In July 2016, Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH) reported receiving 2.26 million passenger traffic, a big leap — by 7.9 per cent — from the same month last year. Indians alone made up about 1,76,000 of the traffic. The airport says, that of all the nationalities it receives, Indians, Pakistanis, Qataris, British, and Saudi Arabians (in this order) form the largest traffic into Abu Dhabi.
Its website reads: “Passenger numbers have increased at double digit rates every year…more than 16.5 million passengers passed through Abu Dhabi International Airport in 2013….”
AUH further expects its passenger traffic to cross 27 million next. And to accommodate this number, construction of the new Midfield Terminal Building (MTB) will be completed by December 2017. AUH
says: “The MTB will become the primary gateway for passengers travelling through Abu Dhabi, and the future home of Etihad Airways, the national carrier of the UAE.”
Through its expansion, AUH hopes to encourage Abu Dhabi’s economic growth by providing easy connectivity to and from other nations, thus making the emirate easily accessible to the world. The airport’s foresightedness is in tandem with Abu Dhabi’s Vision 2030. The project, initiated by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, president of the United Arab Emirates and ruler of Abu Dhabi is vital in growing the emirate’s wealth.
Under his leadership, the Urban Planning Council (UPC), aids this expansion through “associated land uses, to ensure the development of professionally designed, sustainable and well-managed urban
environments, which incorporate world-class transport and infrastructure systems and support the implementation of Economic Vision 2030 and Environment Vision 2030.”
On its website (upc.gov.ae), UPC defines the five basic steps taken to cultivate Vision 2030:
■ Creating a sustainable emirate that protects resources for current and future generations.
■ Supporting and enabling economic diversification and growth.
■ Raising the standard of living across the emirate.
■ Protecting, enhancing and promoting Arab and Emirati culture and traditions.
■ Embracing contemporary living and respecting the diverse cultures of those residing in Abu Dhabi.
Al Maryah Island is one such project that has been developing since 2007. In October 2015, it began functioning as a Financial Free Zone, a first for Abu Dhabi. The agenda is to help diversify from its dependence on its upstream hydrocarbon sector (that contributes 55 per cent to Abu Dhabi’s GDP) for future growth and sustenance.
Free Zones in the UAE are attractive to foreign investors as they work as independent governing bodies, different from the legal framework of the city in which they are located. Exemptions from taxes, duties and foreign ownership restrictions are the biggest benefits of investing in such zones. In case of Abu Dhabi’s Free Zone, companies can be 100 per cent foreign-owned and are exempt from taxes for 50 years.
All 281 acres of this reclaimed land are being developed by Mubadala Real Estate and Infrastructure, in partnership with local and foreign companies to make advancements in Abu Dhabi’s retail, health care, hospitality and finance sectors. Apart from office towers, the island is also creating a lifestyle space with parks, malls, hotels, shops, restaurants, cafes and a hospital too.
Ali Eid AlMheiri, executive director of Mubadala Real Estate and Infrastructure says, “On Al Maryah Island we have brought to life a visionary concept for a mixed-use neighbourhood which is integrated with the existing urban framework and also meets the demands of businesses and consumers alike. As the master developer of Al Maryah Island, we are pleased to offer third party developers the opportunity to invest in this prime area of Abu Dhabi which benefits from the existing first class infrastructure and the successfully completed real estate developments.”
Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi is one of the major developments on the island, a partnership between Mubadala and US-based Cleveland Clinic. The 364- bed, state-of-the-art facility on Al Maryah Island has been functional since March 2015. From the hospital, one has bridge access to The Galleria – Abu Dhabi’s luxury mall that is also home to Four Seasons and Rosewood, luxury business hotels.
Gulf Related, a real estate company is developing another mall on the island, Al Maryah Central, which is expected to come up by 2018. It will include 2,14,000 sqm of retail space that will house 501 retail stores, 100 food options, 20 cinema screens and five urban parks. It promises to be Abu Dhabi’s “next generation mall”.
