When Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, told the first meeting of the reshuffled federal Cabinet that the needs of Emiratis are "the core of our daily work", the message was intended for the country as a whole as well as to the ministers present.
As he had explained earlier in an open letter, this region is full of examples of governments where this did not happen. Instead of being loyal to the needs of ordinary citizens – and particularly the young – these regimes tended to prioritise the ruling elites and vested interests. This comes at a price in the forms of instability, violence and lack of progress, both socially and economically.
This message was presaged when the ministries were reshuffled last month. Ministers were appointed with responsibility for happiness, tolerance and the future. Shamma Al Mazrui, a 22-year-old recent graduate of New York University Abu Dhabi and Oxford University, was appointed Minister of State for Youth Affairs. The changes mean the Cabinet now has eight women serving on it and the average age has dropped markedly.
The Government is right to identify its ability to meet the aspirations of young Emiratis as an important way to measure its success. This age group in other countries around the region formed the core of the Arab Spring uprisings, protesting against their perceived lack of opportunity to get ahead in life and to make a living so they can afford to get married and raise a family.
Just as meeting the needs of Emiratis of all ages is a new focus for the revamped Cabinet, so too is a need for prompt implementation of initiatives to achieve that. The ministers were told at the meeting they had 100 days to formulate a plan for their ministries, which is a tall order for new portfolios and those that have undergone considerable changes. Governments, as Sheikh Mohammed stressed, need to be measured by speed rather than by size.
There is no question about the challenge facing this new Cabinet. We remain a bastion of tolerance and opportunity in a turbulent region, and that has happened by design rather than by accident. Although there is much to be proud of about our record to date, those defining qualities of the UAE will only be maintained by improving yet further. That is the message being brought home to the Cabinet – and to the country.
