Dubai's Roads and Transport Authority will sell its data to other government organisations and private companies to raise new revenue.
A master plan to share the data has been finalised and it will be done according to the laws that govern data sharing, RTA said in a press release.
The infrastructure for sharing data along with 20 use cases has already been set up, the RTA said.
In data sharing, use cases are key data projects or priorities.
“This framework is a prelude to a final project for maximising RTA’s revenues by selling data to government and private entities under the provisions of the Dubai Data Law issued in 2015," said Mohammed Al Mudharreb, chief executive of the RTA's Corporate Technology and Technical Support Services Sector.
"The project includes developing an operational model to maximise return on investment from the use of RTA’s data and knowledge while protecting the exclusivity and confidentiality of data.
"By undertaking this project, RTA has become the first government entity in the UAE and the region to implement this approach."
Dubai government wants to have 100 per cent of government data on open channels and shared portals available for everyone to benefit.
Dubai Data Law is aimed primarily at ensuring that information gathered by government entities is shared with other organisations and private sector companies to maximise opportunities that will benefit the emirate’s residents, visitors and economy.
Mr Al Mudharreb said the project would adopt the same strategies of high-performing and fast-growing entities that have managed to raise money by selling data.
“It will optimise the availability of data, simplify service procedures, reduce the operating cost and support beneficiaries with the decision-making process," he said.
"It supports digital government and open data model pursued by our government.
"It will also reap benefits through forging partnerships with government and non-government agencies and offering solutions tailored to the market demand."
What is Dubai Data Law?
Al Tamimi & Co, a legal company in the UAE, says the law aims to manage data in line with international best practices, promote transparency and establish rules for dissemination and exchange.
The purpose of the law is to increase the efficiency of services provided by federal and local government entities and to provide data necessary to non-governmental organisations to support the development of the Emirate of Dubai.
The legislation applies to data providers such as federal and local government entities that possess data of people, sole proprietorships, public interest organisations, companies and associations, among others.
These entities produce, own, publish or exchange data. It is classified as either open data — that may be disseminated without restriction or under minimum constraints; or common data — which is subject to certain restrictions.
Importance of data sharing
Sharing data can lead to efficiency savings, in developing new or improved existing products or services without reinventing the wheel.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says the use, and in particular the reuse, of data across the economy underlines the importance of data as a new form of capital for 21st-century knowledge economies.
Data can be used to create significant growth opportunities, or to generate benefits across society in ways that could not be foreseen when it was first created.
The six points:
1. Ministers should be in the field, instead of always at conferences
2. Foreign diplomacy must be left to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation
3. Emiratisation is a top priority that will have a renewed push behind it
4. The UAE's economy must continue to thrive and grow
5. Complaints from the public must be addressed, not avoided
6. Have hope for the future, what is yet to come is bigger and better than before
The biog
Favourite film: Motorcycle Dairies, Monsieur Hulot’s Holiday, Kagemusha
Favourite book: One Hundred Years of Solitude
Holiday destination: Sri Lanka
First car: VW Golf
Proudest achievement: Building Robotics Labs at Khalifa University and King’s College London, Daughters
Driverless cars or drones: Driverless Cars
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
World record transfers
1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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