DUBAI 22 May 2017: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, asserted that the United Arab Emirates is marching ahead with its ambitious plans to adopt innovation as a tool for realising future goals set forth by the UAE Centennial 2071 plan.
Sheikh Mohammed’s remarks came during the launch of ‘Area 2071,’ a melting point where innovative ideas and solutions are translated into reality.
Accompanying Sheikh Mohammed on the visit were Dubai Crown Prince Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum; Dubai Deputy Ruler Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum; and Mohamed Abdullah Al Gergawi, Chairman of the Executive Office of Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The UAE Centennial 2071 plan is based on a lecture given by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in which he set outlines for the future of the UAE.
Centennial Plan
The centennial plan is aimed at strengthening the country’s reputation and soft power, building Emirati values and ethics for coming generations, and improving the economy’s productivity and community cohesion. It also includes strategies for diversifying the economy by relying less on oil and focusing education programmes on advanced information technology and engineering.
Sheikh Mohammed said: “Today, we launch ‘Area 2071’ at the heart of Dubai’s Future Design Centre to act as a destination where innovation is crafted into tangible and practical solutions to better serve humanity.”
The ‘Area 2017’ will act as an umbrella that brings together venture capital, R&D, innovators, entrepreneurs, industry-disruptive start-ups, SMEs. It will also house all UAE Government Accelerators and Dubai’s Future Acelerators.
By Rajive Singh