Media ININ Economy We Trust
Dubai 2019-10-19 / WAM
His Excellency Abdul Rahman Saleh Al Saleh, Director General of Dubai Department of Finance, said that the continued development of the balance sheet performance of Dubai during the past five years reflects the keenness of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, “on the sustainability of the financial system. In Dubai, stimulating entrepreneurship through attractive economic incentives for more investment, raising the emirate’s competitiveness and strengthening its position as a global investment center.
This came during a meeting organized by the Dubai Government Media Office in a series of “session with an official” with the participation of a group of editors of local and international newspapers operating in the country.
His Excellency said that the expansion of spending on infrastructure projects in Dubai, and projects associated with the exhibition “Expo 2020” comes at the top of the priorities of the general budget to ensure completion as required and ahead of schedule .. He pointed to the exploitation of the budget surplus in the past years resulting from the adoption of disciplined fiscal policies, To benefit from these projects, especially the Expo and related projects, which total up to 2021 dirhams, up to 30 billion dirhams, as part of the implementation of the benefits and objectives of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2021.
The Director General of the Department of Finance said that the sovereign debt of Dubai amounted to 32 billion dollars, and that the ratio of public debt to the GDP of the emirate does not exceed 27.9% until the end of September 2019, while the debt service ratio was only 5% of the general budget, stressing that Dubai is able to Settlement of its sovereign debt in accordance with the program defined for financial benefits, and that the Department is considering the possibilities of borrowing and obtaining financing for infrastructure projects through various means of financing, including bonds, sukuk, export guarantee and securitization, and other means, in order to support infrastructure projects rather than operational expenditure.
During the session on many topics .. His Excellency Abdulrahman Saleh Al Saleh stressed that there has been no increase in government fees since the decision to freeze the increases in fees issued in March 2018, and that the decision did not in any way affect the solvency of the Government of Dubai, which is characterized by Dubai is able to meet all its financial obligations without relying on any fee increases.
The Director General of the Department of Finance pointed out that the Government of Dubai reduced some government fees in June 2018, out of its keenness to support the business sectors, stressing that this reduction has had little impact on the performance of the government budget, although it led to a decline in revenues by about two billion dirhams For the 12 months to June of this year.
Al Saleh pointed out that the Department of Finance in Dubai continues to work on the project of calculating the cost of government services – diamonds, which launched in October 2018, with the aim of enhancing transparency and accuracy in calculating the costs of government services, and ensure the achievement of social justice in all government fees and application In the Emirate of Dubai in accordance with the best standards, as well as support strategic decisions on the pricing of services, and encourage the improvement of performance, as well as assist in the appropriate allocation of resources and support decisions related to the budget.
He pointed out that the Department of Finance is currently working on a project to build a cost model for each government entity, and the development of a pricing formula for government services centrally, pointing out that during the first phase of the project has been collecting data and calculating the cost of 1,400 government services provided by five government agencies: Roads and Transport Authority, Customs The project is expected to expand to include more than 5,500 services provided by 23 government revenue generating entities in the Government of Dubai.
Al Saleh announced that the Department of Finance in Dubai is currently preparing in cooperation with a think tank to hold a conference on public-private partnership in the first half of next year, because of the important role of the private sector in promoting the development process in Dubai. The Government of Dubai has developed a policy on public-private partnership for the Government of Dubai, based on Law No. 22 of 2015 on partnership between the two sectors. It has also started work on the preparation of the framework of partnership between the two sectors at the emirate level and the launch of several projects, most notably the waste-to-energy project implemented by the Municipality. Bear In partnership with the private sector for 30 years, it will be operational in 2020.
He predicted that the private sector will be involved in the next few years in joint projects and initiatives with the government worth tens of billions, pointing out that the department is currently working with several government agencies to implement projects in the sectors of education, health and energy totaling 4 billion dirhams, including the Dubai Municipality project Turning waste into energy worth AED 3.5 billion and projects in the health sector.
On the initiatives that will be launched by the Department of Finance in relation to the partnership between the private sector and the private sector .. His Excellency explained that the Department is implementing several initiatives that will continue until 2021, within the Dubai Government’s strategic plan for partnership with the private sector, including the dissemination of policy and guidelines. Developing criteria for prioritizing PPP projects, developing the list of PPP projects, and developing an electronic platform for PPP projects.
The partnership strategy aims to encourage the interest of the private sector to participate in projects to increase investment in various related fields, and to take advantage of the financial, administrative, organizational and technical capabilities and expertise of the private sector, thus empowering individuals.
