Outpouring of love for nation by citizens and expats alike

Kullnna Khalifa – we are all for Khalifa, our love for Khalifa, we will give our lives for Khalifa, and many more are all the words behind the slogan of the 39th National Day.

Displayed all over the country, it reflects the feelings of the UAE people towards their great leader, the President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who has always stood by his people.

Since its inception in 1971, the UAE has forged a distinct national identity and has enjoyed an enviable degree of political stability. In fact, the federation of the seven emirates represents the most distinctive Arab unity in modern history.

Citizens and expatriates alike are proud of the success the nation has made in the past three decades. UAE boasts not only political, but also economical, social and cultural success.
 
President Sheikh Khalifa always led from the front. The year 2006 was signifcant as the first elections for FNC members were held. It was a major step in ensuring public participation in the government.

Initially, 40 members of the FNC came from each of the seven emirates on the basis of their size and population, and were appointed by the respective Rulers. But under the new reforms, each Ruler now selects an electoral college whose members should be at least 100 times the number of FNC members for the emirate, (eight each for Abu Dhabi and Dubai, six each for Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah, and four each for Fujairah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain). The members of each college will then elect half of the FNC members for their emirate, with the remaining half being appointed by the Ruler.

In 2010, the UAE leadership launched the UAE Vision 2021 which states:  “We want the UAE to reaffirm its dedication to upholding the vision and leadership of its gifted and persevering founding fathers. The Federation will remain true to its goal of maintaining cohesion and solidarity among the member states, ensuring that the hard work and sacrifices of the early years are never forgotten. The Federation will continue to rise in the national consciousness to represent the defining point of allegiance for all emirates. This sense of common destiny and of belonging to one nation will bind all citizens together in building their shared future.”

President Sheikh Khalifa has also devoted much attention to the building up of the country’s defensive capability, through the establishment of many military training institutions and through the procurement of the latest military equipment and training.

This economic growth has been fostered, in part at least, by the removal of barriers to trade and the creation of a relatively liberal business environment. The focus has been on how to help business develop while maintaining good standards of corporate governance. State ownership has played a key role in development of certain sectors, but in recent years there have been moves to reduce this role through a series of privatisation and partnership arrangements.

In addition, introduction of free zones and other legal measures have reduced or removed some of the restrictions on foreign ownership of companies and obligations for branches of foreign companies to recruit UAE agents.

The provision of jobs for UAE nationals does, however, remain a high priority for government, which applies quotas for the percentage of emirate staff working in banking, insurance, professional, and distribution services.