Emirates: The Dubai Crown Prince has chaired a meeting of top government officials to review the roadmap to implement the emirate’s ambitious 10-year economic agenda.

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, had last week launched the Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’ to double the size of the emirate’s economy over the next decade, and consolidate its position among the top three global cities.

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, said he met with senior government officials at the Museum of the Future to review the D33 plan and its first 10 transformational projects.

The first phase includes launching the Dubai Green and Sustainable Industry Plan, which includes benchmarking against the latest industry standards; supporting the export of green products; and adopting a framework for trading carbon credits in the Dubai Financial Market.

“We are ready to realise Sheikh Mohammed’s vision to establish the world’s most successful economic model,” Sheikh Hamdan tweeted.

The Dubai Crown Prince and Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance of the UAE, stressed the importance of achieving the ambitious Dh32 trillion target of the D33 over the next 10 years.

The D33 strategy seeks to establish Dubai as the world’s safest and most connected city and a preferred destination for major international companies and investments. It aims to make Dubai a global digital economy leader, the fastest-growing and most attractive global business centre, a centre for sustainability and economic diversification, and an incubator and enabler of talented nationals.

Sheikh Hamdan said: “The announcement of D33 by Sheikh Mohammed further consolidates Dubai’s development journey. We are ready to start implementing his vision immediately. 2033 will mark 200 years since the foundation of Dubai and we aim to make the city a global role model that can help realise people’s dreams and offer them the world’s best standard of living.”

Key priorities

Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed said that growing foreign trade and attracting more foreign direct investment (FDI), enhancing Dubai’s financial status, and encouraging youth to participate in new economic sectors are key priorities of the D33 agenda. “All sectors, including logistics, digital, legal, financial, and infrastructure, need to think out of the box during the next 10 years. Our ambitions today are much higher than before.”

Ambitious targets

The agenda will drive sustainable economic growth through innovative approaches. It sets ambitious goals, including raising the total value of foreign trade from Dh14.2 trillion in the past 10 years to Dh25.6 trillion and adding 400 cities as key trade partners during the next decade. The agenda includes a programme to support the growth of 30 companies in new sectors to become unicorns and integrate 65,000 young Emiratis into the workforce and the private sector.

The first set of projects of D33 includes Sandbox Dubai, which aims to make the emirate a significant hub for incubating business innovation by enabling the testing and marketing of new products and technologies. It also includes the Dubai Traders Project, which will empower a new generation of traders in various major growth sectors, driving growth in the city’s vibrant trading hub.