Dubai will “never compromise” on the safety and security of individuals visiting, living and working in the city, Hoor Al Khaja, Senior Vice President of International Operations at Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) told Arabian Business.
“Dubai will never compromise on safety and security. Whenever people think about where they want to travel, to live, to relocate or work – for especially women and families – safety and security is a huge aspect. And so, His Highness’ [Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum] and the Dubai government’s aim is to achieve the vision without compromising on safety and security, which is one of the things that people often take for granted,” she said.
Al Khaja’s comments came on the side lines of the Arabian Travel Market currently being held at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).
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From January to March 2024, DET recorded 5.1 million visitors, showing a 11 percent increase from 2023, Al Khaja said, adding that the emirate “no longer” compares itself to pre-pandemic levels. “We have already gone past the 2019 numbers in 2023 and these are all record numbers,” she said.
When asked about what DET is currently doing to ensure these tourism levels only go higher from here, Al Khaja said that the authority does a lot of demand generation through international marketing which is inclusive of B2B and B2C marketing.
“The great story about Dubai at this point is that right now the demand is very healthy and strong so much so that supply has to keep up. In addition to all the demand generation we are doing, we are also currently doing a lot of work as well to support the supply,” she said adding that this in the form of investments in new hotels, adding more rooms to the city, gastronomy, medical tourism and more.
“Ultimately, everything that we do falls under the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, which is His Highness’ vision to make Dubai not just the best city to visit, but also to work and live in. Obviously, our visitors are always the first touch point and once you come in, you will fall in love with the place, visiting time to time and then you would be more likely to relocate and stat here,” Al Khaja said.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum unveiled Dubai’s ‘D33’ economic agenda, which aims to double GDP by 2033, focusing on human development, technology, global competitiveness, innovation, and sustainable practices.
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According to Al Khaja, Dubai showed the world post-COVID in terms of its agility, accessibility and customer-centric approach.
“[Dubai] really showed the world and put the money where its mouth is. When I say customer-centric, I mean whether you are an individual or a business – we see you as a customer, and how quick we are with our decisions to the benefit of the public,” she said adding that one of Dubai’s “strongest points” is the relationship between the public and the private sector.
“There is always a unified vision with everyone’s best interest in mind – so that feels like you are not going against the current, rather with it,” she explained.
DET’s Al Khaja added that the city is following the sectors listed under the D33 agenda to boost its tourism offerings. These sectors include Logistics, Manufacturing, Financial Services and Tourism.
“All of these sectors have different targets because we are very realistic in terms of what can achieve in terms of where we can be top three or top five, or tope 10,” she concluded.
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