ABU DHABI // A celebration of Emirati culture drew visitors to the opening of the Sheikh Zayed Heritage Festival on Thursday.
Emirati goods and professions were the mainstay of the festival, at which a replica fort was the central attraction, but there were also displays from other countries, such as Bosnia, Kazakhstan and north African and Gulf countries.
Antique vehicles and carriages ignited the imagination of guests, as did a selection of antiques from Afghanistan that dated back hundreds of years.
One of the Afghan treasures, a 550-year-old huge copper pot used to brew green tea, was being displayed by Mohammed-Daoud Ghazniwall.
The teapot, worth about Dh15,000, was used “for party times, two people had to hold it”, Mr Ghazniwall said.
He was showcasing another ancient pot – a huge stone one. As he set it on the floor and opened the lid he explained that it was used for cooking meat, which, when kept inside the pot, would stay warm for 24 hours.
“It would have taken 10 hours to cook meat in it,” he said of the 250-year-old pot worth Dh10,000.
He also showed off some blackened coins that originated in Ancient Greece, a helmet thought to come from the time of the Mogul Empire in India, and some plates of armour.
These, said Mr Ghazniwall, were worth up to Dh10,000.
In the Saudi Arabian pavilion, a woman sat on the floor sewing dolls and attaching baskets to them. “We put chocolates or nuts in the baskets for serving,” said Muhra Al Hibshi. Each doll takes about 90 minutes to make.
Alongside her was her business partner, Mawar Al Abdullah, who was sewing a plastic bag to hold tea or coffee pots. “We use plastic instead of fabric so it doesn’t get stained,” she said.
The pair began their business in Riyadh 27 years ago and it has grown to be a success story.
“The Saudi tourism authority nominated us to participate in the festival,” Ms Al Abdullah said. “We hope this will open doors for us to be known in Abu Dhabi like we are in Riyad,” she said.
In the adjacent tent at the middle of the festival, an Emirati Bedouin woman wove natural white wool. “Natural is always white or black, before they used to add colour to the white one,” said Shameya Abdulateef.
She showed the end result, which is in the shape of a wraparound satchel. “We place this around the camel’s waist,” she said. She then held out another, smaller, satchel. “We attach this to the bigger one to cover the udders of the camel if we don’t want its children to drink the milk,” she said. “That is when we need to preserve some of the milk for our own use.”
Such products cost between Dh750 and Dh1,000 “because it is natural wool”, Ms Abdulateef said.
After sunset, attendees and officials gathered in the theatre area for the opening ceremony.
After music from a marching band, a film explained the rapid transformation of the UAE under the late Sheikh Zayed, the Founding President of the UAE.
hdajani@thenational.ae
Dunki
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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
Lowest Test scores
26 - New Zealand v England at Auckland, March 1955
30 - South Africa v England at Port Elizabeth, Feb 1896
30 - South Africa v England at Birmingham, June 1924
35 - South Africa v England at Cape Town, April 1899
36 - South Africa v Australia at Melbourne, Feb. 1932
36 - Australia v England at Birmingham, May 1902
36 - India v Australia at Adelaide, Dec. 2020
38 - Ireland v England at Lord's, July 2019
42 - New Zealand v Australia in Wellington, March 1946
42 - Australia v England in Sydney, Feb. 1888
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Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
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Du Football Champions
The fourth season of du Football Champions was launched at Gitex on Wednesday alongside the Middle East’s first sports-tech scouting platform.“du Talents”, which enables aspiring footballers to upload their profiles and highlights reels and communicate directly with coaches, is designed to extend the reach of the programme, which has already attracted more than 21,500 players in its first three years.
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Specs
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APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
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Storage: 128/256/512GB
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Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
