The construction sector's contribution to Dubai's non-oil GDP declined to 8.1 per cent last year from 8.2 per cent the previous year, according to Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI).
Construction activities have been growing at an annual average rate of 5.4 per cent in recent years. The sector employs more than 111,700 workers which represents 15 per cent of the emirate's workforce.
The sector last year generated Dh5.38 billion worth of economic activity, DCCI said in a recent report.
According to the UAE Contractors' Association (UCA), about 16,000 companies are active in the country's construction and building materials sector. More than 2,113 of them are registered in Dubai.
Meanwhile, Society of UAE Engineers are hosting the 8th Annual Conference of the GCC Engineers that got underway in Dubai on Sunday. More than 300 professionals are participating from the GCC countries as well as the Arab world, in the three-day event.
"In 14 sessions, 40 research papers will be presented that will address some of the hotly debated issues, such as challenges faced by the industry, industrial construction, best practice in the profession, the use of modern technology in construction, online collaboration as well as the importance of a unified building code for the GCC," said Mohammad M.M. Mashroom, secretary general of the Society of Engineers, UAE.
