The newly formed Dubai Council will accelerate Dubai’s transformation. Smart deployment of data-driven insights can amplify impact.

By Xische Editorial, January 15, 2020

Dubai has transformed from a remote trading outpost to a global hub of commerce and innovation in a remarkably short time. Today, the latest industry-leading applications and technological advancements coming from the region are born in Dubai. This rapid transformation didn’t happen by chance. It’s thanks to visionary leaders who embraced technological change with open arms early in the story of the Emirate. By investing in infrastructure and encouraging a culture of entrepreneurship, Dubai is one of the world’s fastest growing knowledge economies.

Underlining this vision is a humble goal: make Dubai the best place in the world to live. Guided by two generations of visionary leadership, the Dubai government has used all the tools available to realise this goal. In the internet age, technology has been deftly deployed to assist the government in the pursuit of making Dubai the best place in the world to live. From the launch of Dubai eGovernment in 2001 to the Smart Dubai initiative in 2014 and Dubai Future Foundation in 2016, the Emirate has been at the forefront of adopting new technologies to improve the efficiency and quality of government experiences. This, in turn, has dramatically improved the lives of residents and boosted our global competitiveness.

Through smart regulation and government support of key sectors, Dubai has fostered an open and innovative business environment with a distinctively entrepreneurial spirit. The sale of Careem and Souq.com, the two largest technology acquisitions in the history of the region, would not have been possible without these early commitments. A new wave of government-supported initiatives, such as FinTech Hive and Dubai Future Accelerators, that are focused on positioning Dubai as a global nexus point for emerging technologies like blockchain and artificial intelligence, are already inspiring the next generation of breakthrough innovators from Dubai.

Building on this tradition of innovation, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid began 2020 with a bold vision for the Government. At his request, a newly formed Dubai Council will lead six critical sectors including the economy, government services, development, infrastructure, justice and security, and health and knowledge. As part of a drive for government efficiency over the next five years, Dubai government leaders will need to meet 50 goals, which are currently being developed. The aim of this vision is to build on Dubai’s impressive growth and ensure that the Emirate remains one of the world’s best cities to live in. 

The challenge is how to turn this opportunity into actionable results. One area to begin with is how various ministries and Government offices communicate with each other. The Dubai Council, which will consolidate several government departments under six commissioner generals, is an important first step towards facilitating collaboration. The Council will coordinate and consolidate to amplify impact. The next step will be using technology to create a new platform to further this innovative approach to collaboration. 

We need to ensure that personnel in these offices are in constant collaboration. Breaking down barriers of communication and visibility will make the Government operate more efficiently. 

We can use technology to rethink how ministries and departments share information. By increasing visibility, the work of governance becomes more efficient and transparent. This will directly translate to reaching the new goals set by the Dubai Council and ensuring that Dubai remains one of the best cities in which to live and work. Sheikh Mohammed’s recent announcement was the spark to get these changes implemented. We need to embrace the mandate and move forward together.

Imagine a database open to any government official could where they could instantly get up to speed on the latest developments across ministries and offices. This type of centralisation would dramatically improve government efficiency by encouraging deeper collaboration and greater transparency. The end result is better government services and more attention to resident needs. 

Few other cities have the leadership and vision to implement such a system. Dubai is unique, however, given its embrace of technology, bold vision, and top talent. Consider the Emirate’s approach to data, which is a critical facet to the types of changes required to stay on top. With the Dubai Data Law of 2015, the creation of the Ministry of Artificial Intelligence in 2017, and the ongoing work of the Dubai Data Establishment under Smart Dubai, the emirate has established a proven focus on data privacy and ethics. With the right regulatory framework in place, the city can deliver on a benefit-first transformation agenda to set Dubai on a journey to excellence for the next 50 years.

As we prepare to realise the new mandate set by Sheikh Mohammed last week, we must bear in mind the role of technology in these changes. People make a difference in society; technology is merely a tool. Vision and leadership will ensure technology can be used correctly to achieve our defined goals. Technology plus culture is the key to moving forward.