Dubai soaring to great heights under new ruler
Dubai soaring to great heights under new ruler
By Andrew White, For The Straits Times
MAN WITH A VISION: Sheikh Mohammed has overseen a period of rapid growth in Dubai.
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DUBAI - A JAGGED 138-storey shard soaring high above the Persian Gulf, the Burj Dubai tower is not for those afraid of heights.
It is the world's second-tallest building, and any day now it will comfortably eclipse Taiwan's Taipei 101 tower.
Yet, as a symbol of the new Dubai, the tower could hardly be more appropriate - after all, the man behind the booming emirate's vision, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, has never been afraid of heights.
The emirate's faith in its leader - who is also Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates - is absolute.
Long before he took the reigns officially, following the death of his brother last year, Sheikh Mohammed was widely considered the emirate's de facto ruler.
He has overseen a period of tremendous growth, during which Dubai has diversified its interests so successfully that the non-oil sector now accounts for about 95 per cent of the emirate's total GDP - a significant shift from 1975, when oil revenues made up 64 per cent of that figure.
As a result, the emirate boasts a can-do attitude that is a direct result of Sheikh Mohammed's example.
'Sheikh Mohammed is 10 years ahead of everyone else. He sees things, and comes up with solutions, before the rest of us even know that we are going to have a problem,' said Mr Saeed Al-Muntafiq, chairman of government-owned Tatweer.
'He is an inspiration, and anything he sets out to achieve, he achieves.'
Mr Al-Muntafiq knows more than most about achievement.
Tatweer is part of Dubai Holding, one of the emirate's key investment arms, and it is the company responsible for the audacious Dubailand development, a US$70 billion (S$106 billion) city within a city.
The 278 sq km project is the most ambitious tourism, leisure and entertainment development in the world. It will feature a host of attractions, including a dinosaur theme park, a snowdome for those that need a break from the desert sun, the world's largest shopping mall and a 10km-long Vegas-style strip of hotels to accommodate the hordes of visitors the city is expecting to attract.
Offshore, too, Dubai is justifying its reputation as the biggest construction site in the world.
One mega-project, the man-made Palm Jumeirah Island, has already opened its doors to lucky villa owners, who include David and Victoria Beckham, Tiger Woods and Rod Stewart.
Even more startling is The World, a string of similarly man-made islands that, viewed from the air, resemble a map of the globe.
Prices start at US$15 million, and that does not even include a hook-up to the basic utilities grid.
Mr Jean-Marc Lejeune, UAE director of Barclays Capital, argued that the initial success of projects such as the Palm Jumeirah and the Burj Dubai will determine the future of the emirate.
'At the moment, 80 per cent of Dubai's projects are still in development. The delivery of them is critical in making sure the quality of life is something which will remain and will continue to attract people here,' he said.
'The main challenge is to turn a construction-driven business into tourism activity, financial services and the services sector.'
The emirate has certainly set its sights high.
At the heart of the Dubai dream lies the Strategic Plan 2015, unveiled by Sheikh Mohammed in February.
Split into six guiding principles - economic development; social development; security, justice and safety; infrastructure, land and environment; and public sector excellence - it outlines measures that will help the emirate achieve 11 per cent annual growth to US$108 billion by 2015, from the current US$37.4 billion.
Over the same period, per capita GDP will rise to US$44,000 from US$31,140, and 882,000 new jobs will be created, bringing total employment to 1.73 million.
Dubai has also set itself a target of attracting more than 15 million tourists in 2015. The emirate had 6.5 million tourists last year, compared with 6.1 million in 2005.
For those tempted to scoff at Sheikh Mohammed's ambitious goals, it is worth pointing out that the Strategic Plan 2015 was formulated only after the emirate's previous targets were attained in record time.
Sheikh Mohammed, it seems, is not a man to let records lie for long.
By Andrew White, For The Straits Times
MAN WITH A VISION: Sheikh Mohammed has overseen a period of rapid growth in Dubai.
View more photos
DUBAI - A JAGGED 138-storey shard soaring high above the Persian Gulf, the Burj Dubai tower is not for those afraid of heights.
It is the world's second-tallest building, and any day now it will comfortably eclipse Taiwan's Taipei 101 tower.
Yet, as a symbol of the new Dubai, the tower could hardly be more appropriate - after all, the man behind the booming emirate's vision, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, ruler of Dubai, has never been afraid of heights.
The emirate's faith in its leader - who is also Vice-President and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates - is absolute.
Long before he took the reigns officially, following the death of his brother last year, Sheikh Mohammed was widely considered the emirate's de facto ruler.
He has overseen a period of tremendous growth, during which Dubai has diversified its interests so successfully that the non-oil sector now accounts for about 95 per cent of the emirate's total GDP - a significant shift from 1975, when oil revenues made up 64 per cent of that figure.
As a result, the emirate boasts a can-do attitude that is a direct result of Sheikh Mohammed's example.
'Sheikh Mohammed is 10 years ahead of everyone else. He sees things, and comes up with solutions, before the rest of us even know that we are going to have a problem,' said Mr Saeed Al-Muntafiq, chairman of government-owned Tatweer.
'He is an inspiration, and anything he sets out to achieve, he achieves.'
Mr Al-Muntafiq knows more than most about achievement.
Tatweer is part of Dubai Holding, one of the emirate's key investment arms, and it is the company responsible for the audacious Dubailand development, a US$70 billion (S$106 billion) city within a city.
The 278 sq km project is the most ambitious tourism, leisure and entertainment development in the world. It will feature a host of attractions, including a dinosaur theme park, a snowdome for those that need a break from the desert sun, the world's largest shopping mall and a 10km-long Vegas-style strip of hotels to accommodate the hordes of visitors the city is expecting to attract.
Offshore, too, Dubai is justifying its reputation as the biggest construction site in the world.
One mega-project, the man-made Palm Jumeirah Island, has already opened its doors to lucky villa owners, who include David and Victoria Beckham, Tiger Woods and Rod Stewart.
Even more startling is The World, a string of similarly man-made islands that, viewed from the air, resemble a map of the globe.
Prices start at US$15 million, and that does not even include a hook-up to the basic utilities grid.
Mr Jean-Marc Lejeune, UAE director of Barclays Capital, argued that the initial success of projects such as the Palm Jumeirah and the Burj Dubai will determine the future of the emirate.
'At the moment, 80 per cent of Dubai's projects are still in development. The delivery of them is critical in making sure the quality of life is something which will remain and will continue to attract people here,' he said.
'The main challenge is to turn a construction-driven business into tourism activity, financial services and the services sector.'
The emirate has certainly set its sights high.
At the heart of the Dubai dream lies the Strategic Plan 2015, unveiled by Sheikh Mohammed in February.
Split into six guiding principles - economic development; social development; security, justice and safety; infrastructure, land and environment; and public sector excellence - it outlines measures that will help the emirate achieve 11 per cent annual growth to US$108 billion by 2015, from the current US$37.4 billion.
Over the same period, per capita GDP will rise to US$44,000 from US$31,140, and 882,000 new jobs will be created, bringing total employment to 1.73 million.
Dubai has also set itself a target of attracting more than 15 million tourists in 2015. The emirate had 6.5 million tourists last year, compared with 6.1 million in 2005.
For those tempted to scoff at Sheikh Mohammed's ambitious goals, it is worth pointing out that the Strategic Plan 2015 was formulated only after the emirate's previous targets were attained in record time.
Sheikh Mohammed, it seems, is not a man to let records lie for long.
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