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Abu Dhabi’s Vision 2030 Boosts Morale, but the Challenge will be in Execution

ABU DHABI - The Abu Dhabi Vision 2030 document released on Wednesday last has come in as a morale booster amidst the all-pervasive economic gloomy signals, but the real challenge will be in the execution of the remarkable programmes envisaged in it, according to an expert.

The document discloses that Abu Dhabi’s real GDP per capita has grown by 20 per cent over the last four years and the emirate now has one of the highest incomes per capita internationally. The emirate is home to the world’s sixth largest proven oil reserves or around 98 billion barrels-sufficient to keep its economy vibrant for another 100 years. Abu Dhabi is also the world’s tenth largest oil producer, at around 2.5 million barrels per day. It is estimated that this provides the emirate with more than $90 billion a year in revenues at current prices, as per the document.

The release of these brighter pictures of economy has come in an appropriate time because of the widespread reports of the fast approaching economic recession, and it seems to have generated a feeling that ‘we have started seeing the end of the tunnel’ both among the experts, investors and the ordinary people.

Talking to Khaleej Times, the Chairman of Events section at the MEED Middle East Business Intelligence network Dr Edmund O’Sullivan said Abu Dhabi has the resources to achieve those laudable goal of creating non-oil driven, sustainable, knowledge-based and globally-integrated economy which will usher in benefits to all the people in the Emirate, by 2030.

These resources come mainly from the past savings generated by the high oil prices. And the oil-rich Abu Dhabi can be confident to posses such resources for an indefinite period in future as well, because the oil price is expected to climb up again after 2009, Dr Edmund O’Sullivan said.

Abu Dhabi also has the will to achieve these visions envisaged in the document. But the real challenge will be execution and here the key issue will be making available the required man-power, he said.

This becomes all the more demanding because the quantum of labour required for producing a particular amount of wealth from non-oil sectors would be much higher than the oil sector.

· ramavarman@khaleejtimes.ae