Dubai, situated on the south coast of the Arabian Gulf, is one of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Its municipality, known as Dubai City, is the most populous city in the UAE, and Dubai is the second largest of the emirates in terms of area next to Abu Dhabi. Dubai is world renown as a thriving metropolis featuring amazing skyscrapers and innovative tourist attractions, and serves as an important regional and international hub for business and trade.
The city of Dubai is at least 150 years old. It has been transformed from a small pearling community with an ethnically homogenous population into a modern city-state with a diverse population made up largely of expatriates from all over the world. This transformation was fueled by the discovery of oil in Dubai in 1966. This led to a huge influx of foreign workers who immigrated to Dubai to work in the oil industry. Jebel Ali port, which was constructed in the 1970s and is the largest man-made harbor in the world, coupled with the establishment of the Jebel Ali free zone, helped to develop Dubai as an important hub for commerce and trade in the region. Other free zones for specific industries have been established such as Dubai Media City and Dubai Internet City, home to many international corporations such as Oracle, EMC Corporation, Microsoft and IBM.
Dubai provided the Allied forces with refueling bases during the Persian Gulf War as well as the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Soaring oil prices following the Persian Gulf War prompted Dubai to continue its emphasis on tourism and free trade and led to a big construction boom.
Although Dubai’s modern economy was established and fueled by the oil industry, natural gas and oil revenues currently make up less than 6% of Dubai’s revenues. This has been a strategic decision on the part of the Dubai government and private industry, as the oil reserves of Dubai are expected to be exhausted within 20 years. A majority of Dubai’s current revenues come from tourism, real estate services, financial services and trade.
The construction boom in recent years has spurred on new business and served as an entry into new arenas such as tourism. The Dubai landscape has been transformed by the emergence of impressive new skyscrapers and innovative construction projects. Some of these projects include the Burj Dubai (world’s tallest building), the Emirates Towers, The World Islands and The Palm Islands (major tourist attractions with impressive large scale, man-man-made islands) and Business Bay (a massive 200 tower project which will provide a multitude of commercial, retail and residential uses).
The rapidly growing economy and construction boom has been affected by the recent global financial crisis. Some properties have seen large declines in value. Inflation has also been on the rise and that has resulted in significant increases in the cost lf living for Dubai’s residents. Despite these recent challenges, Dubai will no doubt continue to be an important business mecca and continue to grow in prominence as a major tourist and cultural attraction.