Dubai unveils Future District
This will require many initiatives and projects aimed at turning Dubai into a nexus for business and an integrated investment environment that offers exceptional facilities, Sheikh Mohammed said. Along with the new fund, the initiative will provide unprecedented financing and legislative facilities and options for businesses.
Presiding over the meeting of the Dubai Council, Sheikh Mohammed said, “Dubai will become the world’s capital of the new economy. The new economy will be a major focus on the 50 goals agenda that we seek to achieve in the next five years. The Dubai Council will focus on opening new economic sectors for the emirate and transform its existing sectors.”
“We aim for a major shift in Dubai’s foreign trade through stimulation and revitalisation with continuous development of all its logistical, legislative and service tools, in addition to building new international partnerships,” said Sheikh Mohammed.
He said the Dh2 trillion target for the volume of Dubai’s foreign trade by 2025 would be supported by establishing 50 offices around the world, each tasked with promoting Dubai’s unrivalled trade, tourism and investment offerings through and intensifying and unifying of external marketing efforts.
“The new Dubai offices for trade and tourism promotion will be based around the world, and the unification of external efforts will carry better results for the Dubai economy,” Sheikh Mohammed said, adding, “I asked that messages be sent to all directors of public departments and public figures in the emirate to submit development proposals to me directly to achieve positive transformations in our path.”
He said 2020 would be the beginning of a huge developmental leap, and “it is the year that will drive us to the next decade with full force.”
Sheikh Mohammed assigned Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World, the responsibility of handling the mission of Dh2 trillion foreign trade target by opening new foreign markets for the emirate, developing the logistics system and enhancing the competitiveness of local exports. This will be done by forming a committee to manage these responsibilities and achieve the desired goals through all promotional methods.
The committee is tasked with presenting a plan within 30 days of its establishment to explore the possibilities of opening new markets for Dubai’s foreign trade, establishing strategic international partnerships, enhancing the competitiveness of local exports, creating new export sectors, developing the logistics system in Dubai, and boosting the capabilities of international shipping lines managed by the emirate.
The Dubai Future District initiative acts as an umbrella to many joint projects that will be launched in line with the 4th of January 2020 Document that was announced by Sheikh Mohammed recently.
“The latest initiatives will have far-reaching positive impact on Dubai’s swift transformation as a veritable global hub of the new economy and innovation. Dubai Future District and the impressive foreign trade target of Dh2 trillion by 2025 signify a giant leap for Dubai and will help propel the emirate to a higher growth trajectory,” PNC Menon, founder and chairman of Sobha Group, said.
Ten initiatives will be launched in the coming weeks to support the economy of the future by providing an attractive investment, technological, legislative, service and enabling environment that is the best of its kind in the region and globally.
“His Highness has unveiled an incredible blueprint for Dubai’s exponential growth as a futuristic global hub of the new economy, foreign trade and innovation over the coming years. All the 10 initiatives unveiled today are real game-changers and will bring about unprecedented qualitative and quantitative changes for the economy, said James Mathew, CEO & Managing Director of UHY James Chartered Accountants.
The first initiative is the Dubai Future Economy Fund, an Dh1 billion fund dedicated to future economy entrepreneurs in Dubai and the region by providing all kinds of support and facilities that are needed by tech startups in their early stages.
The fund aims to enhance Dubai’s position as a preferred destination to establish future economy companies, increase the contribution of the new economy companies in the GDP, create job opportunities, and support private sector and foreign investments in Dubai’s future economy companies.
Office of Future Economy Companies is the second initiative, in which an office for future economy companies will be established and tasked with issuing special five-year residency visas to future entrepreneurs. It will also issue licences for innovative projects, provide banking facilities to future economy entrepreneurs, offer world-class legal services to entrepreneurs, and provide flexible work spaces, training services and workshops.
The third initiative is the Legislative licences to innovate and experiment the technologies of the future economy. Under this initiative, future economic entrepreneurs will be able to obtain legislative licences to test their innovations in designated areas that will serve as pilot areas, through the Legislative Laboratory and District 2071. These pilot areas will contribute to supporting the economy of the emirate of Dubai.
Fourth on the list is reduced housing prices for future economy pioneers. Under this initiative, future economy entrepreneurs can take advantage of available housing options at a unit price lesser than Dh3,000 per month. While the fifth initiative will see a unified platform for financing and consulting future economy entrepreneurs.
A new exchange for future economy companies is the sixth initiative. Under the umbrella of DIFC, a stock exchange allocated for future economy companies will allow them to obtain financing and raise capital in a more flexible system.
The seventh initiative will see the formation of the largest space for future economy companies’ incubators and accelerators. This space will be the largest incubator of its kind in the Mena region to assist future economy companies in their initial founding stages, by providing training in innovation and developing prototypes, in addition to providing an opportunity to benefit from the network of partners and available facilities.
The Future Economy Research Centre — the eighth initiative — will contribute to the design of applied research through several specialised laboratories (in the field of robotics, artificial intelligence, etc.) so that the centre will form a platform for scientific research and the joint cooperation with government and private sectors.
The ninth initiative will see graduating future economy companies from national universities. A programme aimed at consolidating the culture of entrepreneurship and encouraging the students of government and private university in the country, to establish economy companies, so that students in the acceleration phase can work to transform their innovative ideas into future economy companies.
The tenth initiative, international conferences on the economy and companies of the future, will see the Dubai Future District host the largest and most important international events and conferences seeking to provide global platforms for future economy leaders to communicate through, explore growth prospects and present their projects to a larger audience.