Facts about Dubai
The modern emirate of Dubai was created with the formation of the United Arab Emirates in 1971. It is said that the existence of the city have existed at least 150 years prior to the formation of the UAE. Dubai has the largest population in UAE. Dubai is the second largest emirate by area, after Abu Dhabi. With Abu Dhabi, it is one of only two emirates to possess veto power over critical matters of national importance in the country's legislature. Dubai has been ruled by the Al Maktoum dynasty since 1833. Dubai's population distributed according to religion is ... 57% Muslim, 20% Hindu, 20% Roman Catholic and 3% other. There is not much rainfall in Dubai, the annual rainfall of Dubai is 300mm (11.8 inches). A majority of the emirate's revenues are from trade, manufacturing and financial services. As of 2006, revenues from petroleum and natural gas contribute less than 6% of Dubai's economy. As of 2005, Dubai has a US$ 37 billion economy. Dubai has attracted world-wide attention through innovative real estate projects and sports events. This increased attention, coinciding with its emergence as a world business hub, has also highlighted human rights issues concerning its largely foreign workforce. In the 1820s, Dubai was referred to as Al Wasl by British historians. According to Fedel Handhal, researcher in the history and culture of the UAE, the word Dubai may have come from the word Daba (a derivative of Yadub), which means to creep; the word may be a reference to the flow of Dubai Creek inland. The earliest recorded mention of Dubai is in 1095, in the "Book of Geography" by the Spanish-Arab geographer Abu Abdullah al-Bakri. In the early 19th century, the Al Abu Falasa clan (House of Al-Falasi) of Bani Yas clan established Dubai, which remained a dependent of Abu Dhabi until 1833. On 8 January 1820, the sheikh of Dubai and other sheikhs in the region signed the "General Maritime Peace Treaty" with the British government. In 1833, the Al Maktoum dynasty (also descendants of the House of Al-Falasi) of the Bani Yas tribe left the settlement of Abu Dhabi and took over Dubai from the Abu Fasala clan without resistance. Dubai came under the protection of the United Kingdom by the "Exclusive Agreement" of 1892, with the latter agreeing to protect Dubai against any attacks from the Ottoman Empire. In 1841, a smallpox epidemic broke out in the Bur Dubai locality, forcing residents to relocate east to Deira. In 1894, fire swept through Deira, burning down most homes. In 1947, a border dispute between Dubai and Abu Dhabi on the northern sector of their mutual border, escalated into war between the two states. Electricity, telephone services and an airport were established in Dubai in the 1950s. The discovery of oil led to a massive influx of foreign workers, mainly Indians and Pakistanis. As a result, the population of the city from 1968 to 1975 grew by over 300%, by some estimates. On 2 December 1971 Dubai, together with Abu Dhabi and five other emirates, formed the United Arab Emirates after former protector Britain left the Persian Gulf in 1971. In 1973, Dubai joined the other emirates to adopt a uniform currency i.e. the UAE dirham. Dubai is situated on the Persian Gulf coast of the United Arab Emirates and is roughly at sea level (16 m/52 ft above). Dubai has approximately 250,000 labourers, mostly South Asian, working on real estate development projects such as the Dubai Marina.[2007] Article 25 of the Constituion of the UAE provides for the equitable treatment of persons with regard to race, nationality, religious beliefs or social status. However, many of Dubai's 250,000 foreign laborers live in conditions described by Human Rights Watch as being "less than human." Research conducted by the American Center for International Policy Studies (AMCIPS) found that Russian and Ethiopian women are the most common prostitutes, as well as women from some African countries, while Indian prostitutes are part of a well organized trans-Oceanic prostitution network. According to the census conducted by the Statistics Center of Dubai, the population of the emirate was 1,422,000 as of 2006, which included 1,073,000 males and 349,000 females. As of 1998, 17% of the population of the emirate was made up of UAE nationals. As of 1998, approximately 85% of the expatriate population (and 71% of the emirate's total population) was Asian, chiefly Indian (51%), Pakistani (16%), Bangladeshi (9%) and Filipino (3%). About 3% of the total population of Dubai was categorized as "Western", as of 1998. The median age in the Dubai was about 27 years in 1998. The crude birth rate, as of 2005, was 13.6%, while the crude death rate was about 1%. Although Arabic is the official language of Dubai, Persian, Malayalam, English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Tamil, and Tagalog are widely spoken. Article 7 of the UAE's Provisional Constitution declares Islam the official state religion of the UAE. The government subsidizes almost 95 percent of mosques and employs all imams; approximately 5 percent of mosques are entirely private, and several large mosques have large private endowments. In Dubai, non-Muslim groups can own their own houses of worship, where they can practice their religion freely, by requesting a land grant and permission to build a compound. Groups that do not have their own buildings must use the facilities of other religious organizations or worship in private homes. Non-Muslim religious groups are permitted to openly advertise group functions; however, proselytizing or distributing religious literature is strictly prohibited under penalty of criminal prosecution, imprisonment, and deportation for engaging in behaviour offensive to Islam. It is estimated that Dubai produces 240,000 barrels of oil a day and substantial quantities of gas from offshore fields.[2007] The emirate's share in UAE's gas revenues is about 2%. Dubai's oil reserves have diminished significantly and are expected to be exhausted in 20 years.[2006] Dubai is considered to be an important tourist destination. Its port, Jebel Ali, constructed in the 1970s, has the largest man-made harbor in the world. Dubai Internet City, combined with Dubai Media City as part of TECOM (Dubai Technology, Electronic Commerce and Media Free Zone Authority) is one such enclave whose members include IT firms such as EMC Corporation, Oracle Corporation, Microsoft, and IBM, and media organisations such as MBC, CNN, Reuters and AP. The Dubai Financial Market (DFM) was established in March 2000 as a secondary market for trading securities and bonds, both local and foreign. As of Q4 2006, its trading volume stood at about 400 billion shares worth US$ 95 billion. The world's tallest, and most expensive, hotel the Burj Al Arab. As of July 2007, the Burj Dubai became the world's tallest structure and is expected to be taller by several hundred feet, once construction is complete. Annual entertainment events such as the Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) and Dubai Summer Surprises (DSS) attract over 4 million visitors from across the region and generate revenues in excess of US$ one billion . [2006] Large shopping malls in the city, such as Deira City Centre, BurJuman, Mall of the Emirates and Ibn Battuta Mall as well as traditional souks attract shoppers from the region. |
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