The UAE has never fallen short when it comes to thinking of the future, planning ahead and setting lofty goals for progress and advancement. And at the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai — in the presence of representatives of 138 governments, six major international organisations, as well as leading international tech companies — the UAE set itself its most ambitious goal yet: Building the first city on Mars. The project has a target date of 2117 and will be in collaboration with specialised international organisations and scientific institutes around the world.
The Mars 2117 Project was announced by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. As part of a 100-year national programme, the UAE will set a plan to prepare national cadres that can achieve scientific breakthroughs to facilitate the transport of people to the Red Planet over the next decades.
The 100-year plan will involve scientific research programmes to nurture national cadres specialised in space sciences at universities in the UAE. It will also entrench a passion for space in younger generations.
Detractors will look at this project and shake their heads. But detractors lack the vision to see beyond their noses. They fail to understand the spirit and ‘can do’ attitude that has built this land from seven separate emirates 45 years ago into a dynamic nation that consistently tops global indices and surveys in almost every field. Look how far mankind has come in the past 100 years, and the rate of change. Now look forward to 2117.
