Present Day UAE
Since the establishment of the Federation in 1971, the seven emirates that comprise the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have forged a distinct national identity through consolidation of their federal status and have enjoyed an enviable degree of political stability. This federation constitutes the most distinctive Arab unity in modern history.
Success in politics has been accompanied by successes on the economic and social fronts. In 2006, these successes have been crowned by holding the first elections for the Federal National Council (FNC) members.
During 2006 major steps forward were made in terms of enhancing public participation in Government, through the introduction of indirect elections to the country's Parliament, the FNC. The changes were first announced by the country's President, H. H. Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in his statement on the occasion of National Day on 2 December 2005.
Formerly, the 40 members of the FNC, drawn from each of the seven emirates on the basis of their size and population, were appointed by the rulers but under the new reforms, each ruler now selects an electoral college whose members should be at least 100 times the number of FNC members for the emirate, (eight each for Abu Dhabi and Dubai, six each for Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah, and four each for Fujairah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain). The members of each college will then elect half of the FNC members for their emirate, with the remaining half being appointed by the ruler.
In 2010, the UAE leadership launched the UAE Vision 2021 which states the following:
We want the UAE to reaffirm its dedication to upholding the vision and leadership of its gifted and persevering Founding Fathers. The Federation will remain true to its goal of maintaining cohesion and solidarity among the member states, ensuring that the hard work and sacrifices of the early years are never forgotten.
The Federation will continue to rise in the national consciousness to represent the defining point of allegiance for all Emirates. This sense of common destiny and of belonging to one nation will bind all citizens together in building their shared future.
President H. H. Sheikh Khalifa has devoted much attention to the building up of the country’s defensive capability, through the establishment of many military training institutions and through the procurement of the latest military equipment and training.
This economic growth has been fostered, in part at least, by the removal of barriers to trade and the creation of a relatively liberal business environment. The focus has been on how to help business develop while maintaining good standards of corporate governance. State ownership has played a key role in development of certain sectors, but in recent years there have been moves to reduce this role through a series of privatization and partnership arrangements.
In addition, introduction of free zones and other legal measures have reduced or removed some of the restrictions on foreign ownership of companies and obligations for branches of foreign companies to recruit UAE agents. The provision of jobs for UAE nationals does, however, remain a high priority for Government, which applies quotas for the percentage of Emirate staff working in banking, insurance, professional, and distribution services.
The National Media Council launched the 2010 edition of the UAE Year Book, which contains information on various aspects of life in the country.
Abu Dhabi City is rapidly moving towards the future with an eye on 2030. Watch this video from Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council. Your comments are welcome. 
