QUESTION G: DO YOU THINK THAT THELIFESTYLE OF THE INHABITANTS OF YOURTOWN OR CITY REFLECTS BEHAVIOR THATIS IN LINE WITH THE CONCEPT OFSUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT? IN YOUROPINION, WHAT SHOULD BE IMPROVED?

Contents

1. Definition of Sustainable Development

2. Economic Factors in Dubai

3. Social Factors in Dubai

4. Environment Factors in Dubai

5. Dubai: Is it Sustainable

6. Vision for 2021

7. Proposed Improvements in Dubai

Definition of Sustainable Development“Development that meets the needs of the present withoutcompromising the ability of future generations to meet their ownneeds.”

-The World commission on Environment and Development’s (theBrundtland Commission) report Our common Future, 1987

Economic Social Environment

Industrial Growth Empowerment Renewable enegery

Agricultural growth Social Mobility Clean Air and Water

Efficient use of labour Cultural Tolerance Biodiversity

Economic Indicators Population Growth Rate Ecosystem Integrity

Now that we know the definition and factors of SustainableDevelopment, let’s examine how Dubai fares on these parameters…

Economic Factors

1. Dubai’s GDP Growth rate has jumpedfrom negative 2.4% in 2009 to a positive 4.5%in 2014. The positive growth was attributedto growth in Tourism industry and Transportand communications in this period.

2. Diversified portfolio of Industries thatcontribute to Dubai’s growth – Tourism andTransport(approx 8.5% of Dubai’s GDP), Realestate (approx 8% of Dubai’s GDP), Exports(Approx 6% of Dubai’s GDP) reducingdependency on oil revenues (Gulfnews report on

Dubai ‘s GBP Breakdown)

3. Economic Free zones – complete with it’sown judicial system – make it easier forInternational outfits to make Dubai theirCentre of Excellence.

1. Emiratis receive multiple benefits fromthe Government and are averse to join thework force, creating an idle segment in thework force. As such the Government spendsAED 35 Billion(almost 8% of it’s yearlyspending) on these benefits (IMF country report

2014)

2. Local Emiratis must own 51% of everycompany setup in the city (not including freezones) even though they do not have directcontrol over the company. It gives themadditional cash flows and also restricts theactivities of the companies.

3. Almost 85% of Dubai’s workforce is Expatsand therefore very vulnerable to continuouspopulation migration.

Strengths Weaknesses

Social FactorsStrengths Weaknesses

1. Dubai is a relatively open societycompared to the other Gulf countries.Women have freedom to work in offices andvisit places unaccompanied, should theywish.

2. Being a city highly dependent on expatworkforce, Emiratis are very tolerant of othernationalities and tend to promote a cohesiveenvironment.

3. Dubai has over 250 schools and 69universities available for education and donot restrict anyone from obtaining educationat a primary level.

1. While the government and Emiratis aretolerant of other religions, there is 1 hindutemple, 2 Sikh Gurudwaras and 15 churchesas opposed to 1,418 Mosques in 2014.According to the 2005 Census by Ministry ofEconomy, 76% of the population in the citywere Muslims and the remaining werebroken up into Christians, Hindus, Sikhsamongst others.

2. Given the government’s stance of notproviding citizenship to its expat residents,the long term residents suddenly findthemselves unable to live here due toimmigration laws. Consequently, the nextgeneration has little or no incentive to stayin the city and show their affiliation and lovetowards the city.

Environmental FactorsStrengths Weaknesses

1. Dubai has a very valuable naturalenergy resource available to them,Sunlight. Dubai is blessed with sunshine allaround the year. With investment into theright system, this vastly available resourcecan be converted to usable energy sourceto light up many streets and homes.

2. Dubai has a growing network of publictransport including metro trains andbuses. With improved connectivity, thisprovides an alternative communaltransportation system that is favourable tothe environment as well.

1. Dubai depends extensively on fossilfuel for its requirements for electricityand water desalination plants. On anaverage, a Dubai resident consumes 8,271kilogrammes of oil equivalent (kgoe) perannum energy compared to 3,254 kgoeper annum used by a UK resident.

2. Waste Management is another areawherein Dubai is struggling. In 2010,Dubai’s single waste treatment plant dealtwith 480,000 cubic meters, or 17 millioncubic feet, of sewage daily, nearly twicethe 260,000-cubic-meter capacity it couldproperly handle.

