The UAE's economy will grow by about 4 per cent this year, fuelled by government investment and a broadening mix in sources of income, Sultan Al Mansouri, the Minister of Economy, said yesterday.
"Our GDP is over Dh1 trillion [US$272.22 billion], and last year we recorded a growth of about 4 per cent, a trend that is expected to prevail this year as a result of the Government's policy of diversifying sources of income, and investment in development projects," he said.
Mr Al Mansouri was speaking at the opening plenary of the World Economic Forum's (WEF) annual summit on the global agenda, hosted for the fifth time in the UAE yesterday. He is co-chairman of the event, which has attracted about 1,000 experts to discuss a wide range of topics, from geopolitics to climate change.
Mr Al Mansouri's positive outlook for the economy was echoed by Sami Al Qamzi, the director general of the Department of Economic Development and the fellow co-chairman of the event.
Dubai would also grow at 4 per cent this year, he said.
"The chief engines of this exceptional growth are trade, tourism, and logistics attracting investments, exports and re-exports - sectors, that have traditionally formed the bedrock of Dubai's evolution into a global hub," said Mr Al Qamzi.
Dubai attracted Dh16bn in foreign direct investment in the first half of the year, through 115 investments, he said.
Tourist arrivals grew by 10 per cent and hotel revenues rose by 19 per cent in the first half of the year.
"Altogether, five million tourists visited and stayed in Dubai during the first six months of 2012 and another five million are expected in the second half of the year," said Mr Al Qamzi.
The UAE economy has benefited from a further rise in oil output this year as many GCC states raised production in response to tougher sanctions against Iran. Continuing strength in non-oil trade, transport and tourism had also boosted activity.
"We would be comfortable with those [GDP] estimates," said Simon Williams, the chief economist of HSBC in the Middle East and North Africa. "We are looking for an increase in non-oil growth next year as the gains in oil output are unlikely to be repeated."
In a sign of the rising confidence officials have about Dubai's economy, the emirate may consider issuing debt if it felt it necessary to do so, Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, the head of Dubai's Supreme Fiscal Policy Committee, said on the sidelines of the event.
A decision on any sale depended on "if it's a good time or not", he said.
The UAE economy has largely avoided the fallout from the twin crises of sovereign debt and fiscal woes entangling the euro zone and the United States.
"Despite the US and the euro zone still suffering from economic crisis, the Gulf states, Africa and Asia are becoming engines of the economy," said Anwar Gargash, the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs in a speech during the first day at the summit.
The challenges for emerging economies were finding sufficient resources and unemployment, he said.
But the single biggest challenge the Arab world faced was handling the fallout from the unrest in the region, said Mr Gargash.
"The regional issue we consider the most important is the continuing ramifications of the unrest and its impact on the region," he said.
"Still we have a very severe impact even though the unrest started two years ago."
tarnold@thenational.ae
List of officials:
Referees: Chris Broad, David Boon, Jeff Crowe, Andy Pycroft, Ranjan Madugalle and Richie Richardson.
Umpires: Aleem Dar, Kumara Dharmasena, Marais Erasmus, Chris Gaffaney, Ian Gould, Richard Illingworth, Richard Kettleborough, Nigel Llong, Bruce Oxenford, Ruchira Palliyaguruge, Sundaram Ravi, Paul Reiffel, Rod Tucker, Michael Gough, Joel Wilson and Paul Wilson.
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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
COMPANY PROFILE
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Navdeep Suri, India's Ambassador to the UAE
There has been a longstanding need from the Indian community to have a religious premises where they can practise their beliefs. Currently there is a very, very small temple in Bur Dubai and the community has outgrown this. So this will be a major temple and open to all denominations and a place should reflect India’s diversity.
It fits so well into the UAE’s own commitment to tolerance and pluralism and coming in the year of tolerance gives it that extra dimension.
What we will see on April 20 is the foundation ceremony and we expect a pretty broad cross section of the Indian community to be present, both from the UAE and abroad. The Hindu group that is building the temple will have their holiest leader attending – and we expect very senior representation from the leadership of the UAE.
When the designs were taken to the leadership, there were two clear options. There was a New Jersey model with a rectangular structure with the temple recessed inside so it was not too visible from the outside and another was the Neasden temple in London with the spires in its classical shape. And they said: look we said we wanted a temple so it should look like a temple. So this should be a classical style temple in all its glory.
It is beautifully located - 30 minutes outside of Abu Dhabi and barely 45 minutes to Dubai so it serves the needs of both communities.
This is going to be the big temple where I expect people to come from across the country at major festivals and occasions.
It is hugely important – it will take a couple of years to complete given the scale. It is going to be remarkable and will contribute something not just to the landscape in terms of visual architecture but also to the ethos. Here will be a real representation of UAE’s pluralism.
Straightforward ways to reduce sugar in your family's diet
- Ban fruit juice and sodas
- Eat a hearty breakfast that contains fats and wholegrains, such as peanut butter on multigrain toast or full-fat plain yoghurt with whole fruit and nuts, to avoid the need for a 10am snack
- Give young children plain yoghurt with whole fruits mashed into it
- Reduce the number of cakes, biscuits and sweets. Reserve them for a treat
- Don’t eat dessert every day
- Make your own smoothies. Always use the whole fruit to maintain the benefit of its fibre content and don’t add any sweeteners
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- Eat everything in moderation
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