The economic meltdown of the autumn of 2008 hit Dubai quite significantly. Many development projects had to be put on hold. The Emirate, which heavily relies on tourism, received far smaller numbers of foreign visitors – and that was seen as a rather serious situation.
If one revisits the Gulf-metropolis now, what does one encounter?
Nothing is as striking as the Burj Dubai – the tallest man-made structure on earth, although it is still under construction. During the crisis the building process did briefly slow down, but now it is completely back on track. In fact, its completion is to take place by the end of 2009 – so it is right on schedule. This can be seen as symbolic of how Dubai managed to turn itself around – in fact many financial advisors say precisely this.
Maybe it is just coincidence that, once the Burj will be completed, the Nakheel Tower’s construction is set to begin. The public does not know all the details of this incredible project – but apparently, according to what has leaked out, the building will have more than 200 floors! So yet another Dubai super-icon is sure to come.
The bottom-line is that almost all projects are back on track, with the vast majority not having undergone any time-loss. How did Dubai play this?
Basically, there seem to be two major factors. Dubai did what some economists call a paradoxical policy, it lowered taxes at a time when the state was in turmoil and in need of revenue. Luckily for Dubai, this step seems to have brought back investments in sufficient dimensions. But when this happened, the second aspect came into play: Diversification. While the Dubai of not-so-long-ago was rather a mono-culture of for ever the same kinds of service companies, the stress is now a lot more on substance than it used to be. Research and development (the buzzword R&D!) has gained a lot of momentum in recent months – or one might also call it old-fashioned science. After all, there is a lot of stability in universities and the educational sector.
Autumn has come – and while people in Europe, Japan, and North-America are dealing with not so pleasant rainy days, the Emirate of Dubai is in its most pleasant season: Hot, still, but in just the right way. (Whereas July and August can be pretty challenging for Northerners who aren’t accustomed to the climate of the Gulf coast.) Naturally, this attracts a lot of visitors, just right now. This too would seem to be some kind of factor and reason why we all can say: Dubai is back!