More than a million pupils are set to return to schools on Monday, prompting the annual effort to ensure safety on the roads.
Head teachers have put traffic plans in place, urging families to arrive early at schools to avoid congestion, while police send out extra patrols as part of their yearly Accident-Free Day initiative.
The scheme aims to reduce collisions and injuries on the road by offering drivers the chance to wipe four black points from their licences on the day most pupils head back to campus for their first day of the new term.
Staggered return
To combat congestion, schools have staggered days of return for pupils and sent additional staff to help ease traffic on Monday.
Lt Col Nasser Abdullah Al Saadi, director of the security media department in Abu Dhabi Police, said the force is ready to secure the roads.
“We are all set for the new academic year. The plan will include increased police patrols on the roads and ensure smooth traffic by giving priority to school buses,” Mr Al Saadi said.
“Drivers should reduce vehicles’ speed near schools and leave safe distances behind school buses. Parents should drop their children in designated areas in front of the schools."
Last year's back-to-school safety drive was hailed as a major success after no incidents were recorded around the emirate's schools.
Increased school staffing
Gems Dubai American Academy will stagger the return of 700 pupils on Monday, while all 3,400 pupils will have returned by Tuesday.
The school is located near Hessa Street, known for its heavy traffic.
"We will have additional staff, not only for the first couple of days, but for the first couple of weeks," said Ethan Hildreth, superintendent at the school.
"We have also have improved the internal flow of traffic by adding two internal roads that will manage the traffic.
"One road is a new loop that services family access to our new middle school block. We added an internal road that will enable parents to loop right up to the building to drop off children."
He said a significant number of pupils would also be riding on busses.
"We have a higher ridership on the busses than we have ever had before, and that's a convenient way for pupils to reach school."
Mr Hildreth advised parents to leave early as it could take a little time for the traffic patterns to be established after summer holidays.
Extra resources
Lisa Johnson, principal at American Academy for Girls in Dubai, said the school had taken extra steps to help parents navigate first-day traffic.
“We’ve provided maps indicating where road construction is occurring and adjusted our start time by 15 minutes earlier,” said Ms Johnson.
“We’ve moved homeroom to time block one to ensure that if parents are delayed, students won’t miss core academic classes.
“With extra staff on hand to guide vehicles and support the drop-off process, we’re committed to making the first day a positive experience for everyone.”
As parents return from holidays with their children, Neal Dilk, principal at Bateen World Academy, stressed the need to get back into an efficient routine quickly.
“It can sometimes be a little bit difficult for people to come out of holiday mode, so we are reminding parents to plan for a little bit of extra time when coming to school for the first couple of weeks, while families settle back into their school-commuting routines,” said Mr Dilk.
School bus safety
Emirates Transport, a provider of school transport in the UAE, announced that they had inspected over 7,600 buses and trained more than 18,000 bus drivers and supervisors on safety procedures ahead of the new school year.
Drivers also had trial runs before the first school day to ensure they were familiar with the routes.
Aamer Juma Al Shahi, operations director at Emirates Transport said: "To ease traffic, particularly for parents dropping off their children after the summer vacation, we have implemented several measures.
"These include optimising bus routes to improve efficiency and coordinating closely with parents to ensure their children are ready and waiting at the pick-up location at least five minutes prior to the scheduled time.
"To further reduce traffic congestion, we recommend parents consider carpooling options or utilising our bus services. These initiatives are designed to streamline the drop-off process and alleviate traffic bottlenecks.”
To meet the high demand and ensure a smooth service, Emirates Transport has hired 533 more bus drivers and 466 female bus supervisors for the new school year.
*Additional reporting by Ali Al Shouk
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Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
