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59843
Sun, 05/10/2009 - 14:15
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UAE to launch investment firm for women
Abu Dhabi, May 10, 2009 (WAM) - The UAE will launch a company that will provide investment and asset management services for women and families within an ongoing programme to support female business, the project manager said yesterday according to Emirates Business 24|7
The Central Bank has already approved the company, which will be announced shortly as one of a handful of household investment services ventures in the region, said Fatima Al Jaber, Chief Executive Officer of Abu Dhabi-based Al Jaber Holdings.
Al Jaber, who will head the new company, announced the project at an Arab women investment conference, which opened in the capital yesterday.
The chief executive of Al Jaber Holdings said the new company was prompted by a surge in Gulf female personal wealth following seven years of an oil boom and the need to allow women to break out of the traditional sectors and take to new investment fields.
Citing independent estimates, she put the total personal wealth accumulated during the oil boom in the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) at more than US$6 trillion (Dh22trn), including about US$350 billion managed by nearly 50,000 women.
Al Jaber said the company would solely target women and families and its details would be unveiled soon.
Al Jaber said the venture became imperative following a sharp increase in personal wealth in the GCC countries, which control more than 45 per cent of the world's oil resources and a fifth of the global gas deposits.
As a result of the oil boom during 2002-2008, such wealth has exceeded US$6trn, including about US$350bn controlled by GCC women, added Al Jaber.
"Other statistics showed that the size of investments managed by GCC businesswomen is estimated at US$38bn, including nearly US$16bn by Saudi women. In the UAE, there are around 15,000 women managing US$4bn while nearly 1,300 women in Qatar control US$6bn," she said.
"There are some key factors that contributed to the accumulation of this wealth and the expansion of the women's role in investment and economic activities. They include the oil and economic boom in the region, the encouragement of women to enter new business fields, and the growing flexibility in economic and investment laws in the region," she added.
But Al Jaber said there were still obstacles blocking the Gulf women's efforts to play a more active role in the domestic economy and entering new business sectors, especially in the small and medium enterprises.
Al Jaber said these included the lack of incentives as well as financing by banks and other financial institutions and funds. "Another major obstacle is the absence of sufficient incubators that will provide financial support and training for new businesswomen or those seeking to set up a venture," she said.
"There is also the social factor… many investment opportunities are not reaching women because they are circulated or discussed among men and as you know, our laws generally ban women from mixing with man. So, what is reaching women is only those business opportunities which are already rejected by men."
Another speaker at the finance conference agreed that social barriers are still preventing women in the GCC from expanding their role in economic and business activities.
Ibtissam El Aboubi, Deputy General Manager for Support at the Amman-based Capital Bank, said she had met several UAE businesswomen and discussed such obstacles.
She said that the women demanded more independence, incentives for their projects, and flexibility in procedures to set up their own businesses.
"Some of them proposed that they have access to investment in products and tools that are tailored for women. When I met businessmen in the UAE and told them about this, they said they want women to enter all business fields," she added. "They told me it is unfair to present some products and tools for women because they wanted women to break out of the traditional female investment sectors and embark on new and bold enterprises."
Aboubi said the GCC women possess all investment capabilities but added that they have a "problem in self-confidence".
"They do not have sufficient investment information to break out of the traditional female investment spheres such as gold and deposits. Women in the Gulf just lack the necessary information, the initiative and knowledge as they have been dealing through middle men for a long period of time.
"I urge women to become aggressive and make the move. Sticking to a limited investment field will create problems for them such as a decline in the value of their assets or the price of gold. There are many means available for them to expand their activity," Aboubi added. –
The Central Bank has already approved the company, which will be announced shortly as one of a handful of household investment services ventures in the region, said Fatima Al Jaber, Chief Executive Officer of Abu Dhabi-based Al Jaber Holdings.
Al Jaber, who will head the new company, announced the project at an Arab women investment conference, which opened in the capital yesterday.
The chief executive of Al Jaber Holdings said the new company was prompted by a surge in Gulf female personal wealth following seven years of an oil boom and the need to allow women to break out of the traditional sectors and take to new investment fields.
Citing independent estimates, she put the total personal wealth accumulated during the oil boom in the six-nation Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) at more than US$6 trillion (Dh22trn), including about US$350 billion managed by nearly 50,000 women.
Al Jaber said the company would solely target women and families and its details would be unveiled soon.
Al Jaber said the venture became imperative following a sharp increase in personal wealth in the GCC countries, which control more than 45 per cent of the world's oil resources and a fifth of the global gas deposits.
As a result of the oil boom during 2002-2008, such wealth has exceeded US$6trn, including about US$350bn controlled by GCC women, added Al Jaber.
"Other statistics showed that the size of investments managed by GCC businesswomen is estimated at US$38bn, including nearly US$16bn by Saudi women. In the UAE, there are around 15,000 women managing US$4bn while nearly 1,300 women in Qatar control US$6bn," she said.
"There are some key factors that contributed to the accumulation of this wealth and the expansion of the women's role in investment and economic activities. They include the oil and economic boom in the region, the encouragement of women to enter new business fields, and the growing flexibility in economic and investment laws in the region," she added.
But Al Jaber said there were still obstacles blocking the Gulf women's efforts to play a more active role in the domestic economy and entering new business sectors, especially in the small and medium enterprises.
Al Jaber said these included the lack of incentives as well as financing by banks and other financial institutions and funds. "Another major obstacle is the absence of sufficient incubators that will provide financial support and training for new businesswomen or those seeking to set up a venture," she said.
"There is also the social factor… many investment opportunities are not reaching women because they are circulated or discussed among men and as you know, our laws generally ban women from mixing with man. So, what is reaching women is only those business opportunities which are already rejected by men."
Another speaker at the finance conference agreed that social barriers are still preventing women in the GCC from expanding their role in economic and business activities.
Ibtissam El Aboubi, Deputy General Manager for Support at the Amman-based Capital Bank, said she had met several UAE businesswomen and discussed such obstacles.
She said that the women demanded more independence, incentives for their projects, and flexibility in procedures to set up their own businesses.
"Some of them proposed that they have access to investment in products and tools that are tailored for women. When I met businessmen in the UAE and told them about this, they said they want women to enter all business fields," she added. "They told me it is unfair to present some products and tools for women because they wanted women to break out of the traditional female investment sectors and embark on new and bold enterprises."
Aboubi said the GCC women possess all investment capabilities but added that they have a "problem in self-confidence".
"They do not have sufficient investment information to break out of the traditional female investment spheres such as gold and deposits. Women in the Gulf just lack the necessary information, the initiative and knowledge as they have been dealing through middle men for a long period of time.
"I urge women to become aggressive and make the move. Sticking to a limited investment field will create problems for them such as a decline in the value of their assets or the price of gold. There are many means available for them to expand their activity," Aboubi added. –
