“In 50 years, when we might have the last barrel of oil, the question is: when it is shipped abroad, will we be sad?” Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi, asked in 2015.
“If we are investing today in the right sectors, I can tell you we will celebrate at that moment.”
His message seven years ago at the World Government Summit in Dubai suggested he knew that the UAE’s continued prosperity would depend on a well-diversified economy.
He has since steered the UAE towards investment in and development of its non-oil economy to prepare the country for a post-oil era and is leading efforts to funnel oil wealth into sectors such as technology and manufacturing.
Abu Dhabi’s non-oil foreign trade rose by 15 per cent in one year to more than Dh61.5 billion ($16.7bn) in the first quarter of 2022.
In March, Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, said the country’s non-oil trade had totalled Dh16.1 trillion in the past 10 years as the UAE sped up work to reduce its reliance on hydrocarbons.
In 2018, Sheikh Mohamed announced a Dh50bn stimulus package for Abu Dhabi.
It focused on growing the non-oil economy, attracting and supporting start-ups and small businesses, and spurring innovation through research and development.
The Ghadan 21 initiative, which had the overarching aim of reducing reliance on fossil fuels, stressed the importance of supporting the development of the local economy and creating jobs in Abu Dhabi.
The Abu Dhabi Accelerators and Advanced Industries Council, called Ghadan, helps to attract and support technology and investment both locally and in the region.
The UAE, which has the world’s sixth-largest oil and gas reserves, has also invested in other sources of energy, building the nuclear plant at Al Barakah and developing hydrogen as a fuel.
The country has launched a net zero by 2050 strategy with new investments worth Dh600bn planned in clean and renewable energy sources over the next three decades.
By the middle of the century, it aims to double the contribution of clean energy to its power mix to 50 per cent. The country’s economy is also evolving, with artificial intelligence and other technology being used to reduce its reliance on oil exports.
As the UAE also develops to become a knowledge-based economy, the government is placing a greater emphasis on careers focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, the so-called Stem subjects.
The government, as well as entities such as Mubadala Investment Company, have continued to encourage Emirati talent to pursue careers in Stem subjects, which essentially are the building blocks for economic diversification.
Mubadala, in partnership with Abu Dhabi Education Council, has awarded scholarships to support Emirati students’ pursuit of undergraduate degrees in Stem subjects. Working with Adec, the company also helped steer the government school curriculum in this direction and to deliver Stem-related after-school programmes.
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed’s life - In Pictures
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Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, who has been elected as the UAE President, during his schooling years in Al Ain. Photo: Al Ittihad -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed with Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, who was then Crown Prince of Dubai, during the closing ceremony of the equestrian World Endurance Championship in Abu Dhabi, in December 1998. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed with UAE officers undergoing a training session in Canjuers, southern France, before going to Kosovo to join Nato-led forces in 1999. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed reviews an honour guard with Jordan's King Abdullah II, in 2002. WAM -
Sheikh Mohamed with his father, UAE Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, during a military parade at Idex 2003 in Abu Dhabi. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed welcomes Britain's then prime minister Tony Blair in 2006. Reuters -
Sheikh Mohamed with then US president George W Bush, in Sweihan, in 2008. AFP -
With then French president Jacques Chirac, at the Elysee Palace in Paris. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed with Mr Bush at Camp David, US, in June 2008. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed with then US president Barack Obama during a summit meeting at Camp David, in May 2015. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed visits Rajghat, the memorial for Mahatama Gandhi, in New Delhi, January 2017. AFP -
Then US president Donald Trump shakes hands with Sheikh Mohamed during a meeting at the White House, in May 2017. AFP -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid tour the Louvre Abu Dhabi in September 2017, two months before the museum opened. Ryan Carter/Crown Prince Court -
Pope Francis and Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed at the Abu Dhabi presidential airport, in February 2019. EPA -
Sheikh Mohamed receives a briefing via video conference, about the efforts to combat Covid-19, in March 2020. Photo: Ministry Of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed with his mother Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, on Mother's Day 2021. -
Sheikh Mohamed and French President Emmanuel Macron, wearing Expo 2020 Dubai wristbands, at the Fontainebleau Palace, France, in September 2021. Photo: Ministry Of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed meets Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid in Dubai, April 2022. Photo: Ministry of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Mohamed celebrates Eid Al Fitr with his grandchildren, in May 2022. Photo: Ministry Of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, carry the body of Sheikh Khalifa, on May 13, 2022. Photo: Ministry of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Mohamed leads funeral prayers for the late President Khalifa. Photo: Ministry of Presidential Affairs
The UAE, the Arab world’s second-largest economy, plans to increase the contribution of the industrial sector to its gross domestic product in the next 10 years to create jobs and attract investment.
