By Nick Mann | 14 January 2013
Abu Dhabi’s government plans to spend £56bn on capital projects over the next five years to reduce its reliance on oil and gas industry revenues.
In a statement issued yesterday, the executive council of the largest of the seven United Arab Emirates said the spending plans for the period 2013–2017 would create 5,000 jobs this year for emirate nationals.
Among the projects are transport and communication infrastructure as well as housing and schools and updating the emirate’s sewage system.
‘The capital projects will encourage economic development in the emirate and offer necessary services to its citizens,’ the council said.
‘The private sector will be an essential partner with the public sector in carrying out many of these projects, and this will have positive impact on the economic situation in the emirate by revitalising work in all sectors,’ it added.
To this end, the emirate’s Department of Economic Development is opening a Business Centre in the first quarter of this year to improve services to investors and businesses. It has also developed ‘economic zones’ for various industrial and trade fields that offer tax exemptions to investors.
The statements aid the spending plans were ‘in line with the Abu Dhabi government policy to diversify its economic resources and reduce dependence on oil and gas revenues’,
Social development projects such as schools, hospitals and housing had been given priority because of their ‘direct impact’ on public life, it added.
Executive council members ‘underlined the necessity to move forward with the social development projects in accordance with timetables already stated because these projects are closely associated with progress being made to projects in other sectors,’ it said.
Government spending in Abu Dhabi increased to £53bn in 2011, compared with £44bn in 2010, according to figures published by the International Monetary Fund in June 2012. This dwarfs neighbouring Dubai, where total government spending was £10bn in 2011.
Over the same period, the Abu Dhabi government’s finances were swollen by a massive increase in oil revenues, from £29bn in 2010 to £44bn in 2011.
