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Dubai to have sustainable residential city for Emiratis Sajila Saseendran / 4 March 2014 Civic body to implement Dh20 billion projects Shaikh Mohammed, Shaikh Hamdan and Shaikh Maktoum attend the briefing on the Dubai Municipality’s new projects on Monday. — Wam Dubai has announced a new residential city for Emiratis which will be self-sufficient in terms of resources, transport and energy, said to be the first of its kind in the world. The ‘Dubai Smart Sustainable City’ was one of many Dubai Municipality projects worth Dh20 billion that were approved by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, on Monday. An estimated 160,000 people will live in this self-reliant city that will come up near Al Aweer Roundabout, by the time Dubai hosts the World Expo in 2020. Shaikh Mohammed was briefed about this ambitious project of the Dubai Municipality during his visit to the municipality headquarters. The Director-General of the Municipality, Hussain Nasser Lootah, and senior officials briefed Shaikh Mohammed on various projects aimed at providing the essence of good life for citizens and residents, and quality facilities and smart services to the public in all areas of the emirate. Shaikh Mohammed in discussion with members of the Unesco’s World Heritage Committee in the presence of Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed and Hussain Nasser Lootah when they visited the municipality on Monday. The delegation is visiting the UAE to get first-hand knowledge about the Dubai Creek as a natural and cultural heritage site. — Wam Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Shaikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, also attended the briefing. The most important of the new plans was the project titled ‘Dubai Smart Sustainable City’ which will be spread across a total area of 14,000 hectares and will be built in the shape of a desert flower. Surrounded by a green belt, the city will provide 20,000 plots for Emiratis. The roofs of the homes and buildings will be covered with solar panels which will provide 200 megawatts of electricity. The city will also recycle over 40,000 cubic metres of waste water. In line with the directives of Shaikh Mohammed, work on the project will commence immediately and is expected to be completed in 2020, the state news agency Wam reported. Dawood Al Hajri, the director of the Planning Department, presented the project which is aimed at bolstering Dubai’s ambition to become one of the top-10 sustainable cities by 2020. In September 2013, the Dubai Municipality had formed a high-level sustainability committee under the chairmanship of Assistant Director-General for Engineering and Planning Sector Abdullah Raffia to implement the green building regulations and other sustainable projects in the emirate. An artist’s impression of the proposed Dubai Boats Market. — Wam The Director of the Projects Department, Mohamed Al Mashroom, presented the Dubai Boats Market that is considered the first of its kind in the Middle East. Proposed to be located at Al Barsha South, covering 35 acres with a 10 hectares man-made lake for boats, the project will be an attraction for water sports enthusiasts once completed. It will contribute in converting Dubai to a global hub for manufacturing and selling of boats and fishing equipment and attract investments to the industry. Shaikh Mohammed also watched a presentation on the Palm Park project by Engineer Fatima Al Muhairi. Containing over 150 types of palm trees grown in the UAE, the project aims to be an educational, cultural and heritage project from which the current generation of the UAE can learn about the nation’s heritage and culture. The park will include a plaza for various activities, a lake, seating areas for families and playgrounds for children. Shaikh Mohammed was also briefed about other prestigious projects like digital address for Dubai and electronic system for food imports. Expressing his satisfaction with the projects, Shaikh Mohammed gave the green light for their implementation. He also praised the exemplary efforts of the municipality teams to make Dubai a smart and sustainable city. On the sidelines of the visit, Shaikh Mohammed also met a delegation of ambassadors and representatives of member countries of the Unesco World Heritage Committee who are on a visit to the UAE to acquaint themselves with Dubai Creek, which is nominated to be registered in the World Heritage list. sajila@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Taylor Scott International
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