Khalifa: UAE's success is fruit of perseverance

Dubai: Across the UAE, preparations are in full gear to celebrate the country's 38th National Day.

The celebrations this year will be coupled with Eid Al Adha, giving the National Day festivities a unique flavour.

Education authorities have already begun the celebrations — with universities and schools in different emirates — highlighting the different development features of the UAE since the creation of the federation 38 years ago.

The UAE has become a hub of the world's economic, investment and cultural institutions, President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan said in a report by WAM.

"Our efforts and strategic plans are synchronised to turn the UAE into the regional hub of the world economy by taking pioneer steps in the investment, industrial, technology and scientific fields," he explained while attending the inaugural Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Formula One earlier this month.

Success

He added that the position occupied by the UAE on the international economic map was not temporary or surprising, nor born out of a certain economic circumstance, but "a fruit of perseverance at the local and federal levels".

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said the success of the UAE in overcoming the global financial crunch, indicates that "Dubai will follow its developmental projects and observe its financial commitments in the next periods, and will remain as financial and trade capital of the Middle East".

"It is unfair to reduce the Dubai experience to the real estate projects as the Dubai development success story is large, deep and diversified in regard to the strategy," he told a group of business leaders recently.

Shaikh Mohammad underlined that the relations between Abu Dhabi and Dubai are not negotiable as the two emirates are one family. "There is no Dubai and Abu Dhabi, we are one."

Open to public

The public has also been invited to celebrate the National Day and Eid Al Adha celebrations with an unprecedented show of fireworks in Dubai next week.

The fireworks show, supervised by experts, will be performed on the creek, Mohammad Kamali of Dubai's Events and Commerce Promotions said in a statement.

Schools in Ajman and Al Ain Education Zone organised a rally on Sunday — which included various activities — to celebrate UAE's National Day.