The stirring speech by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on the opening day of the World Government Summit on Sunday brought to the distinguished audience of world leaders and thinkers a deep understanding of the values and vision that has made the UAE a force to reckon with on the global arena. Combining breadth of vision, strength of conviction and eminence of thought, Shaikh Mohammad’s multi-contextual address on ‘How to Reignite the Region’s Development’ referenced many of the pressing contemporary challenges facing the region and the world — the true import of Islam, the impact of the United States’ Middle East policies, the need for Arab governments to align with probity, and the UAE’s national vision, to name some.
In doing so, Shaikh Mohammad brought into sharp focus the importance of the interplay of national vision and global responsibility, an interplay that has been deeply understood and embodied by the UAE, enabling it to carve for itself an enviable place in the global hall of nations. A significant aspect of Shaikh Mohammad’s address, given the current narrative of conflict and prevalence of extreme ideology in regional hot spots, was the reiteration of Arab heritage and the real meaning of Islam. Calling attention to the peerless contributions of the Arab civilisation to world history and underlining the peaceful nature of Islam are absolutely critical counters in today’s times when rampant distortion of Islam’s essence is dominating many political discourses around the world.
Shaikh Mohammad’s assertion of the collective will of the GCC to flourish and of its remarkable achievements in the current decade was also an important note to strike as was his observation of the many mistakes made by previous US administrations on Iraq, the legacy of which still troubles the region.
The UAE’s clear-cut goals on the other hand offer a stark contrast to such lack of vision. But Shaikh Mohammad took it a step further in stating, “A vision alone is not enough as we have to set plans to accomplish this vision, and the real benchmark lies in actions,” he said. It is this determination of the UAE to implement a clear-cut vision into an actionable plan that has been its bold as well as fine print of success.
As Shaikh Mohammad put it, hard work, accountability, a strong will, principled management and above all, prioritising the happiness of people are guiding principles of the UAE and in arriving at its own success story, the UAE has also presented to the world a textbook formula well worth emulating.
