Presentation of an in-depth study of communications in the U.A.E. and how to successfully enter the country as a for profit or non-profit organization. Gives excellent overview of the area's culture.

2. ‚The people of the UAE, both expatriates and
nationals, are unified by ambition…
they are unique from consumers in other major
economic and cultural centers, where place typically
has the upper hand in shaping the individual…in
the UAE, it’s the other way around.‛
CEO of Fallon North America Chris Foster, after working on
an advertising campaign for Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank

6. TOTAL POPULATION
Of 4.8 Million, only 15% are nationals
2/3rds under the age of 30
POPULATION GROWTH
6.9% from 2007 to 2008
Expected to drop 20% over the next
2 years due to economic crisis

7. ETHNIC COMPOSITION
34% Arab
8% Iranian
50% South Asian
8% Western Ex-pats
Wealth & power in the hands of the Western & Arabic
population

8. RELIGIOUS STATISTICS
Islam 76%
Buddhist 5.9%
Protestant 5%
OFFICIAL LANGUAGE
Arabic, but large portion speak English, Hindi &
Mandarin Chinese

9. LIFESTYLE
Life Expectancy: 77 years (men), 81 years (women) (UN)
GNI per capita: $23,770
GDP per capita: $45, 461
*Less than 0.2% of the country controls 90% of
the population’s wealth

10. LIFESTYLE
UNEMPLOYMENT
4%
FEMALE FERTILITY
2.23 children/woman
INFANT MORTALITY
8.71%

11. WOMEN
40% of total population (as of 2007)
77% in higher education (highest rate in the world)
33% of economic contribution
60% of government employees
18% of electoral college

12. PRIMARY SCHOOL ENROLLMENT
Total - 91%
Females – 48%
LITERACY RATE
All - 90%
Female – 81.7%
Male – 76.1%
59.5% read the newspaper

13. UAE according to Hofstede
High Power Distance
High Uncertainty Avoidance
High Context
Medium Media Independence
High Collectivism
Short-term Time Orientation

14. Economy
Capitalist
Currency – Emirati Dirham
100 Dollars = 367.25 Dirham
The most expensive country for expatriates
One of the fastest growing economies in the world

15. Economy
One of the most developed countries in the world
Per capita GDP 14th in the world, 3rd in the Middle East
Petroleum and natural gas exports
play an important role in the economy
require at least 51% local citizen ownership in all businesses

16. Economy
currently $350 billion worth of active construction projects
World’s largest artificial islands
World’s tallest building
World’s most extensive airport
World’s largest shopping mall

17. Economy
Weakening along with the rest of the world
Influx of conservative Muslim money slowing
growth and changing formerly liberal atmosphere
Announced in November of 2009 inability to pay foreign loans
Owe 50 Billion over the next 3 years
May have significant impact on world economy

18. Political Structure
Restricted democracy
Federation of 7 absolute monarchies
De facto hereditary presidency and premiership
3 branches of government

19. Political Structure
President & Ruler of Abu Dhabi - Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed
Vice President & Ruler of Dubai - Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum
Consider themselves a democracy, but refer to leaders as ‚rulers‛
Citizens have no right to change their government
Law does not distinguish between church affairs and state affairs

20. Media
Editors practice self-censorship
Criticism of Islam, the government, ruling families
or UAE citizens punishable by imprisonment
rarely bash the U.S. because of efforts
toward UAE as a westernized nation
Broadcast & publish in English and Arabic
Most channels owned by government

21. Media
Bloggers report reprimands for writing posts critical of the
government or society
Forbids use of Flickr, YouTube and Skype
Moving to prohibit MySpace
and Facebook

22. Infrastructure
20th busiest airport in the world
7th busiest port in the world
Opened Dubai Metro on September 30, carries
27k passengers per hour on 42 trains
Primary mode of transportation: airplanes
Road networks connecting all major towns and cities
Two telecom operators: Etisalat & Du,
hold 80 and 20% of the market respectively
Influx of one-way ticket purchases as of 2009

