Smart Dubai Director-General participates in UN General Assembly

DUBAI, 11th April, 2018 (WAM) -- Dubai’s expertise in smart city development has been highlighted on the international stage with the participation of Dr. Aisha bint Butti bin Bishr, Director-General of the Smart Dubai Office, SDO, at the United Nations, UN, General Assembly in New York. Dr. Bin Bishr's participation was aimed to share insights with global cities seeking the smart transformation of Dubai’s wealth of experience and knowledge accumulated from its drive to become the smartest and happiest city in the world. Taking part in a panel discussion titled "Happy Cities," Dr. Bin Bishr highlighted the progress achieved in the implementation of SDO’s Happiness Agenda, which assists with the process of transforming Dubai into the world’s happiest city by 2021. The discussion was part of the World Happiness Council, which functions to highlight successful global experiences across vital sectors, including health, happiness, education and the workplace environment. Headed by the Director-General of SDO, the Council’s Happy Cities section aims to develop common approaches to countries’ plans for bringing holistic well-being to their populations. During the discussion, Dr. Bin Bishr gave an overview of Dubai's successful experience in smart city building and its strategy to introduce the latest and innovative technologies to serve Dubai's public. These include Dubai Pulse, which is the digital backbone of the emirate's data, and Dubai Now, which is a unified and comprehensive Artificial Intelligence application for the most important smart services. "The Happy Cities discussion panel held at the UN General Assembly was the perfect platform for cities to share their extensive experience and an array of achievements in smart city transformation. The UAE and Dubai, in particular, has attained remarkable achievements in the field of smart city development through its introduction of innovative strategies on embracing citywide implementation of Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies that will continue to contribute promoting the happiness and well-being of all members of the UAE society. "Dubai has been able to enhance the level of happiness in the community by focussing on collaborating with other government and private sector entities to push innovative development across all objectives, including the economy, society, governance, mobility and environment. Our progress in transforming the emirate has elevated Dubai as a global centre for the future industry and has set a benchmark for the rest of the world," she added. His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, launched the World Happiness Council in 2017. The Council seeks to discuss ways to support governments to promote happiness and positivity in society, improve living standards, and meet the future challenges, and share experiences and best practices in the sector. The World Happiness Council includes prominent experts and executives from the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States, as well as the Netherlands, Ecuador and the UAE.