DUBAI, UAE (AP) – The UAE on Saturday announced plans to grant some foreigners the citizenship of this oil-rich nation, home to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, as part of efforts to boost its economy in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.
Earlier, the United Arab Emirates granted citizenship to Palestinians and others who helped form the country’s government after its formation in 1971. Others have also received it over time.
Saturday’s announcement by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, governor of Dubai, who also serves as prime minister and vice president of the autocratic nation, said the offer could be applied to artists, authors, doctors, engineers and scientists, as well as their families.
Sheikh Mohammed wrote on Twitter that the hereditary rulers of the seven emirates of the country and at the federal level would appoint the citizens. Granted citizens could also retain their initial nationality.
It was not immediately clear whether citizens would also grant rights to the UAE’s cradle-to-grave social programs for their nationals.
More than 9 million people live in the United Arab Emirates, only a tenth of the population. In November, the United Arab Emirates announced plans to revise the country’s Islamic personal laws, allowing the coexistence of single couples, loosening alcohol restrictions and criminalizing so-called “honor killings.”