COURSE OUTLINE AND ASSESSMENT
The objective of this course is to understand the economic, business and social development of Dubai and Abu Dhabi and its possible future direction.
Both Dubai and Abu Dhabi have seen extraordinary rates of development over recent decades and are clearly consciously aimed at building a modern city. With economic geography shifting Dubai finds itself literally at the centre of the world economy. Further a striking feature of recent economic growth is the emergence of key cities and hubs. Our trip is to understand the developments in the UAE but also gauge their relevance for other nations.
A non-exhaustive list of issues is:
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Is Dubai’s growth sustainable?
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What insights do Dubai and Abu Dhabi provide for other cities in advanced and emerging economies? Which tools and policies have been most effective?
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What is the financial model upon which Dubai’s prosperity is based?
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What challenges do government agencies and firms face?
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Which sectors do you think are most likely to flourish in Dubai and Abu Dhabi?
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What advice would you give to firms looking to operate in the UAE?
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Institutions are crucial for development. What challenges does the UAEs growth present for its institutions and what insights does this give us about Middle East Development?
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Arab countries have a very young population. How is the UAE addressing these challenges?
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What tensions are there between growth models of the region and Emiratisation
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Are the growth dynamics of Abu Dhabi and Dubai mutually consistent?
Course objectives:
Recommended Readings
For a recent report on the performance of the UAE economy see:
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IMF Article IV Report on UAE pp. 4-18 https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2015/cr15219.pdf
For an exposition of the extraordinary policies of Sheikh Mohammed and their success see:
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“Sheikh Mohammed and the Making of ‘Dubai, Inc” Mayo, Nohria, Mendhro and Cromwell HBS Case Study http://www.hbs.edu/faculty/Pages/item.aspx?num=38351
For a more dystopian account see:
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The Arab Subset, Chris Davidson, Foreign Affairs, http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/140096/christopher-davidson/the-arab-sunset
Davidson has also written a number of books on Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the UAE in a broadly similar vein:
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/After-Sheikhs-Coming-Collapse-Monarchies/dp/184904189X
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<Davidson/dp/1849041539/ref=la_B001JRRLGY_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1412266409&sr=1-1>
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dubai-Vulnerability-Christopher-M Davidson/dp/1850659869/ref=pd_bxgy_b_img_y
For an analysis of destination cities and travel see:
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http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Competitive-Destination-Sustainable-Perspective/dp/0851996647
Company Visits & Guest Lectures
The week will involve a series of opportunities for students to learn first-hand from policy maker, practitioners and industry experts based in both cities. Visits will be themed around the key sectors that UAE are focused on – connectivity, tourism, knowledge, finance, real estate and leisure. These visits will enable you to hear about the UAE’s development history and future plans and better your understanding of the region and its business culture.
Working Groups
Students will be allocated into working groups for the week. These working groups will form the basis of an in trip assessment exercise based around a debate on key issues arising from the week. The working group will also undertake a group report due approximately three weeks post the International Assignment.
