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2007-2010 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2005-2006 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2003-2004 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2002 and earlier UAE – Northern Emirates archive
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| 2005-2006 Archive – UAE – Northern Emirates |
Sharjah’s blend of intellectual innovation and traditional electoral influences
Sharjah is not unique in the development of formalised consultative structures within the United Arab Emirates – Abu Dhabi also has a consultative council, and has held elections for Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s board in late 2005 – but the emirate remains a political and intellectual innovator. This is clearly reflected in the enthusiasm of its electoral college members, including many women, to stand for national office in this month’s Federal National Council (FNC) elections
Issue 795, 8 December 2006. more
Sharjah – the Ruler and the ruled
More politically and socially innovative than the UAE’s other emirates – it has had a nominated consultative council for six years now, with women members, and children directly elect their own parliament in a gesture that is more than symbolic – Sharjah is nevertheless still governed within the broadly traditional and personalised structures that characterise rule throughout the UAE.
Issue 794, 24 November 2006. more
Gas deal with Iran is pivotal to Sharjah’s economic ambitions
At the heart of the northern emirates’ energy infrastructure and striving to broaden its economic base, Sharjah has powerful commercial reasons to ensure the conclusion of this crucial import agreement with Iran. Sharjah remains committed to the central role of energy in its economic development strategy, despite the delays that have held up completion of the Dana Gas project to import gas from Iran.
Issue 794, 24 November 2006. more
RAK – Who’s who: Profiles of key figures
Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al-Qasimi: CP and business strategist
Also see Issue 788-789, 15 September 2006. more
Sharjah – Who’s who: Profiles of key figures
Sheikh Tariq Bin Faisal Bin Khalid Al-Qasimi: Promotion; Sheikha Lubna Bint Khalid Al-Qasimi: National figure
Also see Issue 788-789, 15 September 2006. more
Umm Al-Quwain – Preparations for début indirect elections gather pace
Details of the UAE’s complex transitional voting system are emerging, providing a reflection of the Federation’s complex politics. Umm Al-Qaiwain, the smallest of the UAE’s seven emirates, has become the first to complete preparations for the new system of indirect elections to the consultative Federal National Council (FNC).
Issue 780, 28 April 2006. more
MBR pops in on civil servants
As federal officials continue their drive to improve government services the new Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum has made several ‘mystery shopper’ visits on public servants – with a focus on the smaller, often ignored emirates.
Issue 778, 24 March 2006. more
Dana will not import cheap Iranian gas
Sharjah’s Crescent Petroleum, a key shareholder of Dana Gas, the UAE’s most recent spectacularly oversubscribed initial public offering (IPO), has denied the venture has plans to sell cheap Iranian gas into the Emirati market.
Issue 768, 28 October 2005. more
RAK – Sheikh Saqr’s illness
Ras Al-Khaimah Ruler Sheikh Saqr Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi has been sufficiently infirm to warrant visits by much of the UAE leadership. The nature of the hospitalised Ruler’s illness is unknown – officially he has been in Abu Dhabi for “medical treatment… to get assured of his health condition”, according to the WAM news agency. The nonagenarian Sheikh Saqr is frail, described by one local as being “as old as Moses”.
Issue 762, 29 July 2005. more
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| 2003-2004 Archive – UAE – Northern Emirates |
RAK shuffle pegged to Tunbs
The recent shuffle of princes in Ras Al-Khaimah (RAK) may have had more to do with the UAE’s claims to the Tunb islands – long disputed with Iran – than with rebalancing the emirate’s mix of business and politics, emirati sources now tell GSN.
Issue 721, 31 October 2003. more
Small steps towards democracy with student elections in Sharjah
Despite the lack of democratic reforms in the UAE, Sharjah is pressing on with a political experiment that could eventually have an impact on the course of political change in the federation. Elections remain a rarity in the UAE, despite moves towards democratic representation in other parts of the Gulf. But Sharjah’s ruler, Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi, continues his gentle promotion of new political thinking – allowing students at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) to elect members of their student council for the sixth year running.
