UAE Economy and Politics

United Arab Emirates (UAE) is one of the richest nations in the Middle East with one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, estimated to be Dh 61,000 ($ 16,610) in 2005 according to the UAE Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry. The UAE has an open and liberal economy with no taxes on profits or incomes, complete freedom of capital movement, and 100 per cent foreign ownership allowed within free zones. The UAE Gross Domestic Product (GDP) stood at $ 98.1 billion in 2005, with GDP growth rate standing high at 8.8% per annnum. Oil and gas accounts for about 30% of GDP, while nonoil sector has shown an exponential growth, reaching 70% of GDP. That's why UAE economy proved to be less affected by the fluctuating oil prices in comparison to other Middle East countries.

The UAE Government has made successful efforts into developing alternatives to the oil industries. Policies have been made for land reclamation, development of industries, tourism, refining of oil, as well as creating international free trade zones. The UAE Government has been putting lots of money into infrastructural development and opening up its utilities to private sector involvement. There are substantial opportunities for doing business in the UAE. These factors combined with an easily accessible location and an extremely pleasant and safe working environment promise well for foreign investment in the country.

Politics in UAE
The UAE is a federation of seven independent emirates ruled by local emirs. Though there is no democracy in the country, citizens enjoy a relatively high freedom of speech but have no say on political issues. The highest federal authority is the Supreme Council of Rulers comprising the emirs of the seven Emirates. Policies made by the Supreme Council must have the agreement of at least five members, including Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The council appoints the President who serves a five-year term.
The UAE also has the Federal National Council, consisting of 40 members, appointed from each of the seven emirates. In addition, each emirate has its own local government, consisting of municipalities and departments. Local emirs are vested with significant powers so that each emirate retains a good deal of political and financial autonomy, a fact that has contributed significantly to the remarkable success of the federation. There is also an independent Federal Judiciary, consisting of the Federal Supreme Court and the Courts of First Instance. At present Abu Dhabi's Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the UAE President, while Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum of Dubai is the Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE.