(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) As one of the most dynamic emerging markets on the planet, Dubai is making significant strides in two areas that are very critical to the environment - investing in mass transit and clean energy - the former mayor of New York said on Tuesday.
Michael Bloomberg, a special envoy of the United Nations for Cities and Climate Change, said in order to attract good people and their families, cities have to offer them a great life.
The world's' 14th-richest man, presenting his vision of an ideal city at the "Future Cities Forum" in Dubai, called upon governments to build cities where people want to live. "To attract good people and their families, offer them a great life: clean air, less traffic, parks and culture. Then they will come, put down roots, set up businesses."
Bloomberg pointed out that 40 per cent of people in New York were born outside the US.
Dubai is doing two great things that are crucial to environment protection - investing in mass transit and clean energy.
"In Dubai the air is pretty good. In Delhi or Beijing people wear masks before they leave the building. Nobody wants to live and work in a place where kids get asthma," he said.
Bloomberg argued that the good news is that things that improve climate change also improve the economy and health of a nation.
"One of the things I went to India for was to lobby Modi for changes on the environment. Modi believes there are 400 million people without electricity so the economy has to come first. I tried to argue the other way around. Here's the good news - the things that improve climate change also improve the economy and health," he said at the seminar.
Panelists at the event included Reem Ibrahim Al Hashemi, UAE Minister of State and managing director of the Dubai Expo 2020 Higher Committee; Arif Naqvi, founder and group chief executive of the Abraaj Group; Ashok Aram, chief executive officer for the Middle East and Africa at Deutsche Bank; and Marios Maratheftis, chief economist at Standard Chartered Bank.
He said in New York City, he and his team had have worked hard to attract world-class universities to set up campuses, particularly in applied science and engineering. "This is creating billions of dollars of investment and millions of jobs. Tech is going to lead the way. You will never fix poverty unless you fix education." To make good cities, the crime rate should be brought down, Bloomberg urged. "People live close together in cities. If there are high crime rates, such life would not be possible. People will not set up and grow businesses if there is crime."
Al Hashemi said innovation, creativity and energy are qualities that make Dubai a hub for a wide region including parts of Europe, Asia and Africa as well as the Middle East. "Dubai Expo 2020 is not just for Dubai and the UAE, but for the region as a whole."
The minister pointed out that Dubai is benefiting from its safe haven status. "But when the region struggles, we struggle."
Naqvi said he would like to call cities like Dubai global growth markets. "Dubai is home to 220 nationalities. The fact that these people choose to spend their life here is key. Over the past 20 years, Dubai has sought to make its mark as a great global city." He said his company Abraaj managed to build the largest private equity platform in the world focusing on global growth markets because "we have the access to capital, connectivity, and a sound regulatory environment".
Maratheftis said the key for Dubai is that it learned lessons from the past financial crisis. When real estate prices began rising in 2013 and 2014, there was a coordinated policy response, he pointed out. The UAE Central Bank stepped in with lending caps and the real estate authorities introduced transaction taxes to deter speculators.
Another major factor is Dubai's adaptability. "In 2008, 30 per cent of the economy was real estate and construction. "Dubai recovered from the financial crisis in one year, because it adapted. Europe didn't adapt and is in the grip of a lost decade," said Maratheftis.
Aram said two things that make Dubai stand out are its audacity and the open mercantile attitude that is in its DNA. "Dubai is multi-dimensional, based on multiple sectors such as transport, tourism, energy, finance, real estate, media and trade," he said.
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