The UAE outlined plans for developing its energy, housing, infrastructure and transportation sectors, as the country lays foundations for growth for the next 50 years, according to Suhail Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure.
The ministry has completed a study on the need for housing across the country, based on the availability of land and supply of housing until 2040, with the aim of determining the demand and supply in each emirate, Mr Al Mazrouei said in an interview with state-run news agency WAM on Sunday. It is also assessing the financing requirements for housing projects.
Mr Al Mazrouei also said the ministry has ambitious plans for citizens' housing in line with government directives to provide citizens with decent living conditions.
In terms of its goals for a sustainable energy sector, the ministry will introduce energy efficient systems in industrial and mining facilities, enact legislation for the production of clean energy and develop national cadres in the energy sector through cooperation with specialist institutes for geological research and development, he said.
To further develop the UAE's infrastructure, the ministry is working to promote digital identity in infrastructure, demographic changes and urbanisation, interactive smart cities and resilient infrastructure.
The UAE – a major regional transport hub – aims to design safe, integrated and sustainable transport networks that use advanced technology, the minister said.
The Emirates, one of the world's largest logistics hubs, is building an extensive rail network across the country to speed up transport of freight. Etihad Rail, which was formed in 2009, is tasked with building a rail network that extends for about 1,000km from Ghuweifat at the border with Saudi Arabia to Fujairah on the UAE’s east coast.
"One of our legislative and regulatory priorities with regard to the transport sector at the moment is to complete the legislative and regulatory framework for the emerging federal railway system in the country, which is about to enter a new phase," Mr Al Mazrouei said. "It will have remarkable positive impacts on the various logistical aspects of transporting goods at the national and regional levels."
The ministry will be laying down the executive regulations for Federal Law No. (8) of 2020, which governs the organisation of railways, to ensure its implementation and achieving its objectives in an "optimal manner", he said.
Etihad Rail under construction - in pictures
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The Etihad Rail network will stretch from Abu Dhabi to Fujairah when complete -
Maithaa Al Remeithi is Etihad Rail's first female train controller. All pictures by Victor Besa -
Maithaa Al Remeithi has turned a childhood love of trains into her dream career -
Maithaa Al Remeithi plays an integral role in the UAE's rail sector -
Each day, two freight trains leave the depot at Etihad Rail to transport granulated sulphur from gasfields in Shah and Habshan to an export point in Ruwais -
The depot in Mirfa serves as the centre of operations for Etihad Rail -
Any one train can take up to 110 wagons, can travel at speeds of 120 kilometres an hour and, at full length, can reach about 1.2km -
It is full speed ahead for Etihad Rail's expansion plans -
Located a few kilometres inland in a large open expanse, two train tracks which serve Etihad Rail span 264km