Office towers on Al Maryah Island are Al Sila, Al Sarab, Al Maqam and Al Khatem. They are home to over 40 “global blue chip companies”. Apart from these, there are also Al Hilal Bank commercial tower and Farglory’s Maryah Plaza. The latter includes residential units designed by celebrated British architect Sir Richard Rogers.
Together, the malls, hotels, hospital and commercial and residential towers form Abu Dhabi Global Marketplace (ADGM).
Such is the successful, environment-friendly launch of ADGM that it has achieved “LEED Core and Shell (LEED-CS) Gold pre-certification by the US Green Building Council (USGBC), the first project in the UAE to do so”.
This is not all. ADGM has gone a step further to augment the importance of Abu Dhabi’s business hub. Together with Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), the emirate’s stock market, they are working on the feasibility of setting up a new financial exchange on Al Maryah Island. On July 23, 2016, the two bodies signed a memorandum of understanding to “foster bilateral cooperation” and “support ADX’s commitment to the growth of the financial services sector in the emirate of Abu Dhabi”.
Speaking on the agenda behind the signing, Ahmed Al Sayegh, the chairman of ADGM was quoted by the local newspaper, The National: “We will explore and develop a wider range of financial products and service offerings that can be available to, and traded by, both local and global market participants and investors in ADGM.”
The National also quoted Hamad Abdullah Al Shamsi, the chairman of ADX who said that the partnership will help in achieving Abu Dhabi’s Vision 2030 as it will offer economic diversification by taking the load off the emirate’s oil sectors and focussing on other revenue generating streams. “ADX is committed to achieving the vision of the Abu Dhabi government by strengthening the capital market, developing a system for asset and wealth management, channelling financial surpluses in the financial sector towards investing in the core sectors and activating non-traditional financing methods.”
While Abu Dhabi shows a promising future in health care, hospitality, finance and other such non-oil related sectors, its leisure tourism has been on a steady rise since its transformation began from being an underdeveloped desert area to a glossy city. This was after oil was discovered on its land in the late 1950s. About 90 per cent of UAE’s oil reserves are in Abu Dhabi, which have helped it receive a steady income. In this way, they have fuelled further development of the emirate, and in the bargain, increased the number of visitors it attracts; not just visitors, but foreign investors as well.
Paris is opening its second Louvre in Abu Dhabi and work on it is estimated to be complete before the first quarter of 2017. Louvre Abu Dhabi, just like its counterpart, will showcase art, manuscripts, sculptures, antiques, cultural pieces and other interesting artefacts. The display will have a global flavour to it, with influences from cultures and societies worldwide. An interesting fact about the Louvre of the Middle East is that its water system is inspired by ancient Arabian engineering methods and will function much like it did in historic times — effectively. “Museum City”, the theme of Louvre Abu Dhabi, is inspired by Arabic towns and “low- lying Arab settlements”. It is made up of a cluster of about 55 buildings. louvreabudhabi.ae
Yas Island on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi is an entertainment zone with a shopping centre, beach, waterpark, golf course, yachting facilities and the most alluring — Yas Marina Circuit that hosts the annual F1 Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. When the official races aren’t on, Yas Racing allows you to book a “track experience” that includes a quick tutorial and escorted drives. yasisland.ae
Ferrari World Abu Dhabi is the world’s largest indoor theme park with the world’s steepest roller coaster at a 51-degree incline. This is in addition to a host of other attractions at the park: a simulator that takes you over Italian landscape, and another one that takes you on a ride with a virtual F1 profesional, shows, museum, Ferrari car showroom, and more. ferrariworldabudhabi.com
Al Wathba Camel Race Track, 45km east of Abu Dhabi is built specially for camels to race and entertain spectators. Energy at the tracks is contagious and an experience to take home. Watching the camels gallop at that speed isn’t what one witnesses often. Races take place on weekends and on public holidays. visitabudhabi.ae
Abu Dhabi Falcon Hospital, the world’s largest hospital for these birds of prey, offers a generous insight into everything there is to know about the bird. It starts from a brief history on the background of falconry, use of falcons in today’s world, and ends with handling the bird yourself. falconhospital.com ■