Environmental FactorsStrengths Weaknesses

3. Dubai is geographically well placed interms of having winds blow through itsland. When the winds blow from the seaside, its cools down the city while thewinds blown from land bring sandstormswith them. Either ways, this wind energycan be converted into electricity andenergy.

3. Dubai has large number ofconstruction happening at all times. Thishas caused the air quality in Dubai todeteriorate steadily. Automobileemissions and sand storms in the regionand city have not helped either.

4. Dubai’s economy is heavily dependenton tourism and this results in the usage ofelectricity to light up buildings such asBurj Khalifa and Burj Al arab aslandmarks. The light pollution has madevisibility of the skies extremely hazy.

Dubai: Is it Sustainable?Given the above challenges, Dubai in its current state is not asustainable development. According to the first “Sustainable CitiesIndex” report developed by Arcadis in 2015 , Dubai was placed 33rd

out of 50 in their ranking, measuring how cities handle theirinfrastructure expansion requirements based on social, environmentaland economic needs.

Having said this, Dubai Government recognizes the importance ofSustainable Development and has come up with various plans andprojects to promote sustainable and green environment.

Vision for 2021Rulers of UAE recognize unsustainability of it’s inhabitants currentlifestyle and launched a seven year UAE National Agenda in the year2014 leading to the UAE vision 2021.

• Empower people• Create an inclusive and

cohesive society• Develop a smart and

sustainable city• Global hub• Pioneering and excellent

government

Making UAE a desirable andpreferred place to live & work.

Proposed Improvements for Dubai

Improvement 1:Dubai currently relies primarily on fossil fuel for its energy requirement, a depletingsource of energy.

Alternative energy sources need to be utilised to reduce dependency on fossil fuel.

1. Dubai is blessed with strong sunshine throughout the year and would need toleverage this source of energy. First Solar Power generation project wasannounced in 2013 and is currently in phase 3 of construction. Once this hasbeen implemented in all areas of Dubai lighting up the city for tourism will becost effective.

2. Dubai also experiences strong winds with duststorms and these winds can also be convertedinto energy sources.

Dubai needs to create eco friendly and sustainableenvironments.

Masdar – a town built by Abu Dhabi on renewable sources of energy

Improvement 2:Creating a less volatile work force which embraces the local community to workalongside the dominant expat population. This can be achieved with a twopronged approach.

1. Gradually reduce and eventually remove the benefits given to the citizens,inducing them join workforce and contribute to the economy of Dubai equally.This will ensure that Dubai has its own citizens contributing to workforce andreduce the reliance on purely expat workforce. This will be a step forward for aself sustaining city.

2. Provide more specialization courses and higher education mandatory for allcitizens. This will guarantee a better workforce that is managed by experiencedlocals. This will also reduce volatility of workforce at managerial level and reducedependency on expat workforce.

Improvement 3:While there is little that can be done for sandstorms, Dubai can control air pollutionby reducing the number of vehicles on it’s roads. To achieve this, Dubai needs tofurther develop its public transport system which currently covers 74.6km with 49stations, hardly sufficient to provide a full coverage, across a city which expands over4,114 km². In addition to this, the current metro system runs via electricity which isfuelled by fossil fuel.

Providing a widespread network of transport for its residents, which runs onrenewable sources of energy will further assist in reducing fossil fuel consumption.This will greatly help in decreasing the automobile emissions and reduce airpollution.

Dubai Metro Network

Improvement 4:Dubai is a land where population increases exponentially with immigration. Arguably,Dubai is the largest city which has the maximum number of temporary residents –people who come to the city just for work or business. These residents live here whilethey work and live their dessert dream and then move back to their home countries.Dubai government allows immigrants to only apply for residency visa. They do notprovide the option for anyone to apply for citizenship. This means that these residentswill have no long term permanent affiliation to Dubai. The spirit of cohesiveness andbelonging is not prevalent.

For Dubai to be an International Financial Hub, there needs to be equality within thediverse cultures staying in the city. To sustain it’s current growth trend and parameters,Dubai needs to consider embracing it’s expat residents who have effectivelycontributed to Dubai’s society and economy by providing permanent rights to remainbuilding a more cohesive society and reducing workforce volatility.

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