United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) declared its independence from the United Kingdom and became an independent Arab state in 1971. It covers an area of 83,600 square kilometers and has a population of 9.3 million. The country is made up of seven states called emirates: Umm al-Quwain, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Fujairah, Dubai, Ajman, and the country’s capital, Abu Dhabi. The UAE has a federal government with representatives from each emirate, as well as individual governance within each emirate. Thus, the UAE’s tourism development and growth depends on the goals each emirate aims to fulfill, but all emirates agree on ensuring success in the tourism industry as a worthy alternative to the oil and gas industry, which contributed 25% of the country’s gross domestic product ...