Dubai aims to be ‘data-driven smart’ paperless economy

By Rajive Singh

Dubai Data Private Sector policy announced

DUBAI 10 April 2019: Smart Dubai announced the Dubai Data Private Sector Strategy and Policy yesterday, which was designed to enable a data ecosystem, foster stronger collaboration between the public and private sectors, and drive Dubai’s ambition toward becoming a data-driven 100 percent paperless smart city.

The launch ceremony brought together local and international senior executives and leaders from across the private and public sectors to discuss opportunities in the four dimensions of a fully optimised, data-driven ecosystem:

  1. Governance and Regulation
  2. Technology and Operations
  3. Commercialisation
  4. People and Engagement

Dr. Aisha Bint Butti Bin Bishr, Director-General of Smart Dubai, said, “Data is the true wealth of communities; it is an exceptionally effective instrument to achieve sustainable development, and serves as a solid foundation for decision-making. It gives me great pride to say that Dubai is one of the world’s most developed and fastest-growing cities in the data sector, and Smart Dubai is committed to developing plans and strategies that maintain that growth momentum and align with the leadership’s vision for the UAE Centennial 2071.”

Younus Al Nasser, Assistant Director-General at Smart Dubai, CEO of the Dubai Data Establishment, said, “Smart cities are rooted in data. Aggregating, classifying, and regulating data is indispensable for establishing Dubai as the world’s happiest and smartest city. With that objective in mind, Smart Dubai launched a series of ground-breaking initiatives, from creating the Dubai Data Establishment and working on the Dubai Data Law, to issuing the Dubai Data Policies for the government sector and, today, the Dubai Data Private Sector Strategy and Policy.”

The launch

“Following the successful implementation of the Dubai Data Policies in government entities, we take yet another bold step today, as we prepare to apply these policies to the private sector,” Al Nasser added. “This initiative helps engage the private sector in Dubai’s citywide smart transformation, and further strengthens public-private partnership and collaboration in the emirate, in line with the forward-thinking vision of our wise leadership.”