More PPPs likely to develop UAE infrastructure

DUBAI — Public-private partnerships (PPP) for infrastructure development will grow in the near future in the UAE, said a senior government official. Speaking on the sidelines of the

Khaleej Times Infrastructure & Real Estate Excellence Awards on Tuesday, Eng. Anwaar Al Shaimmari, director of design department and chief innovation officer at the Ministry of Infrastructure Development, said: “Infrastructure is something that never stops and keeps evolving. All around the world, countries that have developed strong infrastructure are growing fast. In the UAE, the direction of the government is that the private sector will play a bigger role in the near future. There will be much more PPPs in the field of infrastructure.”

She said the Dh180 million tender for the ministry’s Sharjah headquarters would be floated soon.

“It will be one of the landmark projects in the UAE. We have major strategic projects of roads and buildings which are currently underway or will be launched with an estimated value of Dh10 billion.”

She said the UAE stands out in terms of infrastructure developments globally and now projects around the world are benchmarked with the UAE.

Al Shaimmari pointed out that the government is still playing a key role in the development of super structures such as federal buildings and federal roads.

“But a window is still open to negotiate how the private sector can be involved. For example, big developers in Dubai are playing a major role in shaping the future as well as the map of Dubai. There is a strong collaboration between the two and it will benefit everyone,” she added.

The government is also emphasising the stronger role needed to be played by small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Expo 2020 has allocated a certain percentage of projects for SMEs in order to promote the sector and increase their role in developments to create more jobs and strengthen the economy.