Dubai ranked 23rd on world's top cities index


Deepthi Nair
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Dubai has retained its top spot in the Middle East and North Africa region in terms of global engagement, after ranking 23rd out of 156 cities in this year's Global Cities Index.

It is the third-consecutive year that Dubai has claimed a spot in the top 25 of the index, management consultancy Kearney said on Thursday.

Doha was ranked second in the Mena region and 50th globally, while Tel Aviv stood third regionally and 57th worldwide. Other regional cities featured in the index include Riyadh (fourth regionally, 61st globally) and Abu Dhabi (fifth regionally and 66th globally).

The study also ranked Abu Dhabi among the top 30 cities globally in terms of outlook.

The index measures the global engagement of 156 cities across five categories – business activity, human capital, information exchange, cultural experience and political engagement – and seeks to quantify the extent to which a city can attract, retain, and generate global flows of capital, people and ideas, Kearney said.

Key cities in the GCC made major improvements in their overall scores in this year's index, as they capitalised on the return to pre-pandemic levels of international travel to attract large volumes of migrant talent and tourism, according to the report.

“As global trade returns to normalised levels, key cities in the Gulf have emerged as beacons of prosperity, resilience and opportunity,” said Rudolph Lohmeyer, a partner at Kearney.

“Their resilient economic performance amid challenging global conditions, combined with a concerted focus on promoting livability and talent attraction, has succeeded in drawing ever-greater numbers of expats.”

In recent years, the UAE has undertaken sweeping economic, legal and social reforms to attract skilled workers.

The government’s overhaul of visa programmes has boosted opportunities for foreign workers to live and work in the country. That includes a revamp of the 10-year golden visa to simplify eligibility criteria and expand the categories of beneficiaries.

The green visa was also introduced to provide five-year residency to skilled workers without needing a sponsor or employer.

The UAE led the Arab world for attracting and retaining talent, while Switzerland is the top destination globally, according to the 2023 IMD World Talent Ranking.

The UAE ranked 22nd among 64 economies, thanks to an increase in scores for quality of life, management remuneration, health infrastructure, quality of education and labour force growth, according to the IMD World Talent index by the World Competitiveness Centre.

Meanwhile, the top five cities on Kearney's GCI index – New York, London, Paris, Tokyo and Beijing – remained unchanged from 2022.

However, there was substantial movement among the remaining top 30 cities, including considerable gains for Brussels and Madrid and declines for Washington, DC, and Boston, according to the report.

This year marked a continued decline in the business activity category, reflecting the persistent challenging global economic conditions, Kearney said.

Meanwhile, the human capital profile of global cities has risen for the first time since the start of the pandemic, as restrictions on movement have been removed and individuals are now free to travel.

Information exchange and political engagement scores showed moderate improvements this year, while the cultural experience indicator remained level after surging in the previous year with the reopening of many cultural institutions, Kearney said.

Abu Dhabi was ranked 27th globally on Kearney’s Global Cities Outlook, which assesses how the 156 cities are creating conditions for their future status as global centres.

This index is measured across four categories – personal well-being, economics, innovation and governance.

San Francisco was ranked first in the Global Cities Outlook index, followed by Copenhagen, London, Luxembourg and Paris.

“In this shifting global landscape of distributed opportunity, top-tier global cities cannot take their positions for granted,” said Brenna Buckstaff, manager at Kearney.

“The traditional hierarchy of leading cities will only become more fluid in the future as opportunities for growth and enhanced productivity become less concentrated during the coming waves of artificial intelligence-driven innovation.”

Top 10 of the 2023 Global Cities Index

  1. New York
  2. London
  3. Paris
  4. Tokyo
  5. Beijing
  6. Brussels
  7. Singapore
  8. Los Angeles
  9. Melbourne
  10. Hong Kong

Source: Kearney

The bio

Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho

Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France

Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines

Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.

Favourite Author: My father for sure

Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst

If you go...

Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.

Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50

Paatal Lok season two

Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy 

Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong

Rating: 4.5/5

The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor

Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000

Engine 3.5L V6

Transmission 10-speed automatic

Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm

Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km

SUNDAY'S ABU DHABI T10 MATCHES

Northern Warriors v Team Abu Dhabi, 3.30pm
Bangla Tigers v Karnataka Tuskers, 5.45pm
Qalandars v Maratha Arabians, 8pm

Afro%20salons
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The Gentlemen

Director: Guy Ritchie

Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant 

Three out of five stars

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
While you're here
ESSENTIALS

The flights

Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.

The hotels

Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.

The tours

A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages. 

Stage result

1. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe, in 3:29.09

2. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto-Soudal

3. Rudy Barbier (FRA) Israel Start-Up Nation

4. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma

5. Luka Mezgec (SLO) Mitchelton-Scott

6. Alberto Dainese (ITA) Sunweb

7. Jakub Mareczko (ITA) CCC

8. Max Walscheid (GER) NTT

9. José Rojas (ESP) Movistar

10. Andrea Vendrame (ITA) Ag2r La Mondiale, all at same time

MATCH INFO

Real Madrid 2

Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')

Barcelona 0

PRO BASH

Thursday’s fixtures

6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors

10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters

Teams

Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.

Squad rules

All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.

Tournament rules

The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.

THE SPECS

Engine: 6.0-litre, twin-turbocharged W12

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 626bhp

Torque: 900Nm

Price: Dh1,050,000

On sale: now

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple. 
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

Milestones on the road to union

1970

October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar. 

December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.

1971

March 1:  Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.

July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.

July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.

August 6:  The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.

August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.

September 3: Qatar becomes independent.

November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.

November 29:  At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.

November 30: Despite  a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa. 

November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties

December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.

December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.

December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

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Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press

Updated: October 26, 2023, 8:45 AM`