Dubai’s ruler launches new Internet of Things strategy

Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has launched an Internet of Things (IoT) strategy and the Data Wealth initiative to boost its digital push.

The Dubai IoT strategy seeks to build the world’s most advanced IoT ecosystem. It aims to protect Dubai’s digital wealth, encourage government departments to join the emirate’s smart transformation, and achieve the objectives of the Smart Dubai Plan 2021 to transition to a 100 per cent paperless government.

The strategy is set to be implemented over four consecutive phases in the coming three years.

The first phase centres around coordination of efforts and activities to implement IoT policies across government departments.

In the second ‘integration and conversion’ phase, efforts will be harmonised towards implementing the IoT strategy.

After the third ‘optimisation’ phase, the strategies will go into the final ‘blockchain journey’ stage, which will see the full integration of IoT policies and the first ROI of the strategy.

It covers six strategic domains: governance, management, acceleration, deployment, monetisation and security.

The strategy aims to drive the emirate’s smart transformation, connecting various sectors to the Dubai Pulse platform – the digital backbone of the smart city project.

Meanwhile the Data Wealth initiative consists of data, data-storing and processing technologies, smart-tech transformation, paperless transaction policies and systems (such as Blockchain), digital signature and ID, smart living and clean energy, among other elements.

It consists of 121 smart initiatives, 200 databases and 1,129 smart services, and is expected to generate Dhs33.8bn in three years’ time, as IoT reaches Dhs17.9bn in value by 2020.

Meanwhile, open and shared data is expected to add Dhs10.4bn to the GDP by 2021, while Blockchain applications in government departments add Dhs5.5bn to the GDP by 2020.

The emirate will also award the Dubai Digital Certificates to government and private entities.

“Dubai’s push to build the future today has helped establish a digital infrastructure that is now a strategic national asset in the wake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution,” said Sheikh Mohammed.

“It is a fortune that all stakeholders in the Dubai government must work together to preserve. The Dubai Digital Certificates and the Dubai IoT Strategy mark the official launch of smart living in the emirate and we have directed all government institutions to cooperate and fully implement the initiatives by the year 2021.”

Aisha bint Butti Bin Bishr, director-general of the Smart Dubai Office added: “When we launched Smart Dubai three years ago, we sought to enable people to make use of the vast amounts of data generated every day in one of the busiest cities in the world.

“Today, as we launch the Dubai IoT Strategy, we provide the people of Dubai with an unmatched smart lifestyle. The Dubai Digital Certificates, on the other hand, safeguard our data wealth and provide greater safety and security. We are committed to working with our government and private-sector partners in Dubai to play our part in the UAE Centennial 2071.”

Sheikh Mohammed also launched the Dubai Crowd initiative – the first technical project in the IoT Strategy, which seeks to manage and organise crowds in the emirate during peak seasons to ensure safety and security.

Dubai is known for massive crowds that flock to the city during high seasons, such as New Year’s Eve. Dubai Crowd analyses real-time data and suggests plausible scenarios for decision makers.

Younus Al Nasser, CEO of the Dubai Data Establishment, said: “A smart city’s achievement in terms of advanced technologies and smart solutions are a digital asset that cannot be fully utilised unless integrated into central data platforms that are consistently updated.

The Dubai IoT Strategy unifies the data sources for the Dubai Pulse platform – Dubai’s digital backbone. The strategy opens new prospects for growth, improving overall efficiency across all sectors and opening up unprecedented economic and social opportunities for people in Dubai.”