His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, said that shaping the future and making it is no longer a theoretical concept but a key factor for countries to achieve competitiveness in the global arena. “The future is not built on possibilities and numbers but on clarity of vision, planning, action and implementation,” His Highness stated. Science and technology are changing the world at an accelerating pace, and the choice is to either play the role of influencers or get confined to the position of the affected, His Highness added.

His Highness said: “Dubai has a modern infrastructure and appropriate legislative structure which can promote its position as a global hub for the making of the future in the region and the world. Shaping the future is not a new concept for Dubai. The city has achieved significant experience in aviation, trade, financial services and technology.”

HH Sheikh Mohammed said: “Arabs and Muslims established House of Wisdom in the 9th century as a global model for sciences and a platform for innovators from all over the world. Today we need this concept again in the 21st century to keep up with the changes and shape the future to serve humanity. After more than 1000 years we are recreating wisdom through Dubai Future Foundation.”
HH Sheikh Mohammed stated this during the announcement of the Dubai Future Foundation and after approving the Dubai Future Agenda as a strategic framework for the Foundation.

In this context, His Highness said: “Today we have launched ‘Dubai Future Foundation’ and we look forward to a new phase in which the Foundation will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of Dubai. We have launched Dubai Future Agenda as a roadmap for the Foundation to shape the future of the strategic sectors in the medium and long term in cooperation with government and private sector entities.”

HH Sheikh Mohammed added: “Dubai Future Agenda will focus on supporting and developing individuals, organizations and sectors, and include more than 20 initiatives to enhance the leadership of Dubai and the UAE.”

His Highness approved the Future Cities programme as a framework for the launch of strategies and research projects related to the future to achieve the global leadership of Dubai and the UAE and create a global model in the field of future cities with all its components such as energy, transportation and infrastructure.
The Dubai Future Foundation will have a new board of trustees headed by HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and Mohammed Abdullah Al Gergawi as the Vice Chairman and Managing Director. Saif
Al Aleeli will be the Chief Executive Officer of the new Foundation.

The Future Agenda – an integrated plan to strengthen Dubai’s position The Future Agenda includes three main pillars: Individuals, Organizations and Sectors. Individuals pillar aims to build the capacities of individuals in making the future. The Organizations pillar will enable organizations to drive innovation within their sectors. The Agenda also aims to support and strengthen the role of future sectors of the national economy.

Individuals pillar: The pillar aims to build capacities, culture, knowledge and communities. During the coming period, a range of initiatives and training programmes will be launched targeting individuals in the government and the private sector within the UAE and abroad to prepare them for future leadership and explore the future of strategic sectors.

Dubai Future Foundation will further develop initiatives launched during the past period such as ‘Mostaqbal Portal’, a scientific platform to publish reports and visual material about developments in future science and the latest innovations in strategic sectors, as well as the ‘Schools of the Future’ report which highlights the future of the educational system in the short and medium term.

Organizations pillar: The Future Agenda will focus on engaging various organizations from the public and private sectors by establishing ‘Future Teams’ to conduct research and apply the latest future technologies. The agenda also includes the establishment of ‘Future Laboratories’ specialized in the analysis of strategic challenges of the government sector and the development of innovative solutions to solve these challenges in partnership with international companies and research institutions.

Sectors Pillar: The third pillar of the agenda will enhance the role of the existing sectors of the future based on innovation, science and technology in the national economy through four main programmes: The first programme aims to organize interactive exhibitions inside and outside the UAE to explore of the future of sectors in the long term and develop the concepts that will re-invent these sectors such as the annual Museum of the Future during the World Government Summit.
The second programme is Future Partners, which will be a network of global partners in the areas of innovation, research and development, and establishing specialized companies in consulting, modelling and future design in addition to the launch of joint initiatives with international companies and key players in the field of innovation research and development around the world.

Future Cities programme will work in cooperation with government entities to launch specialized strategies and pilot projects to achieve global leadership for the UAE within the main innovation sectors.

The Museum of the Future Under the new structure, the Museum of the Future, launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum last year, will be a part of the Dubai Future Foundation. The Museum of the Future on Sheikh Zayed Road in Dubai, which is one of the most important projects that will completed in the coming period, will include laboratories of innovation in health, education, energy, smart cities, transportation, and a Museum of Future Inventions.
Global partnerships and projects Since its establishment in August 2015, Dubai Future Foundation has signed several agreements with government entities, companies as well as academic and international organizations, including: Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center, IEEE, Shenzhen Foundation for International Cooperation, UNESCO, IDA, General Electric, and others.

The Foundation has also launched many successful initiatives at the international level, including the UAE Drones for Good, the UAE AI & Robotics Award for Good, as well as the world’s first 3D printed office in Dubai.

The Foundation has also established the World Federation of Future Sports as an organization to oversee the future sports sector and advance research and development in the field of future technologies. The Federation will organize the World Future Sports Games.

Dubai Future Foundation has also founded the Global Blockchain Council, which includes 42 government entities and private companies to discuss the best applications in Blockchain technologies.