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Metre to replace feet
and yard in UAE

Still measuring distance in feet and yard? Well, you may not be able to do it for long in the UAE.

The Emirates Authority for Standardisation & Metrology (ESMA) is planning to implement a new system for length and distance measurement units in all official transactions in the UAE.

Mohammed Saleh Badri, acting Director General of ESMA, announced the shift of length measurement units from feet and yard to the metre.

“A national action committee, made up of representatives of all relevant entities, will be set up to develop a plan for streamlining the shift to the metre,” he added at the end of a symposium organised by ESMA on the replacement of the feet and yard with the
metre in official and commercial activities, especially in the real estate sector.

A massive media campaign on the merit of the conversion on the national economy will be conducted, he said.

The UAE introduced the litre instead of gallon as the unit of fuel from January 1. The move is in implementation of the UAE Cabinet Decision No. 31 of 2006 on the national system of measurement, which mandates the use of International System of units (SI) as a basis for the legal units of measurement in the country.

Badri also mentioned that the main aim of ESMA is to build quality infrastructure for the country through traceable and reliable measurements, which enhance our national economy and facilitate the UAE products to compete in the global market. —

• UAE