Spring 2020 Issue
Sheikh Hamdan is taking that vision and giving it a 21st-Century twist. At the recent launch of one of his initiatives to promote entrepreneurship, he said that his father had told him from an early age that ambition was everything, and that “second place was the first place of losers”. He is known to the people of the UAE simply as “Fazza”, the Arabic word for victory. His drive to ensure that Dubai maintains its status as a futuristic, global city is supported by major government involvement in the creation of an appropriate environment for business. Government cash — plenty of it — is directed to ensure that the seeds of invention and creativity are successfully sown and nurtured. In his role of chairman of the DEC, Sheikh Hamdan supervises public expenditure and development strategies. He also has oversight of all Dubai’s government entities. In 2015, the Dubai Strategic Plan was launched, with Sheikh Hamdan’s insistence on the idea of a “barrierfree society” written into its fabric. His energy and range show throughout Emirati society. Noting that Dubai’s highway network was often populated by some of the world’s worst drivers, he personally forced through a pointsbased traffic-control system, penalising errant motorists by confiscating their licences and their (frequently very expensive) cars. His adventurous personality provides plenty of photo opportunities for the country’s media. In 2013, after leading a delegation to win the bid for the 2020 World Expo, he was pictured waving the UAE flag from the top of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, during the national celebrations that followed. Speaking at a government conference in 2019, Sheikh Hamdan gave an upbeat report on Dubai’s progress towards a diverse economy. He insisted that a policy of openness, together with government initiatives supporting entrepreneurship, was making Dubai an “ideal investment destination”. He added that Expo 2020, taking place in Dubai in October, would promote growth and support greater productivity and investor confidence in the economy. These are not just words. At the same conference, the director general of Dubai’s Department for Economic Development, Sami Al Qamzi, praised the Crown Prince’s vision, reporting that “decisive government action” had accelerated the rate of economic growth, and that GDP had increased, in 2018, by 1.9 percent.
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Cover Story
Maintaining a healthy link with the rest of the Islamic world is another of Sheikh Hamdan’s key aspirations. The wider Islamic economy is responsible for as much as 10 percent of Dubai’s GDP. The Crown Prince has made a point of publicly praising Saudi Arabia, saying that Saudis and Emiratis were “the same people”.