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New UAE Cabinet hailed

DUBAI/ABU DHABI — The new cabinet announced by His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, has been widely welcomed.

Khaleej Times interviewed some of the UAE citizens for their opinions about the new cabinet in the UAE, including Nada Yousef Al Hashimi, Chief of the GCC Countries Department of the Former Ministry of Planning and Economy.

Nada expressed her pleasure over the restructured cabinet noting that it has two female ministers who will be a "remarkable addition to raise the level of performance of the cabinet."

She pointed out that the lone woman in the previous cabinet was Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi, minister of economy. Now there are two women as ministers: Mariam Al Roumi for social affairs and Shaikha Lubna, she added.

“We observed how good an addition was Shaikha Lubna Al Qasimi to the ministry of economy and she played a very outstanding role in advancing the performance of the ministry," she said, adding that Shaikha Lubna enhanced the cooperation between ministry of economy and the other ministries besides being the best representative for the UAE woman in the international assemblies.

Nada noted that Shaikha Lubna gave golden opportunities to many females to contribute to the development of the UAE such as D Hafsa Al Olama, Under-Secretary of ministry of economy.

She pointed out that the past cabinets never gave women a chance to prove themselves. Mariam Al Roumi as a minister of social affairs is the best representative for the UAE woman, she said.

She felt that Mariam Al Roumi will be able to express the problems faced by the UAE national women at meetings. She said the problems arising from marriage of the UAE women with foreigners, including nationality of their children, were still not resolved. She said for tackling such problems, a strong minister like Mariam Al Roumi was needed.

“We knew it is a difficult mission but she will confront these problems and find solutions to them within existing regulations,” she opined.

Abdul Munaim Mohammed Al Marzouki, Director of the Environmental Researches Department of Emirates Heritage Club, said that in fact the new cabinet for the first time includes a separate ministry for the environment and water which means that the leaders are very concerned about the importance of the environment and water. He said the new cabinet reflected the deep insight of the leaders in choosing the members of the cabinet.

He said in line with directives of Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed, the new cabinet will fulfil the tasks that they are entrusted with and take in consideration the environment and water as these two things are the most important issues for UAE citizens.

Al Marzouki said creating new ministries such as ministries of culture, social affairs, youth and development signalled a new era of progress and more openings for youth.

"The new ministry of water is another welcome addition and is in keeping with international practices as most countries have ministries for water and environment," he said, adding: “We were in need of it and the new cabinet satisfied our desires by creating new ministry for environment and water.”

Aiysha Al Mohiri, Incharge of the Media Section at the Ministry of Economy and Planning, expressed delight over the new reshuffle. “We, in the UAE, have been working for years in the public sector but thinking with the mentality of private sector,” she said.

She appreciated the creation of the new ministry for government sector development as it would be dedicated to upgrading the standards of government's performance.

“The mentality of the UAE society has changed in such a way that it has begun to accept two women holding posts of ministers,” she observed and said she is proud of the new reshuffle.

Dr Mohammed Juma Salim, Under-Secretary of the scrapped Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Auqaf, said that the formation of the new cabinet brings about optimism.

"The UAE people are going to witness a lot of development and progress in various fields with the operation of the new ministries. I wish all ministers every success and hope they would be able to shoulder the responsibility entrusted to them. Their nomination by Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for their new posts is an honour for them,” he said.

Dr Mohammed Mahmoud Al Kamali, Director-General of Judiciary Studies Institute at the Ministry of Justice, said: "I congratulate the UAE people on the new government. The new cabinet indicates that the next stage will see a focus on the current issues such as the environment and social affairs. The creation of new ministries for these issues reflects the wise leadership's commitment to pay more attention to these issues."

Ahmed Al ZeidI, Director of Follow-Up Department at the Audit Bureau, said the new cabinet is a giant leap and a new era in the history of the UAE. "It’s the another step ahead on the road to e-government, as Shaikh Mohammed devotes his efforts to technology and is keen to see technology used in every department and ministry. The selection of youths for the new cabinet indicates that the UAE will see a gigantic leap in all ministries in terms of technology," he said.

Halima Musmar Al Naqbi, Member of Sharjah Executive Council, hailed Shaikh Mohammed’s initiative of separating Social Affairs from Labour Affairs and make it a ministry headed by a woman, Dr Mariam Al Roumi.

“This would help a great deal in handling all the social issues that are affecting society. Appointing a woman in this post is a rational decision as women would be capable of solving all the problems facing nationals particularly in terms of social assistance and matters pertaining to family,” she said.

“Stopping assistance provided to UAE national women married to foreigners is not fair. I’m confident that a woman minister would play a great role in solving such problems and treating all women equally, regardless of the nationalities of their husbands. Any UAE national woman is eligible to enjoy all rights of citizenship as others,” she said, adding: “Appointing a second woman minister shows that the wise vision of the UAE government in supporting a woman and encouraging them to participate in all aspects of life particularity decision making. “I’m so proud of these two women ministers and I am confident they will perform their duties as good as men.”

Khawla Al Mulla, Member of the Sharjah Consultative Council, said: “When Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum was appointed as Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE, we all felt optimistic as he is a man of great leadership qualities. In this cabinet, he put the right people in the right positions. There was a lot of bureaucracy and routine matters that affected the quality of services provided by the scrapped ministries, and I am sure the new ministries will enhance the quality of public services."

"The Ministry of Social Affairs headed by Dr Al Roumi, who has a great experience in such field will contribute to supporting the social sector, particularly people with special needs whose living standards have to be improved,” she said, adding: “The Ministry of Government Sector Development, being a new authority, would improve the quality of services provided by all government departments and enable them to cope with the development of the country and the modern age requirements.”

Jawhra Al Miman, Director of the Office of the UAE Minister of Education, said that when Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid made these changes in the cabinet, he was aware of the important role the new ministries will play in the country’s development.

“The Ministry of Environment and Water is essential for supporting the infrastructure of the country. Shaikh Mohammed was keen to involve women in the development process and decision making.”

Colonel Saleh Al Matrooshi, Director-General of Ajman Civil Defence, expressed his optimism over the new ministries that would be an addition to the country’s progress.

“The Ministry of Environment and Water would facilitate the duties of Civil Defence departments in the entire country by ensuring environment protection. It would also help in activating the role of other concerned departments in achieving a pollution-free environment in the country,” he said.

Bilal Al Budour, Assistant Under-Secretary of the former Ministry of Information and Culture, commented on the formation of the new Cabinet by saying that the UAE is passing through a new phase and subsequently new visions are needed. He noted that any change will lead to amendments in the visions and programmes.

The performance of the federal government will develop under the leadership of Shaikh Mohammed who is distinguished with his modern administrative vision and applications and dynamic attitude, he said, adding that this was quite significant in the performance of the Government of Dubai.

“The changes and the appointments of new ministers in the new cabinet will ensure the implementation of Shaikh Mohammed’s visions, modern administration and dynamic performance on a federal level,” he said.

"What characterises the new ministers is that they were not away from administration, but were all involved in different administrative practices and were distinguished with their modern applications. The new ministers have new ideas that will for sure lead to further achievements in accordance with the visions of the leader," he noted.