The Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’ has been unveiled by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The primary goal of the agenda is to double the size of Dubai’s economy over the next decade, and consolidate its position among the top three global cities.
“In line with our long-standing tradition of launching key new initiatives on 4 January, today we approved the Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’ that aims to double the size of Dubai’s economy in the next decade and consolidate its position among the top three global cities. The Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’ includes 100 transformative projects, with economic targets of US $8.71tn over the next 10 years, doubling our foreign trade to reach $6.96tn and adding 400 cities as key trading partners over the next decade,” said Sheikh Mohammed.
He continued, “Dubai will rank as one of the top four global financial centres with an increase in FDI to over $176.9bn over the next decade and an annual $27.2bn contribution from digital transformation. Over 300,000 global investors in Dubai today are helping build Dubai into the fastest growing global city.”
“2033 will mark 200 years since the foundation of Dubai: the year in which Dubai will be the most important global business centre, and by then we would have completed the D33 Agenda. We know our economic path over the next decade. The world makes way for those who know what they want,” he stated.
The launch of the ‘D33’ Agenda formed part of Sheikh Mohammed’s annual address on the anniversary of his Accession Day on 4 January. The comprehensive agenda includes the launch of innovative projects that will help achieve Sheikh Mohammed’s vision to make Dubai the world’s best city to live and work in, and will drive sustainable economic growth through innovative approaches.
The agenda outlines growth by investing in human development, skillsets and advanced technology and consolidating Dubai’s global competitiveness, innovation and knowledge-based economy. The agenda will also invest in enhancing the advantages gained from Dubai’s strategic location and its advanced infrastructure to raise the city’s status as a preferred destination for major international companies and investments.
In mid December 2022, the Top City Destinations Index ranked Dubai No.2 globally.
D33 will see a growth in government expenditures from $139bn in the past decade to $190.5bn in the next decade, with increased investment in future growth sectors and further development of traditional trade and economic sectors.
According to the Dubai Media Office, one of the pivotal goals of the agenda is to raise the competitiveness of the city’s business sector, which will enable the increase of private sector investment from $215bn in the past decade to $272.2bn by 2033. It also aims to increase the value of domestic demand of goods and services from $599bn in the past decade to $816.7bn in the coming decade, in line with Dubai’s vision for enhancing its trading sector and diversified economy.
One of the other key objectives of the agenda is generating new economic value from digital transformation. The digital economy is a major pillar in the agenda, with Dubai embarking on a new phase in which it seeks to pioneer and sustain the growth of an economy based on knowledge, innovation and future technologies.
The agenda will also focus on raising the value add of the industrial sector and promoting export growth, contributing to sustainable economic growth, and achieving self-sufficiency in a number of key sectors and industries, including manufacturing. Other key priorities include making Dubai one of the five leading logistic hubs in the world, and one of the top four global financial centres. The agenda also seeks to increase the productivity of Dubai’s economy by 50% through innovation and digital solutions.
It also aims to integrate Emiratis into the private sector, making Dubai a hub for skilled workers, the fastest growing and most attractive global business centre, and an international hub for global multinational companies (MNCs) and national SMEs. The agenda will also focus on transforming Dubai into one of the top three international destinations for tourism and business by providing a globally competitive environment for business sustainability and driving down the cost of doing business across a number of sectors. In addition, the agenda outlines the bolstering of Dubai’s position as a fast growing and attractive business hub with world-class quality of life and the highest levels of security and safety for Dubai’s citizens and residents.
The agenda’s first set of projects including adding 400 cities as key trade partners and launching the Dubai Economic Corridors 2033 initiative, which will enhance existing foreign trade relations with Africa, Latin America and Southeast Asia.
Late in December 2022, the Dubai Land Department unveiled its new strategic plan for 2023-26.
The agenda is said to comprise a programme to support the growth of 30 companies in new sectors to become global unicorns, and integrate 65,000 young Emiratis into the workforce and the private sector. The Dubai Traders Project (DT33) meanwhile will empower a new generation of Dubai traders in various major growth sectors, driving growth in the city’s vibrant trading hub, the statement from the Dubai Media Office said.
The first set of projects of the agenda also include the Dubai Unified License that will provide a unique commercial identity for all companies across economic zones, and ‘Sandbox Dubai’, which aims to make Dubai a major hub for incubating business innovation by enabling the testing and marketing of new products and technologies.
The agenda also calls for the launch of the ‘Dubai Project’ to attract the world’s best universities, as part of the broader aim of making Dubai a leading global hub for higher education, and a programme to promote the growth of SMEs by identifying 400 high-potential companies and supporting their capacity-building and global expansion.
In early January 2023, Realiste predicted that Dubai’s current real estate boom will continue in 2023.