Last year, it announced Operation 300bn, which aims to more than double the contribution of the industrial sector to economic output to Dh300bn by 2031, from Dh133bn in March 2021. It also seeks to support 13,500 small and medium enterprises over the next decade.
This helped the country’s industrial exports to record a “historic rise” to about Dh120bn last year as 220 factories opened in the Emirates, the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology said.
The UAE also launched an in-country value programme as part of the government’s Projects of the 50 initiative, which aims to boost the country’s industrial sector.
The ICV programme aims to boost the growth of UAE-based industries by redirecting 50 per cent of government spending on procurements and tender contracts into the national economy by 2031.
It was designed to stimulate demand for local products and services, and to encourage local manufacturers to diversify and attract foreign direct investment in the domestic industrial sector, with the aim of boosting economic growth and supporting local industries by redirecting higher portions of public spending into the national economy.
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From left: Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed Al Sharqi, Ruler of Fujairah, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, President Sheikh Mohamed, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi, Ruler of Ajman, and Sheikh Saud bin Rashid Al Mualla, Ruler of Umm Al Quwain, attend a Federal Supreme Council meeting at Mushrif Palace. All photos: Ministry of Presidential Affairs -
Sheikh Dr Sultan, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, during the meeting. -
The Federal Supreme Council, which comprises the rulers of each emirate, announced the election of Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed as President of the UAE. -
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, and Abdullah Al Ketbi, Minister of Federal Supreme Council Affairs, attend the meeting. -
Sheikh Humaid and Sheikh Saud attend the meeting. -
Sheikh Humaid and Sheikh Saud attend the meeting. -
Sheikh Hamad and Sheikh Saud follow proceedings. -
The meeting at Mushrif Palace was chaired by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
The national ICV programme has circulated Dh41bn back into the local market, promoting local companies, Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, said. About 45 public entities and 13 major national institutions and companies have joined the initiative.
The Fourth Industrial Revolution Programme was also launched last year. Known as UAE Industry 4.0, this initiative is to help manufacturers to adopt digital technology such as artificial intelligence, sensors, robotics and the Internet of Things.
Emirates Global Aluminium is the UAE’s biggest industry conglomerate outside oil and gas. One of the world’s largest aluminium producers, EGA is owned equally by Mubadala Investment Company and Investment Corporation of Dubai.
The Emirates is also forging Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements with many countries to boost trade and diversify its economy.
This year, the UAE signed a Cepa deal with India. The agreement, which took effect on May 1, is expected to boost non-oil trade between the nations to $100bn in five years from $60bn now.
A similar deal with Indonesia is expected to triple two-way trade in the next four years from $2.5bn in 2020.
A Cepa agreement with South Korea, which is expected to be finalised by the end of 2022, aims to enhance the economic partnership between the countries to a minimum of $20bn in the next three to five years.
The UAE has also launched trade negotiations with partners including Turkey, Israel, Georgia and the Philippines, among others.
It plans to sign 27 Cepa deals in total as it looks to boost trade and foreign direct investment, Abdulla bin Touq, Minister of Economy, said at the Annual Investment Meeting in Dubai.
