ABU DHABI // Emiratis are more likely than people in other wealthy nations to give money to charity but less likely to give their time for volunteer work.
The study's findings reflect what experts call a cultural emphasis on helping others through donations rather than organisations.
Among the 4,000 respondents, 52 per cent of Emiratis said they had donated money to charity in the past month, while 13 per cent said they had done volunteer work for an organisation.
In high-income nations worldwide, a median of 47 per cent of respondents had donated money and 25 per cent had volunteered.
"The culture has so far been more of a philanthropy culture," Anisa al Sharif, the head of social development for the Dubai Executive Council, said in a talk on the non-profit sector this year.
Islam highlights the importance of alms-giving, or zakat, which is one of its five central obligations.
The emphasis on giving is reflected in government foreign aid which, as a proportion of gross national income (GNI), is comparable to that of developed nations. The UAE gave Dh9 billion in 2009, the latest year for which figures are available.
That year, 0.3 per cent of its GNI went to development aid, an analysis of government data by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development shows. That matched the average of member states and was the highest among non-member states.
UAE authorities have supported initiatives to boost volunteering through programmes such as Takatof, which alerts people to opportunities. But the structure for volunteer work and the concept of it are still taking root.
Non-profit groups in the UAE tend to focus on donations rather than hands-on activities, said Masood Razaq, the founder of Goodgate, which tracks the non-profit sector in the Muslim world.
"Most of the NGOs here are focused on fund-raising rather than volunteering," Mr Razaq said.
That stems partly from the lack of tradition. For generations before the UAE population mushroomed, families and neighbours tended to help one another informally, said Rebecca Donaldson, a US Fulbright scholar who is researching attitudes towards volunteering in the UAE. "It wasn't necessary to go through an organisation because communities were small enough that you would just pitch in," Ms Donaldson said.
Even as young people adopted the idea of formal volunteer work, their efforts remained ad hoc, she said. They often volunteer for one-off events rather than return to an organisation every week.
Emiratis ranked lowest in the Gulf for volunteering, behind Bahrainis at 17 per cent, Qataris at 18 per cent and Kuwaitis and Saudis at 21 per cent. They were second in giving to charity, behind Qataris at 59 per cent and ahead of Kuwaitis on 47 per cent, Bahrainis on 39 per cent and Saudis at 36 per cent.
Emiratis were more likely to help strangers than citizens of other wealthy countries and most other Gulf states, although it was unclear whether they did so by giving money, time or other forms of assistance.
Fifty-six per cent of UAE respondents said that in the past month they had helped a stranger who needed help, compared with the 49 per cent median in high-income nations, 70 per cent in Qatar, 54 per cent in Kuwait, 48 per cent in Saudi Arabia and 44 per cent in Bahrain.
chuang@thenational.ae
Anti-semitic attacks
The annual report by the Community Security Trust, which advises the Jewish community on security , warned on Thursday that anti-Semitic incidents in Britain had reached a record high.
It found there had been 2,255 anti-Semitic incidents reported in 2021, a rise of 34 per cent from the previous year.
The report detailed the convictions of a number of people for anti-Semitic crimes, including one man who was jailed for setting up a neo-Nazi group which had encouraged “the eradication of Jewish people” and another who had posted anti-Semitic homemade videos on social media.
8 traditional Jamaican dishes to try at Kingston 21
- Trench Town Rock: Jamaican-style curry goat served in a pastry basket with a carrot and potato garnish
- Rock Steady Jerk Chicken: chicken marinated for 24 hours and slow-cooked on the grill
- Mento Oxtail: flavoured oxtail stewed for five hours with herbs
- Ackee and salt fish: the national dish of Jamaica makes for a hearty breakfast
- Jamaican porridge: another breakfast favourite, can be made with peanut, cornmeal, banana and plantain
- Jamaican beef patty: a pastry with ground beef filling
- Hellshire Pon di Beach: Fresh fish with pickles
- Out of Many: traditional sweet potato pudding
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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.”
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THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
BeIN Sports currently has the rights to show
- Champions League
- English Premier League
- Spanish Primera Liga
- Italian, French and Scottish leagues
- Wimbledon and other tennis majors
- Formula One
- Rugby Union - Six Nations and European Cups
Know your Camel lingo
The bairaq is a competition for the best herd of 50 camels, named for the banner its winner takes home
Namoos - a word of congratulations reserved for falconry competitions, camel races and camel pageants. It best translates as 'the pride of victory' - and for competitors, it is priceless
Asayel camels - sleek, short-haired hound-like racers
Majahim - chocolate-brown camels that can grow to weigh two tonnes. They were only valued for milk until camel pageantry took off in the 1990s
Millions Street - the thoroughfare where camels are led and where white 4x4s throng throughout the festival
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.
The specs
Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel
Power: 579hp
Torque: 859Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh825,900
On sale: Now
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now