UAE anti-corruption efforts bear fruit

A U.A.E. paper said that the U.A.E. now has another reason to rejoice. At a time when several countries around the world are either struggling or failing in their fight against the scourge of corruption, the U.A.E. has been ranked as the least corrupt Arab country in the annual Corruption Perceptions Index published by Transparency International. "It is known that corruption destroys lives and communities, and undermines countries and institutions. The successful combat against corruption is just one among several such achievements. The U.A.E. was earlier ranked the 14th happiest in the world, and was ranked first among the Arab countries in the second United Nations World Happiness Report", said 'The Gulf Today" in an editorial on Tuesday. The 2013 Index ranks the U.A.E. at No.26 globally out of a total 177 countries surveyed, ahead of a number of developed countries. Undoubtedly, a zero tolerance approach has paid rich dividends. As Ahmed Abdullah Al Hammadi, Chief of Public Funds Prosecution, told 999, the number of bribery cases registered in all federal courts between 2012 and 2013 was just 47, which is a direct consequence of the high level of co-operation between public prosecution, courts and police. Ten years ago, the U.A.E. was ranked at No.37 in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index 2003, lagging behind its GCC peers Oman, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait. However, thanks to the resolute efforts of the Ministry of Interior, as well as the financial and administrative monitoring bodies, in addition to the country's judiciary, the country has consistently improved its ranking and emerged as the least corrupt Arab country in CPI 2013. The U.A.E. success story is an inspiring model for other countries to follow. Among the latest great feats is Dubai's successful bid to host Expo 2020 that is expected to change the face of the travel and tourism industry in the U.A.E. and the entire Gulf region. Dubai will attract more than 25 million visitors between October 2020 and April 2021. To meet the needs of this tourist boom, 70% of which will come from outside of the U.A.E., the emirate will double its hotel inventory to around 164,000 hotel and hotel apartment rooms within the next seven years. The paper concluded by saying that nothing can summarise the secret behind such a massive success better than the words of the Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum : "The success of our Union thrives because it is a unique national model that distinctively reflects the needs of citizens rather than copying previous global models."