Dubai is leading the MENA region on the Global Power City Index (GPCI) 2022, issued by Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies.
After climbing up three spots globally to rank 11th on the index, the emirate also comes 4th globally on Cultural Interaction, improving from its fifth position overall on the parameter in last year’s Index.
The GPCI ranks the world’s major cities according to their ‘magnetism’ – or power to attract people – capital and enterprises from around the world.
The rankings are derived from scores on six parameters: economy, research and development, cultural interaction, liveability, environment and accessibility.
The GCI’s rankings of the top cities in 2022 reflect the self-reinforcing strength of the world’s leading global cities.
The top four cities on the list — New York, London, Paris, and Tokyo — are unchanged from 2021.
Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council, said the improvement in the city’s rankings on the GPCI reflected the leadership’s vision to make Dubai the world’s best city to live, visit and work.
He added that the rankings reaffirm the success of Dubai’s human-centred model of sustainable development.
“The achievement reveals the richness and strength of Dubai’s vibrant cultural environment and its ethos of inclusive development that has brought well-being to its residents from around 200 nationalities,” Al Maktoum said.
The progress in rankings on ‘cultural interaction’ shows Dubai’s emergence as a unique bridge between cultures and markets and its ability to promote engagement between people and institutions worldwide. The progress in various international indices encourages Dubai to raise excellence further and enhance its cultural and creative assets,” he added.
Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of the Dubai Culture and Arts Authority, and member of the Dubai Council, said Dubai has evolved an integrated strategy to consolidate its position as a city of choice for cultural practices, experiences and consumption.
The successful hosting of Dubai Expo 2020, one of the world’s biggest cultural events, and the growth in visitors have added to the city’s cultural dynamism.
The city saw more than 11.4 million overnight international visitors in just the first 10 months of the year.
The Mori Memorial Foundation’s Institute for Urban Strategies said GPCI 2022 rankings were significantly impacted by how cities responded to the Covid-19 pandemic, which transformed working methods, lifestyles, and economic and cultural activities in cities.
“Cities in the Middle East significantly strengthened their performance on various parameters,” it said.
By tracking changes in international flight frequencies of cities since 2019, the GPCI analysed the responses and strategies of cities and countries to the pandemic. Dubai was the first city to reopen for international visitors since the onset of the pandemic.
It also created a safe environment for holding Expo 2020 from October 2021 to March 2022.
“Both achievements contributed to the emirate’s rise to third ranking in the ‘tourist attractions’ sub-parameter within the ‘cultural interaction’ parameter,” the institute said.
The emirate also saw significant growth in other sub-parameters, including ‘number of foreign visitors,’ ‘cities with direct international Flights,’ ‘attractiveness of shopping options,’ and ‘attractiveness of dining options.’
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