Dubai's population grows by over 50,000 in 6 months

The influx of expatriates into Dubai continued in the first half of 2023, as the population of the emirate grew by more than 50,000.

The regional hub for aviation, trade, finance and tourism has created a lot of job opportunities since 2021, attracting thousands of expat professionals looking for greener pastures who made the emirate their home.

The emirate’s population dropped following the outbreak of the coronavirus in February 2020, but it started to increase as the government successfully began to overcome the pandemic. Dubai was one of the first cities in the world to open after the pandemic, helping it to recover faster than other major cities and attract the best talent.

In addition, Expo 2020 also promoted the emirate on a global scale and attracted new investors and professionals.

According to Dubai Statistics Centre data, the emirate’s population crossed 3.6 million at the end of June as compared to 3.55 million at the beginning of 2023.

As of July 5, Dubai’s population stood at 3,603,286 as against 3,550,400 at the beginning of the year, an increase of 52,886 or 1.49 per cent. While the number of residents has grown by 89,196 in the past 12 months and 124,595 in 18 months.

Dubai's government has taken urban planning one of the top priorities for sustainable development and to ensure improved quality of life of the residents. The city’s population has increased by 80 times and urban areas by 170 times since 1960, when the first urban plan was launched.

Currently, Dubai 2040 urban plan is underway to provide sustainable and flexible mobility options to ease the mobility of people. The plan envisages that 55 per cent of Dubai's population to live within 800 meters or less from public transport stations.

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