Scottish presence in Dubai is making a real difference
◆ Sustainablilty and learning are high on the agenda in the Gulf state, writes Jeremy Grant
For the first-time visitor to Dubai, a ride on the elevated metro that runs parallel to Sheikh Zayed Road, one of the Emirate’s main road arteries, is eye-opening.
Glass and concrete office towers crowd the financial district and, as you head south, your eye is drawn to vast billboards promoting ultra-luxury residential developments sprouting on the outer rim of the 16-lane highway.
Nor does financial services pull any punches. On one billboard, Standard Chartered bank offers cashback in local currency of up to £4,600 for opening a “priority banking” account. Multibank Group, a foreign exchange and securities trading firm, simply proclaims: “Life is Better With Money”.
It’s easy to conclude Dubai is defined by a headlong dash for riches. Certainly, the Emirate and its oil-rich neighbour Abu Dhabi, not to mention awakening giant Saudi Arabia, are in the midst of a boom that’s attracting foreigners and their money as much as these Gulf states are projecting their sovereign wealth abroad.
In the week I was there, two large investments were concluded by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in UK renewable energy. One was Masdar, UAE’S renewable energy company, acquiring a 49 per cent stake in offshore wind farm Dogger Bank South. Another was state energy company Adnoc buying 10 per of Uk-based Storegga, which is developing a carbon capture and storage project in Scotland.
Yet there are activities that tell another story, one of investment in human capital and sustainability. Two of them happen to have roots in Scotland.
The Global Ethical Finance Initiative (GEFI) is a Glasgow-based organisation that convenes action on sustainable finance. It held an event in Dubai when I was visiting to assess progress by UAE financial institutions in advancing the COP28 agenda since the climate summit was hosted by the UAE in November.
In partnership with consulting firm PWC, GEFI announced the launch of a year-long series of meetings known by the Arabic word “majlis” (council, in English) for local financial institutions to discuss sustainable finance.
Across town, about 4,000 students gather at the Dubai campus of Heriotwatt, the Edinburgh university known for its pioneering work in engineering and business since it was founded in 1821.
Heriot-watt has operated a satellite in Dubai since 2005, becoming the first campus of a British university to open at the invitation of the government, providing courses in management, engineering, built environment, food science and fashion.
The university moved three years ago to a striking new building near the Dubai headquarters of Google, Cisco and Huawei. Professor Dame Heather Mcgregor, Provost and Vice Principal of Heriot-watt University Dubai, says the campus has “extremely strong academiaindustry collaboration”, adding that it will “continue to invest in the region in line with our ethos of being one of Scotland’s most international universities, and in our quest to provide opportunities for learning at all stages of life”. To which one might add: life is better with learning.