USAinDebt

UAE and specifically Dubai was the topic of an attention-grabbing episode of 60 Minutes on CBS yesterday. Steve Kroft was reporting the story, produced by Ira Rosen.

For the past 20 years Dubai has steadily grown as the most ambitious sheikhdom in the Middle East. Construction never stops in the fastest rising mega polis, ruled by the founder of Saudi Arabian Airlines - Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. In a matter of fact, for the last seventeen years that airline has being mounting with the rate of 20% per year, becoming the second most profitable airline in the world. 

Mohammed’s message is clear: “We want to be number one in the world. In everything.” For the past decade he is reshaping the country’s image immensely. Free medical insurance, tax exemptions for Dubai’s natives are just some of the perks. “The government runs by a business model” Rashid Al Maktoum says. The new Dubai International Financial Centre comes directly under the chairmanship of the Dubai Crown Prince. The largest shopping malls, the most expensive hotel, the tallest building in the world are just some of the establishments that this country has to offer to its foreign investors.

Dubai doesn’t just undergo a small economical transformation. Twenty-five thousand foreign immigrants join its populace each month. Americans, eastern Europeans, Asians are what more than a half of the population in Dubai is nowadays. Microsoft, IBM, Merck, Bosch are just some of the companies that have recently opened up new facilities offering thousands of jobs. New laws and rules are constantly added to improve the quality of the society.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s “vision 2010″ plans for the future are vastly turning into a reality. The economic boom in Dubai is surely to attract more and more businesses, settlers and funds. Is Dubai the next top immigrant destination?

Tags: dubai | uae | petrol | mohammed | sheikh | 60 minutes