23. Social Structure
class-based society, with migrant workers in the lower classes (largely Asian)
rare ethnic tension, but usually between expatriates
Society revolves around Islam
More liberal than Arabic neighbors
Ranked third in ‘promoting gender
equality and empowerment of women

24. Human Rights Issues
Human Trafficking
Drug Conduit
Work Conditions for foreign labor

25. Fashion
Western-style clothing fairly popular among the youth
Traditional Adults still wear white kandouras and black dishdasha but with more
decorations than the other more conservative Arab nations

26. Fashion
Foreigners wearing traditional Arab clothing considered offensive
When visiting:
Men should wear long-sleeves and long pants, a suit and tie for business
Women should wear shapeless clothes with high necklines, low hemlines, no
pants and carry a scarf just in case

27. SPORTS:
Cricket (root for Pakistan)
Formula One racing – called F1
Soccer

28. BEHAVIOR
Left hand is considered unclean, so gesture with right hand
‚Thumbs up‛ is offensive
Do not discuss women or Israel
Ask permission before photographing people in general
Alcohol is reserved to hotels and bars (mostly tourist locations)
Eat with right hand

29. BEHAVIOR
Remove your shoes before entering a building
Men walking hand-in-hand is a sign of friendship
Showing the bottom of your feet is offensive
Traditional greeting between men involves grasping each other’s
right hand, placing the left hand on the other’s right shoulder and
exchanging kisses on each cheek

30. COMMUNICATION NUANCES
Raised voice not a sign of anger Expect a personal touch &
Short attention span praise
Enjoy long visits and Enjoy talking one-on-one
conversations Less worried about logical
Normal to interrupt arguments, than being persuaded

31. COMMUNICATION NUANCES Like to talk about family &
Respond well to frequent connections
religious references Sit and stand closer than
More important to foster westerners
personal relationships and sell
your personal values than your
company’s mission

32. RELIGION
The majority of the population practices Islam, the religion’s rules and
beliefs create the basis for the UAE’s culture, laws and government.
Therefore knowledge of Islam’s beliefs is essential to
communicators.

33. RELIGION
‚Islam‛ means peace, love and
a devotion to god
‚A true Muslim is one whose actions
and words do not hurt his fellow man‛
When Muslims greet each other they say
‚May peace be upon you and may God's blessings be with you‛
Prohibited from consuming pork products,
blood, carrion, and alcohol

34. 5 PILLARS OF ISLAM
(1) Say Salah, ritual prayer, 5 times a day
(2) Shahadah – testament that Allah is the only god worthy of worship
and Mohammed is his messenger
(3) Zakat – alms-giving based on accumulated wealth
(4) Sawm – fasting during Ramadan, no eating or drinking from dawn to
dusk while thinking of one’s sins
(5) Hajj – Pilgrimage to Meccca, must be made once in a lifetime

35. Holidays:
Eid al-Fitr – Festival marking the end of Ramadan
Eid al-Adha – All meet for ritual prayer in public before sacrificing an
animal, distribute meet among the poor
Ramadan – month of fasting, must refrain from eating, drinking,
smoking, meant to teach patience, modesty and spirituality

36. CULTURAL METAPHORS
Real estate
Extravagance
Clothing
(Kandoura & Dishdasha)

37. NATIONAL ANTHEM
Live my country, the unity of our Emirates lives
You have lived for a nation
Whose religion is Islam and guide is the Qur’an
I made you stronger in God's name, oh homeland
My country, My country, My country, My country
God has protected you from the evils of the time
We have sworn to build and work
Work sincerely, work sincerely
As long as we live, we will be sincere
The safety has lasted and the flag has lived oh our Emirates
The symbol of Arabism
We all sacrifice for you, we supply you with our blood
We sacrifice for you with our souls oh homeland

38. ‚Emiratization‛
New code of conduct for clothing, public behavior
Forbids music, dancing, insults, rude gestures
5 – 20% of employees must be Emirati
Expatriates must be laid off first
Expatriates must pass ‘a local culture’ test to obtain a visa

39. WHAT THIS ALL MEANS FOR COMMUNICATION
It’s okay to be modern, extravagant and
westernized, but make sure to not offend the
traditional, conservative Arab population.