The United Arab Emirates struck liquid gold in the form of oil and is now the seventh-largest reserve in the world (accurate in 2015).
The country was established in December 1971 as a federation of seven Emirates: Abu Dhabi (capital), Dubai (largest city), Ajman, Fujairah, Ras al-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al-Quwain.
The main two cities, Abu Dhabi and Dubai used money wisely. They invested directly in healthcare, infrastructure, and education.
Dubai especially focused on becoming a hub of international trade and transport with a diverse population of expats, large companies, and magnificent architecture.
Dubai has re-invented many things: luxury holidays with seven-star hotels, the world’s tallest building, featured in large films like 2015's record-breaking Furious 7, and many more illustrations of success.
The growth of Dubai specifically is frighteningly impressive with several satellite timelapses available. As the city grew, it attracted business from all around the world and inspired the creation of hundreds of successful businesses too: Jumeirah Group started in Dubai and is now operating in China, Italy, the United Kingdom, and more. The Emirates Group has over 84,000 employees and is owned by the government. Emaar Properties, the company that built the Burj Khalifa, has an annual revenue of over $3.3bn.
The country itself recognises that business could be gained or lost in translation.
In the cities themselves, there are dedicated hubs for each industry – Media City, Industrial City, etc. They quickly picked up businesses that act as dedicated 'Silicon Valleys' of industries to make them easy to access and so that they can keep a little eye on the competition who are across the road. Presumably. Probably not.
What is interesting about these hubs is that they now seem to be the future of business. Dedicated zones of industry are becoming more common as demonstrated recently.
The success is no surprise. All you have to look at is Hollywood. For decades, that has been the go-to place for American films. By putting all its potential in one place, all the eggs in one basket so-to-speak, it draws the correct attention and workers to it.
Instead of companies being dotted around the place, you have a centralised peak of potential where the talented will flock in their droves to become a part of the beating heart of the industry (accurate in 2015, remote work has changed this somewhat in 204, although industry hubs are still prevalent).
The official languages of Dubai are Arabic and English. The figures for population diversity currently available do not go into too much detail, but they do reveal that only 16.6% of the UAE are Emiratis, the official citizenship of the nation (accurate in 2015).
Although it is difficult to discuss the other Emirates in the UAE, they are bound to expand due to their neighbours’ growth. Companies will want to be near the dynamic cities while possibly saving money on office space by sitting in a neighbouring Emirate.
Regardless, the main takeaway from Dubai is its diversity which has seen it grow an extraordinary amount since the ‘90s. All that diversity means there are possible communication errors which is why translation is essential in a multicultural, multilingual country.
The growth of the country itself shows that the future of civilization is from globalised cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Ones that sustain their own culture while embracing everyone else’s to create a new home that reflects the Internet generation of a one-stop shop that is as fast as the Internet’s revolution.
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