Sudan's President Omar Al Bashir on Sunday sacked the country's 31-member cabinet and appointed a new prime minister to tackle a growing economic crisis in the African country.
Bashir's decision to fire the entire cabinet was approved by the top leaders of his ruling National Congress Party (NCP) at a late-night meeting.
The decision comes as Sudan faces a growing economic crisis led by an acute shortage of foreign currency and surging inflation of more than 65 per cent.
Faisal Hassan Ibrahim, a top aide to President Bashir, said: "The economic situation needs to be resolved and for this President Bashir decided to cut the government at all levels."
"President Bashir has decided to have a smaller, 21-member government," he added.
The outgoing cabinet was led by PM Bakri Hassan Saleh, who was also the first vice president.
President Bashir appointed Moutaz Mousa Abdallah, who was the irrigation minister, as the new prime minister. Mr Saleh will continue as first vice president.
President Bashir also appointed Mohamed Osman Yousif Kiber as vice president.
Mr Ibrahim said Mr Abdallah had been tasked with forming the new cabinet, but did not know when he would be sworn in.
Earlier on Sunday, the presidency announced President Bashir's decision to sack the government of Mr Saleh, saying it was "in order to fix the situation facing the country".
"He [President Bashir] will form a new government that can once again bring hope to the Sudanese people," the presidency added.
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Sudan's worsening economy saw the cost of food items and other products more than double over the past year. The Sudanese pound plunged against the US dollar on the foreign currency market.
The central bank twice devalued the pound this year, and it now trades at 41 to the dollar on the black market. The official rate is 28 to the dollar.
Sudan's economic crisis was highlighted for the first time in April when foreign minister at the time Ibrahim Ghandour announced in parliament that he had been unable to pay his staff for months due to a shortage of funds. He was immediately sacked.
Days after President Bashir dismissed Mr Ghandour, he announced a major reshuffle that saw the oil, interior, agriculture, youth and sports and justice ministers replaced. That reshuffle was also aimed at tackling the economic crisis.
Sudan's economic troubles have worsened despite the United States in October lifting its decades-old trade embargo on the African country.
Expectations that the lifting of the sanctions would help revive Sudan's ailing economy have failed to be met so far.
Although Washington lifted the embargo, it still kept Sudan on its list of "state sponsors of terrorism," a factor which officials say keeps investors away.
Sudan's economy is already suffering from the loss of three-quarters of its oil resources when South Sudan gained independence in 2011.
The World Bank and other global financial institutions urged Sudan to swiftly adopt structural reforms to revive its ailing economy.
Sudan's average GDP growth between 1998 and 2008 was above six per cent, after which it steadily declined.
Previous efforts at economic reform have proven contentious.
An attempt in September 2013 to cut fuel subsidies led to bloody confrontations between anti-austerity protesters and the security forces. Dozens of people were killed in Khartoum.
In January Sudan again experienced sporadic anti-government protests after a rise in food prices.
The authorities swiftly moved in to curb these protests by arresting several activists and opposition leaders.
In August, the NCP chose President Bashir as its candidate for 2020 presidential election.
Emergency
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Rating: 2/5
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.”
Earth under attack: Cosmic impacts throughout history
- 4.5 billion years ago: Mars-sized object smashes into the newly-formed Earth, creating debris that coalesces to form the Moon
- 66 million years ago: 10km-wide asteroid crashes into the Gulf of Mexico, wiping out over 70 per cent of living species – including the dinosaurs.
- 50,000 years ago: 50m-wide iron meteor crashes in Arizona with the violence of 10 megatonne hydrogen bomb, creating the famous 1.2km-wide Barringer Crater
- 1490: Meteor storm over Shansi Province, north-east China when large stones “fell like rain”, reportedly leading to thousands of deaths.
- 1908: 100-metre meteor from the Taurid Complex explodes near the Tunguska river in Siberia with the force of 1,000 Hiroshima-type bombs, devastating 2,000 square kilometres of forest.
- 1998: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 breaks apart and crashes into Jupiter in series of impacts that would have annihilated life on Earth.
-2013: 10,000-tonne meteor burns up over the southern Urals region of Russia, releasing a pressure blast and flash that left over 1600 people injured.
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
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
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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.
The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
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
The Kingfisher Secret
Anonymous, Penguin Books
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.
What to watch out for:
Algae, waste coffee grounds and orange peels will be used in the pavilion's walls and gangways
The hulls of three ships will be used for the roof
The hulls will painted to make the largest Italian tricolour in the country’s history
Several pillars more than 20 metres high will support the structure
Roughly 15 tonnes of steel will be used
