public Works project, will be the second largest mosque in the country when completed in July 2012; its final size is yet to be determined. The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi, which encompasses 22,412 square metres, is the largest.
"We finished about 80 per cent of the foundation, and the foundation may be finished after two months," said Haleema al Shahi, the ministry engineer responsible for the project. "It will be a landmark. As a mosque it brings people together in prayer, and relationships will become stronger. It must be open for everyone in the city and they will come, especially in Ramadan."
Set amid fountains and palm-dotted gardens on a large property in the heart of Fujairah city, the mosque will be roughly the size of three football pitches and hold 13,500 people in its prayer hall.
Worshippers will be called to prayer from six minarets rising 100 metres above 65 cascading domes.
They will enter a 5,124 square metre marble courtyard framed by 35 domes, a courtyard that can hold 12,000 people. Two large wooden doors open onto the main prayer hall, which will be capped by a dome 20 metres in height and 44 metres in diameter.
The mosque's exterior will be constructed of stone, while the building will boast an interior of marble and granite.
"The decorations are not yet decided upon. As the project develops we will choose which materials will be used," said Ms al Shahi.
The mosque will house a religious school, a basement prayer area for 2,500 women and 205 stations for ablution. Visitors will be welcome.
The mosque will likely have its own imam and mullah, rather than using a satellite broadcast call to prayer, as many mosques in the emirate do.
The towering minarets of the mosque are "a testimony to urbanisation", said Dr Ronald Hawker, an associate professor of art and design at Zayed University.
Mullahs in the region would traditionally perform the call to prayer while standing on a platform in the forecourt of the mosque, instead of at the top of a minaret.
"It's not like somewhere like Damascus or Cairo, where you have this very, very dense urban fabric and you have to cry out over the surrounding city," said Dr Hawker.
"Here it's a very quiet surrounding, so you don't need that minaret."
Mosques were traditionally built by a senior member of the lineage group around tribal quarters in the community.
"They tended to be really small," said Dr Hawker. "One of the things about that is they're not really astonishing buildings. They tend to emphasise modesty before God."
It is no surprise that the story of UAE mosque architecture parallels the country's economic standing. Minarets appeared in the UAE in the early 1900s, when the pearl industry brought wealth and trade. Minarets became less common following the collapse of the pearling industry in the 1930s.
"In the 1940s you get a reconstruction of mosques, and that's part of this urbanisation that ultimately leads to things like the Sheikh Zayed Mosque," said Dr Hawker.
"The sheikhs were starting to find oil concessions, so the first thing they did was fund new mosques."
Fujairah's new mosque will be a contrast to the small neighbourhood mosques that characterise the northern emirates. It is likely to change community relations, said Dr Hawker.
"I can't see how it wouldn't affect people, but to what degree and what extent I'm not sure," said Dr Hawker.
Of course, said Ms al Shahi, it is the purpose of the mosque that is most important.
"The mosque is not measured by its size," she said. "The religion is between Allah and Muslims, it is the same anywhere. A Muslim can pray anywhere, he doesn't need a mosque to pray. Sometimes if you pray in the open air, even at the side of the road, it can be more spiritual."
azacharias@thenational.ae
PAKISTAN v SRI LANKA
Twenty20 International series
Thu Oct 26, 1st T20I, Abu Dhabi
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The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
New schools in Dubai
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The biog
Age: 32
Qualifications: Diploma in engineering from TSI Technical Institute, bachelor’s degree in accounting from Dubai’s Al Ghurair University, master’s degree in human resources from Abu Dhabi University, currently third years PHD in strategy of human resources.
Favourite mountain range: The Himalayas
Favourite experience: Two months trekking in Alaska
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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.”
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.
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
'Saand Ki Aankh'
Produced by: Reliance Entertainment with Chalk and Cheese Films
Director: Tushar Hiranandani
Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Bhumi Pednekar, Prakash Jha, Vineet Singh
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Company%20Profile
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
