Dubai: The Global Entrepreneurship Summit is the first step to be followed by many leaps in creativity and innovation, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and the Ruler of Dubai, said in his keynote speech at the summit on Tuesday.
“Leadership is one of the main pillars that shape the Emirati identity,” he said, adding: “Leadership is not a new concept in our Arab region.”
He noted the early openness in Islamic history: “The greatest achievement of the Islamic civilization is openness and the globalisations of culture, sciences and knowledge... our civilization adopted the knowledge from different civilizations as well as spreading its own.”
On screen, a recorded TV message was broadcasted where US President Barack Obama thanked the UAE and its rulers for hosting this summit, describing Dubai as the city where dreams could be achieved.
Obama said, “Dubai is the city that speaks to what is possible when people of vision and imagination can pursue their dreams.”
