Dubai’s pioneering Smart Police Station has caught the attention of academics and government officials during a meeting of the Future Leaders Assembly.
Residents in Dubai will be familiar with the station, which allows the public to report crimes or obtain certificates without ever having to meet a police officer.
The facility, which is the first of its kind in the world, opened last year at City Walk and already there are plans to build three more.
"The smart police station is all about technology, there is no human interaction in it," First Lt Abdullah Al Shaikh from Dubai Police told The National. "You can go into the police station and only deal with the technology inside."
Lt Al Shaikh said the facility allows residents a greater deal of privacy in a comforting environment when reporting a crime.
“You can go to report a crime with full confidentiality, feeling safe in your surroundings because some people fear police in uniform,” he said. “You walk in with no humans around you and report your incident or obtain a certificate.”
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The smart station has proven a huge success in Dubai, according to Lt Al Shaikh, because it is “faster, provides confidentiality and even has a free coffee shop inside”.
Technology is one of seven sectors of the economy the UAE is expanding as part of its transformative Vision 2021 programme to reduce dependency on oil. The other six are renewable energy, transport, education, water, space and health.
Friday’s seminar, which was held under the patronage of Maj Genl Abdullah Al Marri, commander-in-chief of Dubai Police, was the first time the smart station technology has been showcased in the UK.
The event was attended by the UAE ambassador to the UK, Sulaiman Al Mazroui, council chairs from Dubai Police, as well as academic professors, experts, and UAE students studying in the UK. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain, Morocco and Egypt all sent attachés.
Most of the questions asked at the seminar, held at London’s Dorchester Hotel, were in relation to the smart station technology.
“Dubai Police introduced this method,” said Lt Al Shaikh. “And now we have been approached from ministries of interior of several countries to share our experiences. They want to implement the same methods for their organisations.”
Delegations from Saudi Arabia and China have already been to Dubai to see the smart stations in action.
Aside from plans to roll out the technology across the whole of the city, Dubai Police are currently working on the development of a “drive-thru” station, which- similar to a fast food drive thru- will allow users to report cases without having to leave the comfort of their cars.