Dubai Investment News
Bill Clinton: Dubai In “Strong Position” To Win Expo 2020 Bid
The former US President says the emirate’s model of “shared prosperity” is an inspiration for the Middle East. Former US President Bill Clinton has said that Dubai is in a “strong position” to win the bid for Expo 2020 thanks to the UAE’s achievements and its cultural diversity. Clinton, who visited the UAE to address the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) in Abu Dhabi, told students at the American University in Dubai: “Places that have come back from the tough economic crisis the best and the quickest are the ones which have an operative model which creates cooperation across all sectors of society, races, religions, and ethnic groups, where people find a way to celebrate and are proud of their differences and they work together in shared responsibility. “That’s what Dubai and the UAE represent and I think you are in a strong position to win the bid for Expo 2020 because Dubai’s model of shared prosperity is more important today than ever and an inspiration to many countries in the Middle East.” Dubai is competing against four other candidate cities including Ayutthaya (Thailand), Ekaterinburg (Russia), Izmir (Turkey) and Sao Paulo (Brazil) to host the mega event. Staged one in five years and last held in Shanghai, the event provides a major economic boost as it attracts millions of visitors from around the world. If the emirate succeeds in its bid, this will be the first time the World Expo is held in the Middle East. The winning city will be announced in November 2013 following a vote by the 161 member nations of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions (BIE). Continue reading
Bill Clinton: Dubai is in a strong position to hold World Expo 2020
Former US president Bill Clinton has hailed the growth of the UAE and he believes that Dubai is in a strong position to host the World Expo 2020.Mr Clinton met with Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum – vice-president and prime minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai – and the pair discussed a range of global issues.The ex-leader of the North American country reserved praise for the “cultural boom” that the UAE, and Dubai in particular, has witnessed in recent years.Speaking during an open session at Dubai's American University, he suggested that places that have recovered well from an economic downturn can sometimes get stronger in the long term.This is certainly the case in the UAE, as the country was badly affected by the global financial crisis, but it has turned things around in the last 12 months, with foreigners pouring into the city to secure new investments in property and other sectors.”That's what Dubai and the UAE represent and I think you are in a strong position to win the bid for Expo 2020 because Dubai's model of shared prosperity is more important today than ever and an inspiration to many countries in the Middle East,” Mr Clinton remarked.Government officials in the Gulf are desperate for Dubai to secure the rights to host the prestigious event in seven years' time, as they believe it will really put the emirate on the map.Dubai will go up against Ayutthaya (Thailand), Izmir (Turkey), Sao Paulo (Brazil) and Ekaterinburg (Russia) in the race for the World Expo.Organisers of the emirate's bid pointed towards the huge impact that previous gatherings have had on the economy of the host city.They said the 2010 version in Shanghai helped to transform a “heavily-industrialised city centre area into a thriving cultural and commercial district”. The Expos are held once every five years and the next one will take place in Milan in 2015. Continue reading
Middle East is ripe for aviation investment
The Middle East has the most potential when it comes to aviation investment, a new survey has suggested.Conducted by Airport Show ahead of next month's inaugural Global Airport Leaders' Forum, the study sought to find out which parts of the world have the brightest future in air travel.It emerged that 64.4 per cent of the respondents felt the Middle East was the best place to invest, making the region an emphatic overall winner. The next most popular area was Asia-Pacific, which only amassed 16.7 per cent of the vote.Experts predict that US$90 billion (AED 330.5 billion) will be pumped into the Middle Eastern aviation sector by 2020 and up to 400 million passengers will fly into and out of this part of the world every year by this point.”Senior executives from across the international aviation industry have contributed to the survey and we believe the survey results will contribute significantly to the important discussions at the Global Airport Leaders' Forum and help highlight the key challenges and opportunities industry leaders face today,” commented Daniyal Qureshi, event director of the Airport Show.Unsurprisingly, Dubai is central to the Middle East's expansion plans and the city is expected to accommodate just under a quarter of the region's air traffic by the end of the decade.Dubai International Airport officially became the second-busiest aviation hub on the planet last month, behind only London's Heathrow.The facility has recently been expanded and has a capacity of 75 million passengers a year – up from 60 million in 2012.Around 66 million people are expected to use the complex in 2013 and this figure will go up and up as the years pass by.To help take some of the strain off the main airport, services will be launched at Dubai World Central Airport from October this year for the first time.The passenger terminal was finished in 2012 and it has room for up to seven million people each year. Continue reading