Issue 719, 3 October 2003. more
RAK shake-up favours business interests over political reform
Personal rivalries and profound disagreement about the direction and pace of reform appear to have been behind the unexpected change of leadership in Ras Al-Khaimah, the northernmost of the seven United Arab Emirates. The 14 June appointment of Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al-Qasimi as Crown Prince, displacing his elder half-brother Sheikh Khalid, indicates that social and political reform may be taking a back seat to the progress of business activity in the Emirate. Family rifts and tussles over everyday government decisions in RAK contributed to the decision to sack Sheikh Khalid, who had held the post of Crown Prince for more than 40 years.
Issue 713, 27 June 2003. 
more
Business as usual for RAK’s Al-Qasimis
Ras Al-Khaimah is not the most obvious wellspring of political reform in the UAE, but RAK seems to be making the running in recent initiatives. Sheikh Saqr Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi, born in 1920, is the UAE’s longest-serving ruler, having assumed power in 1948. Initially he had hoped to establish a viable independence outside the UAE – and he only took his Emirate into the federation in 1972, a year after the other six former Trucial States had come together in a single state.
Issue 707, 4 April 2003. more
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| 2002 and Earlier Archives – UAE – Northern Emirates |
Did the Fujairah shooting draw the UAE into the war on terror?
Was it a one-off or the harbinger of things to come in the lower Gulf region? A 21 November shooting incident at Al-Fujairah Airport was treated quietly but still rang alarm bells in the UAE and among Western planners. The only airport on the UAE’s east coast, Fujairah is a small but integral hub in the US military’s regional logistics infrastructure.
Issue 699, 6 December 2002. more
Emiri Court cuts red tape as Ajman makes investment play
AJMAN—With fake Edwardian-style lampstands newly installed along the beachfront and rusting coasters tied up along the creek, Ajman appears almost quaint by comparison with neighbouring Sharjah and Dubai. Yet appearances can be deceptive and one of the UAE’s smallest Emirates is shrewdly carving out a niche development strategy.
Issue 675, 28 November 2001. more
Ruler positions Sharjah as a powerhouse of Islamic ideas
Islam and culture have long been defining characteristics of the development strategy pursued by Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al-Qasimi. But with his recent nomination of women to Sharjah’s Consultative Council—the only such body at local level in the UAE — the soft-spoken and academic Ruler (since January 1972) is also confirming his commitment to political innovation.
Issue 675, 28 November 2001. more
UAE’s smallest members seek niche roles within the Federation
A sign at the entrance to Umm Al-Quwain town, acknowledging the financial help provided by Abu Dhabi in building a road, sums up the dilemmas facing the UAE’s small Northern Emirates. Independence of identity is not supported by the economic resources to match. Despite their considerable success in developing a broad base of new industries, the small states have practically no oil. Reliance on Federal programmes and subsidies from the Federal Government and Abu Dhabi is unavoidable.
Issue 659, 16 April 2001. more
Northern Emirates: Differing outlooks, shared need to create worthwhile jobs
NORTHERN UAE — Ajman Creek is reminiscent of Dubai in the early 1980s, crowded with often rusty cargo ships, small warehouses and shops; the bustling but still relaxed business ambience is attractive to traders seeking an alternative to the big port style of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. Umm Al-Qaiwain stands in sharp contrast, just a few kilometres up the coast. Stretched out along a flat peninsula between creek and sea, this quietest of Emirates has only recently seen the construction of its first high-rise office tower.
Issue 659, 16 April 2001. more
2007-2010 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2005-2006 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2003-2004 UAE – Northern Emirates archive
2002 and earlier UAE – Northern Emirates archive
Return to main GSN's World Northern Emirates page
Return to main GSN's World UAE page
Select another country
