From Tribal to Federal:
The Uniqueness of the UAE
December 2013
“No matter how many buildings, foundations, schools and hospitals we build, or how many bridges we raise, all these are material entities. The real spirit behind the progress is the human spirit, the able man with his intellect and capabilities.” HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan
My husband and I lived in Abu Dhabi for three years when I was assigned as the American Ambassador to the UAE from 2001 to 2004. My years in Abu Dhabi will always remain in my memories as one of the happiest times and certainly the best Diplomatic assignment of my 22 year career in the US Foreign Service. I have returned to the UAE many times over the past nine years and try to visit on a regular basis because I think of Abu Dhabi as my second home. With every visit I witness the ongoing impressive developments throughout the country. Most importantly, I enjoy seeing the many close friends who make up the wonderful mosaic of people and life in the Emirates. From the beautiful undulating sand dunes of Al Ain to the dramatic fjords of Fujairah, I enjoyed the beauty and diversity of the United Arab Emirates.
In this article for the special edition of “Afaq Al Mustaqbal” commemorating the UAE’s 42 National Day, I would like to comment on the remarkable vision and leadership the country has enjoyed since its inception, the extraordinary effort to develop the UAE’s human resources, and, in particular, the impressive achievements realized by Emirati women.
Visionary Leadership
As we approach the UAE’s National Day this December, much will be written about the incredible level of development of the United Arab Emirates and the extraordinary vision of its founding father, HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan. Indeed, it is impossible to understand why the United Arab Emirates stands out as a unique and highly successful model country in the Arab world without understanding HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan, his wisdom, his exceptional leadership skills, and his undying commitment to his people. I had the honor and great
fortune of meeting HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan during my assignment. Even at his advanced age, his demeanor was that of a truly great statesman who continued to have a strategic vision for his nation and a firm belief in the importance of developing the human spirit, promoting tolerance and encouraging consensus to avoid conflicts.
The Only Federation in the Arab World
I arrived in the UAE a few weeks after 9/11 and it was a traumatic time for the United States and our allies in the Arab world. Everyone I met in the UAE in those early days after 9/11, expressed their desire and commitment to work as partners in developing a better understanding between the Arab Muslim world and the West. I also made an effort to connect on a personal level with Emiratis from all walks of life, from ruling family members to college students, in all seven Emirates, as I believe it was the best way to promote understanding between our two nations at a critical time.
On the government level we had to focus on key areas of security cooperation and I quickly discovered the many similarities between the United States and the United Arab Emirates. While there are huge differences in size, history and culture, there are so many similarities in the federal structure of government and its operation at different levels. Every Emirate, like every State in the U.S., has a local government with its separate leadership, police and judicial system. As Ambassador I found that I often needed to work closely with Ruling family members and officials at both the Emirate and Federal level to ensure that we had consensus and cooperation from all the key players.
This was quite a new experience for our Embassy team as in most of our other diplomatic assignments the central government was our main interlocutor for government-to-government initiatives. While it was a more layered and complex exercise, it allowed us to become familiar with the seven Emirates and to experience their unique set of cultural, social as well as geographic makeup.
Great Leaders Build Great Nations
Looking back at the history of the Trucial States, one can understand Sheikh Zayed’s desire to bring together the small city states into a union to strengthen their position in the region and protect their people from ongoing conflicts. All historians agree that without HH
Sheikh Zayed’s extraordinary leadership qualities the federation would not have succeeded or, for that matter, been established. From his position as the ruler of Abu Dhabi he clearly saw that disunity and conflict would continue to plague Arabs as long as they were unable or unwilling to unite. Once the British announced their intention to leave the region in 1968, Sheikh Zayed moved quickly to work with the ruler of Dubai and the other leaders to create a federation which was formally launched on December 2, 1971.
Today, we take the union of the UAE for granted but it was a huge challenge at the time of its formation and during its early years. Today the country has a strong national identity which every Emirati feels and it is the essence of a successful federation. The enduring success of the union over the past 42 years and through the many difficult crises in the region is a testament to HH Sheikh Zayed’s exceptional political skills and leadership qualities. Great leaders build great nations and the UAE was fortunate to have HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan as its founding father.
What makes the UAE Unique?
If you ask anyone in Washington today about the principal strategic allies in the region, the UAE will inevitably be in the top two or three on everyone’s list. During my time in Abu Dhabi I was repeatedly asked by many senior Officials and other VIPs why the UAE stood out, in so many positive ways, above the rest. Among the many questions I heard:
How did the Emiratis manage to diversify their economy so effectively?
How did a small country develop such large ambitions like Masdar or the Nuclear Energy Program?
Why/how does Dubai succeed as a mega commercial, tourism and transportation hub?
Why do so many young people from all over the world want to live and work in the UAE?
Why are the Expat communities here so well established – many for several generations?
My response always highlighted three basic points:
One, the UAE has had leadership from its founding father up to the present time that always promoted the principals of tolerance, unity and consensus.
Two, the UAE has continually invested in the development of its own human resources as the top priority the nation.
Three, the UAE, under its founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan and with the outstanding support and leadership of his wife, HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak al Ketbi, championed women’s rights to full participation in all walks of life.
HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak al Ketbi: Umm Al Emarat
Soon after my arrival in the UAE and during my early meetings with senior male officials, I would often hear the comment “Wait till you meet our Emirati women, they are so talented and in many ways more successful than the men.” At the time, I believed they made these declarations only to please me! I soon learned otherwise as I met and got to know many dynamic Emirati women in business, in academia, in the military, and in government
As the first American woman Ambassador to the UAE, I was fortunate and honored to have the opportunity to get to know HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak al Ketbi. At a critical time in the development of the US-UAE relationship, her guidance, her insights and her friendship were invaluable to me and I cherish the relationship to this day. In our meetings she helped me to better understand the country, its strong family and tribal-bedouin traditions, its challenges in a turbulent region and its vision for the future. It was clear to me that her influence was far reaching – within her own family and far beyond that to the other emirates and the wider Middle East region.
The role she played from the inception of the Federation to the present is most visible when we look at the progress achieved by Emirati women. I quickly understood that her vision for the women of the UAE was both a humanitarian issue and a national strategy. HH Sheikha Fatima, working alongside her husband, promoted policies to ensure that Emirati women who make up half of the country’s population would benefit from and also contribute to the development of the UAE. Her many initiatives, from literacy campaigns to training and higher education, provided women with the many opportunities to realize their full potential alongside Emirati men.
The role of HH Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak has been recognized by no less than five different organizations of the United Nations, UNICEF, WHO, UNIFEM, UNFP and UNFPA for her significant effort in promoting women, children and family issues in the Emirates and throughout the region. She is the first, and I believe the only, Arab woman to receive
the UNESCO’s Marie Curie medal for her work in education, literacy and women’s rights.
As I look at the UAE today I see vivid examples of the success achieved by Emirati Women: In the Arabian Business Special Report of 2013’s 100 Most Powerful Arab Women, 20 Emirati women made the list. The current UAE cabinet includes 4 women Ministers out of 22 and 15 women out of 40 are in the Parliament – the highest number in the region. In higher education, women make up over 65% of UAE university graduates today. These examples highlight the remarkable strides made in achieving gender equality in the UAE and are testament to the vision and dedication of HH Sheikha Fatima and the leaders of the UAE. She has indeed earned the title of Umm Al Emarat or Mother of the Nation.
I would like to close with a quote from HH Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan:
“Wealth is not money. Wealth lies in men. This is where true power lies, the power we value. This is what has convinced us to direct all our resources to building the individual, and to using wealth which God has provided us in the service of the nation.” Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan