I will give you pride and glory, says Mohammad

Dubai: "Give me knowledge and intelligence, I'll give you glory and pride." With these words, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, yesterday announced Dubai Strategic Plan 2015 that will take Dubai to the next stage of growth and development.

Click here for Shaikh Mohammad's speech(pdf)

The Dubai Strategic Plan (DSP) 2015 will help the emirate achieve 11 per cent annual growth in GDP to Dh396.36 billion ($108 billion) by 2015 from the current Dh137.25 billion ($37.4 billion) and raise per capita GDP to $44,000 from $31,140 now by creating 882,000 new jobs, bringing total employment to 1.73 million.

The plan - launched under the theme "Dubai ... Where The Future Begins" - sets out a strategic approach that focuses on developing the emirate's most dynamic economic sectors that have been the key contributors to Dubai's annual real GDP growth rate of 13 per cent since 2000.

"Dubai Strategic Plan will open a new page in our history after a successful execution of the first one," Shaikh Mohammad told an august gathering of nearly 2,000 officials, business leaders and academicians in a 75-minute speech that was more of a two-way dialogue with the audience.

"It will position Dubai as a leading Arab and global city as the government provides the growth engine for the public."

Public concerns

The plan, divided into five sections - Economic Development, Social Development, Infrastructure, Land and Environment, Safety, Security and Justice and Public Sector Excellence - also addresses the major public concerns of traffic, rent, inflation, lack of regulatory framework and labour disputes that have influenced the everyday lives of the UAE residents over the past two years.

"Each and everyone living here are in my eyes and I want them to be safe and secure," he reassured them.

The new plan, prepared by 300 people, including officials, businessmen and academics, is the second in six years, after Shaikh Mohammad laid out his famous Vision 2010 in 2000 that put Dubai in an ambitious growth mode, the fruits of which are partially visible today.

"I can assure you of its success as we have been successful in executing our vision in the past. We have rich experience in such growth activities.

"When I announced my Vision for Dubai, in the year 2000, I spoke of econ-omic aims for the year 2010. The reality is that not only have these aims been realised but they have been realised in half the time," he said.

"In 2000 the plan was to increase GDP to $30 billion by 2010. In 2005 that figure was exceeded, with GDP reaching $37 billion. The plan also included an increase in income per capita to $23,000 by 2010. In 2005 the average income per capita reached $31,000. In other words, we realised, in five years, economic achievements beyond those which were planned for a 10-year period.

"We were in a race against time and we won. But as I have always said, the race has only just begun. With these achievements comes new hurdles, responsibilities, and challenges... The Dubai Strategic Plan systematically addresses these until the year 2015.

"Over the last few years another very important achievement has been economic restructuring. In 2005, the non-oil sector played a major role, contributing 95 per cent to GDP, as compared to 90 per cent in 2000, and approximately 46 per cent in 1975. The services sector was the driving force behind Dubai's economic growth, contributing 74 per cent of GDP, mirroring the economies of the developed world."

"Despite having its own specific goals, the DSP is fully integrated with the federal strategic plan, being prepared by The Council of Ministers, under the direction of His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahayan, President of the UAE."

He emphasised on economic diversification as the major growth engine and impetus behind Dubai's success.

"Our success in diversifying our sources of income has compensated for low oil reserves, and economic growth now depends on an infrastructure not directly affected by the oil sector. This is an historic achievement, one which can benefit neighbouring and friendly oil-producing countries in their efforts to restructure their own economies and to diversify their own sources of income."

Accountability

The plan also calls for enhanced accountability among government officials and the development of UAE national human capital that will ensure the success of the plan. All director-generals have been tasked to develop their own strategic plans in line with the DSP.

"The Dubai Strategic Plan will also ensure a common framework for the integrated operations of all government entities, focusing on five key areas that show the highest level of development potential - economic development; social development; infrastructure, land and environment; security, justice and safety and, public sector excellence. For each area, clear sub-sectors have been identified that will form the underlying principles for development," Shaikh Mohammad said.

He laid strong emphasis on social development in the DSP. "We must all realise that strategic success requires social development to complement and parallel economic development. Indeed experience confirms that having an effective social infrastructure is the key to reaching higher levels of sustained economic growth," he said.

To lay the foundations necessary for social development, the plan places a set of programmes to achieve strategic objectives in key areas.

"Preserve National Identity. This will be achieved by revising policies and procedures to ensure demographic balance; increasing the sense of belonging and the awareness of local culture by updating educational curriculum and developing the capabilities of national teaching resources; ensuring comprehensive cultural content through relevant activities and channels including media, arts and literature; and increasing focus on the Arabic language as it encompasses national history and culture," he said.