Dubai: The media office of Dubai has released a series of video clips in honour of the late Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and UAE Minister of Finance and Industry, who passed away on Wednesday.
Dubai Media Office shared black and white video clips of Sheikh Hamdan that offered a quick glimpse of his journey as a child standing next to his father Sheikh Rashid bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the late Ruler of Dubai, and depicted his accomplishments as he worked alongside the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, Father of the Nation.
Viewers could also see heart-warming clips of Sheikh Hamdan with his brother, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, as well as with his nephew Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Makoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council.
Sheikh Hamdan was born in 1945 and during the formation of the first UAE Cabinet on December 9, 1971, was appointed Minister of Finance and remained in this position until his death. He was known for his interest in humanitarian work and his passion for culture, literature and science.
He chaired numerous authorities and prominent government institutions that play a vital role in supporting the economy and labour market of the entire country, especially Dubai, including Dubai Municipality, the Al Maktoum Foundation, the Dubai World Trade Centre, the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), the Dubai Natural Gas Company Limited (Dugas), Emirates Global Aluminium, the ENOC Processing Company LLC, and the Oil Fields Supply Centre.
On its Instagram post, Dubai Media Office also uploaded one video clip that aired the late Sheikh Hamdan’s speech, as he said: “We are in Dubai, and here, we only know how to do our best in all of our projects.”
Sheikh Hamdan was known for his passion in humanitarian work, most notably in poor and marginalised areas, which led to the Annual Summit of the African Union (AU) in 2009 to dedicate a session to honour him for his assistance in providing tens of thousands of needy people with health and education services.
His charitable activities were not limited to the African continent but reached out to Europe, America and Australia. Sheikh Hamdan was always keen to support new Muslims and the Muslim community, either financially or through providing holy books and publications and organising workshops and educational programmes. He also established numerous schools to teach the Islamic Sharia.
Dubai Media Office also tweeted: “The late Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum ... an ambitious visionary that contributed to the development of Dubai and the UAE.”
Sheikh Hamdan witnessed all stages of the UAE’s journey and tremendously contributed to the national development drive. He was one of the country’s leaders and participated in designing its future, and was regarded as an icon of the country’s political, economic, social, cultural and sporting culture.
