The new decade that was ushered in by the usual dazzling Burj Khalifa fireworks provoked some reflection on my part, for it was 10 years ago this year that I made the move to the Gulf.
Back then it was a leap into the unknown, where blissful ignorance of the customs, shortcomings and foibles of the region meant ups and downs even more marked than the NMC Health share price chart. Well, not quite. But today, the things that sent me into a tailspin of incredulity and temple throbbing exasperation seem perfectly normal. Except for the banking system. And the driving. Oh, and the standard of workmanship. Better add in the price of a bottle of very average wine. I suppose you would have thought, also, that over the past decade the cult of building real estate that no one is going to buy and banks lending like drunken sailors to developers might have stopped, but no, it’s business as usual. When the shimmering Arabian Gulf tide goes out, it isn’t the borrowers who will be seen bearing their all. It’s the lenders and investors. But that’s life here, and the cycle never seems to stop, apart from the odd arrest and short term public humiliation.
Back in 2010, as Gordon Brown handed over to David Cameron (and Cleggers) and Barack Obama was in office (whose first inauguration I attended in Washington DC), who was to know that the United Kingdom would go through a painful divorce from Europe. Moreover, who would have predicted the ascent of the Mango Mussolini, (as Donald Trump has been nicknamed by none other than Brian Moore, the former England pit bull) to the White House and become the most amusingly powerful man on the planet.
Here in the UAE, Dubai was not nearly the size it is today, and in Abu Dhabi, Reem Island, Saadiyat island and Al Maryah Island were mere squiggles on the draftsman’s paper.
2010 was the year that the Burj Khalifa opened to the public, and a decade on it still pulls the crowds, Coronavirus notwithstanding. The Meydan racecourse opened for Godolphin to win more often that they lose. The population was 8.3 million.
By 2019 the population had grown to 9.8 million and the UAE had won the bid to host Expo 2020, sent a man into space, embraced alternative energy with the inauguration of the Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid solar park, which will provide 5000 mega watts of power. On that theme, Abu Dhabi was the launch place for Solar Impulse 2, the first solar powered plane to circumnavigate the earth, covering 40,000kms without using one drop of fossil fuel.
We have seen the launch of the wonderful Dubai opera house and the creation of a water canal that cuts through the city. It has been announced that the world’s first Hyperloop will come to the UAE, offering commuters a 12 minute jet propelled journey from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, which should be marginally safer than the Sheikh Zayed Road.
In 2017, the Louvre opened in Abu Dhabi, adding another cultural destination to the guidebooks. More museums and exhibition centres are to follow in both Dubai and Abu Dhabi, with the Museum of the Future under construction, to name but one.
Pope Francis even popped over to say hello.
On a less appealing note, friction continues in the Gulf, with Syria, Yemen and Iran giving the leadership here headaches. Business conditions have worsened in the UAE for the first time in a decade, and the emigration of skilled businessmen and women continues. Local banks continue to refuse to lend to SME’s and stifle growth for entrepreneurs, although they seem happy to plough money into hopeless property developments. On the plus side, though, serious investment funds have stepped up, launching dedicated vehicles for start-ups, both regionally and internationally, encouraging the tech generation and AI geniuses to bring their ideas and teams to the region. The major Sovereign Funds in Abu Dhabi have been strengthened by exceptional leadership and require a very good story indeed before parting with their capital. 1980’s EC3 this is not!
The bright lights still shine, the sea glitters and the roads are full of SUVs, Rollers and Bentleys. But where some may look at Dubai and the UAE as a false paradise, I’d disagree. Yes, there are ridiculous contradictions that we will never fathom, but this is a place of Progress with a capital P. As we open our doors to the world in October for Expo 2020 (10/10/2020), the UAE will showcase not only the incredible pace of growth since her establishment just 49 years ago, but a warm and welcoming personality which is, in fact, the Arab way.
