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Dubai /Â WAM
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Dubai Future Foundation, re-affirmed the words of Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, who said that “the future is to be turned into reality today, not years from now.”
The Crown Prince of Dubai was speaking during a visit to Dubai Future Foundation’s headquarters and the “Office of the Future”, the world’s first 3D-printed office.
Sheikh Hamdan continued, “The UAE is no stranger to forethought, accurate estimation of the variables, and correct identification of future challenges and opportunities. History bears witness to our Founding Fathers’ foresight and wisdom in the decisions they’ve made, decisions whose benefits we continue to enjoy today. Looking to the future is our leadership’s permanent policy, they spare no effort in building a bright tomorrow for the nation’s coming generations.”
Accompanied by Mohammed Al Gergawi, Dubai Future Foundation’s Vice chairman and Managing director, Sheikh Hamdan met with the foundation team who gave a detailed presentation of the organisation’s projects one year after its establishment.
He went on to explain that the future “is the product of the hard work, strategies, options, and investments we make today. Therefore, understanding the opportunities that the future holds has become a necessity and must be at the core of government functions if a nation is to remain globally competitive; ‘business as usual’ is no longer an option.”
H.H. Sheikh Hamdan was briefed about the foundation’s strategy and the projects it is preparing to launch in the near future, in addition to the latest updates regarding the construction of the Museum of the Future’s facilities, Dubai’s architectural masterpiece, which is set to open by the end of 2018.
“We are working through the Dubai Future Foundation to establish the ‘House of Wisdom’ of the 21st century, as instructed by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid. Together with the public and private sectors, we are shaping the city of the future, be it in terms of construction, transportation, energy, healthcare, education, or finance, all in an effort to turn Dubai into an open laboratory and a role model for the rest of the world. We want the emirate to be the top global destination to experiment with and implement new technologies that can revolutionise the way we live.”
He also lauded the foundation’s projects and initiatives, including the Museum of the Future, the Observatory of the Future, the Office of the Future, and the Future Accelerators Programme, in addition to the future-focused strategies that have been developed by a number of government agencies, such as the Dubai Autonomous Transportation Strategy, the Dubai 3D Printing Strategy, and others that have placed Dubai firmly on the map as a “City of the Future”, and in record time.
Sheikh Hamdan instructed decision makers in the foundation to work on a pilot project that would imagine the work environment of the future, and invent ways to put new models and technologies to good use.
The meeting was attended by Saif AlAleeli , CEO of Dubai Future Foundation.
The foundation was founded in April 2015 in order to cement the status of Dubai and the UAE as a world-class centre for anticipating and building the future. The foundation is tasked with implementing the Dubai Future Agenda, an umbrella strategy encompassing a large spectrum of initiatives that seek to enable individuals and instill a future-focused culture in the country.