Observers of The UAE realize that «happiness» is not a single passing word on the atmosphere and climate of the UAE strategic planning. In addition to being a tangible meaning walking on the land of this good country, happiness is a pivotal goal set by the first government strategy in the 2007 plan. Many accomplishments have been achieved regarding this goal, reflected in winning numerous international advanced ranks, which measure levels and indicators of happiness and community satisfaction. Over the last years, the UAE has occupied the first rank among Arab and Gulf countries in the happiness index, which is supervised by the United Nations (In 2012, UN adopted indicators that measure human happiness and issued annually a guide to rank the world countries according to the rates of happiness based on the measurement of elements accurately specified by experts and specialized researchers), which means that the State is moving on the path it traced for itself.
«Happiness», as perceived by the UAE, is for the government to carry out its functions accurately with competitive performance, so as to provide a decent living and social welfare to citizens, facilitate their life and create opportunities for them to achieve happiness for themselves and their families, from the basis that happiness is essentially an internal feeling, and that the State’s mission is to achieve what produces and fulfils this feeling. Here I can only say that the use of the word «happiness» and the creation of a ministerial post to it is not a matter of formality or aesthetics, but a leading policy planning response to the requirements of social and living conditions of well-being. Talking about achieving happiness is no longer secondary, but a vital demand of peoples and individuals. The feeling of happiness is one of the most important elements of citizenship, of the sense of belonging and loyalty, and of motivating factors of nationalism and sweeping enthusiastic feelings, which in turn generate enormous positive energy capable of building nations at a time when States and nations are suffering decay and corrosion factors that surround them and cause fragmentation and a weakening of their self-immunity.
Of late, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, said «Those who used to say that people’s satisfaction is unattainable should review their views, because we surpassed this argument, and our motto is people’s satisfaction and happiness and comfort, and these are goals that can be attained. » This is a great argument that lays the foundation for strategic planning and thought that can rise to competitive goals in case of will and proper planning and hard work, which are mostly factors that are combined, thank God, in the United Arab Emirates, and contribute to the achievement of quality development successes that possess strong global competitiveness.
«Happiness» and the creation of a Ministry devoted to it are not a kind of luxury or just formal indicators, but are situated in the heart of government performance and planning for countries in the Twenty First Century, where the function of governments seems to be « bringing happiness to society, yes, our daily work is to achieve happiness », as HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said in his book entitled Flashes of Thought. Ministerial positions are no longer celebration missions, but hard work that requires intensive efforts to achieve the goal of «happiness of citizens», and this is the philosophy of government action in the Twenty First Century, where the UAE gives the finest examples and provides a creative model in the accomplishment of this philosophy, which guarantees security and stability in the era of sweeping globalization, which engulfs all the regions and countries of the world.
Speaking at the recent World Summit in Dubai, Stephen Selig, head of the US delegation said «Innovation is what separates the concept of traditional governments and the governments of the present and future, » a statement that sums up what is happening in the world, and identifies the differences between countries and contributes to the interpretation of a lot of turmoil factors in the region and the world. Some may believe that the richness of the UAE is the cause behind its reaching of this unique position in terms of achieving happiness indicators globally, and this is not accurate, since the international indicator measures the quality of life and does not only rely on per capita income or per capita GDP share. States and individuals achieve happiness according to certain standards, convictions and life performance, which are, in most cases, not associated to the levels of wealth and the acquisition of material things, though that does not negate the fact that wealth is a factor that can contribute to achieving the objectives of States and individuals alike.
Everyone was interested in the creation of a Ministry of happiness in the UAE, and interacted with the event, and this is self-evident, maybe because of the absence of happiness from the atmosphere of the region in general and the overwhelming turmoil and anxiety and unhappiness, and also the desire of everyone in achieving this goal. But the biggest government changes of their kind in the UAE also included massive changes in strategic planning and thinking and brought about a quantum leap that will, without any doubt, enhance the opportunities of achieving the Emirates « 2021 vision », especially in relation to young people and to giving them absolute priority at the level of strategies planning and implementing, which is a strong sign to the foundations of the modern State, which gives the UAE a leading position at the regional and international competitiveness regarding nation-building.
In the end, I say that everything that happens in the UAE provides a compass guiding the region out of the setback it faces, and helping it search for a better future for tens of millions of young people away from the calls of «Daash» and other terrorist organizations, which is implicitly confirmed by the president and founder of the World Economic Forum, Professor Klaus Schwab when he said, «The United Arab Emirates is a global model for governments of the future, due to its long-term vision and its ability to look to the future, which made it lead the laboratory of future innovative systems on behalf of the world, and it has achieved a lot of accomplishments on the global competitiveness index, and is able to achieve amazing leaps continuously».
The UAE opens avenues of hope for the people, and its wise leadership, led by His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Nahyan, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai and their Highnesses Rulers of the United Arab Emirates, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is carrying on its shoulders the concerns of the region and seeks to find alternatives and creative solutions to lift the miserable Arab reality from its developmental pitfalls, which clearly contribute to the regional chaos and disorder we are witnessing.
