The Government of Dubai would like to see its level of sovereign debt, currently at $30 billion, not only dwindle, but get completely wiped off, its top financial officers told a media gathering here in Dubai on Sunday.
“If I had a choice, and I am sure Mr [Ahmed Humaid] Al Tayer will support me in this, I would like to see government debt to zero,” said Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, Director-General of the Dubai Ruler’s Court and part of the three-member Dubai Supreme Fiscal Committee (DSFC).
“This is something we are aiming for,” Shaibani added, while also maintaining that there remain realities on the ground that need to be dealt with before such an exercise can be undertaken.
“Ultimately, we’d like to bring it [Dubai’s sovereign debt] down [but to answer] to what level, it is premature for me to speculate,” he said, adding that this was something that the government intended to address “sooner than later”.
He and Al Tayer, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre and also a member of the DSFC, were answering media queries during the Dubai Economic Update Media Forum.