SPECIAL REPORT ABU DHABI
A planned future with great opportunities
T
he Abu Dhabi of the future will be very different from the Abu Dhabi of the past, even though the financial enabler of this massive change – hydrocarbons – is a constant.
In order to understand what is happening now and what
will occur in the coming years, one needs to reflect a little on the past. In the final 30 years of the last century, oil and gas helped the Abu Dhabi develop from a village to a metropolis, however it flew below the radar compared to its noisy brand- building neighbour, Dubai. Despite this, Abu Dhabi has 87 per cent of the UAE’s land area, 67 per cent of GDP, 95 per cent of the oil reserves and 92 per cent of gas reserves. Affordability led to many inefficiencies, but this is now
changing rapidly as Abu Dhabi’s aim is to be one of the best five governments in the world in terms of services and socio- economic development. Much of the development is and will be undertaken by the private sector, with the state acting as enabler and director rather than direct participant. This is creating huge opportunities for the private sector, both to participate in sectors previously excluded. There are also opportunities in new sectors, which should give international consultants the chance to be involved in all facets of the change process across a wide range of industries. In 2007, Abu Dhabi’s Executive Council launched Policy
Agenda 2007-08, which outlined the government’s plans in 18 different areas of the economy and society. This was not just a two year plan – its direction formed the basis of The Abu Dhabi Economic Vision 2030, which established a common framework for aligning all policies and plans that contribute to
Mezquita Sheikh Zayed – Abu Dhabi
the ongoing development of the Emirate’s economy. Vision 2030 focuses on four key priority areas:
l economic development; l social and human resources development; l infrastructure development and environmental sustainability;
l optimisation of government operations. The GFC has slowed implementation to more manageable rates, but it has not changed the strategic directions.
Economic development One of the main aims is to move Abu Dhabi’s economy towards diversification. The wealth from hydrocarbons, which accounts for 80 per cent of government revenue, is being used to drive other sectors of the economy. With some 200 years of oil left at current production levels and a significant sovereign wealth fund, the resources will be available. Abu Dhabi’s diversification strategy means expanding into
industries in which the emirate already has, or can affordably attain genuine competitive advantage. The target sectors are oil, gas, petrochemicals and metals. One vehicle for these sectors is the establishment of
Abu Dhabi International Airport. 12 AUSTRALIA AND THE ARAB COUNTRIES | 2010
specialised industrial zones to attract regional and global investment. These focus on iron and steel, building materials, oil and gas services, agriculture, food processing, paper making, wood, automobiles, services operations management, high-tech manufacturing, financial services, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and petrochemicals. One industrial zone includes an Australian/Abu Dhabi bus-building joint venture. Its first exports were buses to Australia.
Photo by: Nuno Nogueira
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