Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 28 January 2019: The Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) has launched the 7th volume of the Actions and Insights Middle East and North Africa series titled Future Governments on day one of the 3rd UAE Public Policy Forum.

Held on February 27-28, 2019, at the InterContinental Dubai Festival City, under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, the Forum is organised in connection with the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority (FCSA). The event included a press conference to launch the new book, attended by MBRSGs Executive President His Excellency Dr. Ali Sebaa Al Marri; and Prof. Raed Awamleh, MBRSGs Dean; along with several members of MBRSGs staff, faculty, and student body.

The book offers a glimpse into the future of government in the region and its contribution to advancing society across all sectors; it presents case studies and various perspectives on the future of administration in the Middle East and North Africa. Four MBRSG researchers worked on the new book, namely, Prof. Melodena Stephens, Dr. Mona El-Sholkamy, Dr. Immanuel Azaad Moonesar, and Prof. Raed Awamleh.

The Future Governments book marks a significant addition to MBRSGs efforts to present a vision for the future of government in the Middle East and North Africa, where the UAE is an influential player, H.E. Al Marri said. The book sheds light on inspiring success stories particularly those of Dubai Government bodies, which have become a benchmark in shaping the future of government in the Arab region.

We, at MBRSG, strive to introduce innovative, science-based models for administration, which allow decision-makers to effect real change in the Arab world and meet the aspirations of people across the region, H.E. added, asserting that this 7th volume of the book series is of great importance to Arab researchers, and pledging to carry on with all efforts that benefit the future of Government, all while forging partnerships to accomplish this objective.

First launched in 2010, the book series has so far issued six volumes shedding light on 110 cases from around the Middle East, unlike most international guides that highlight cases from Europe, the USA, Canada, and Southeast Asia.

The first of the books 5 parts titled Government Foresight tackles such subjects as the emerging pillars of the UAE future Government; and Industry 4.0, which sheds light on the current trends of automation and data exchange in manufacturing, as well as the shift towards the internet of things and cloud computing. The chapter also outlines the determinants of soft power, looking at the UAE as a case study, in addition to Chiles success in international entrepreneurship.

The second part, meanwhile, bears the title Future Orientation, shedding light on Dubais experience in government innovation, creativity, and building foundations for sustainable public-private partnerships at the Smart Dubai office; the chapter then explores the topic of reforming policies for refugees. The third part titled Regulatory Reforms and Strategy explores Fiscal Policy Reforms for the Future, in addition to highlighting the Electronic Health Record Management case of the Dubai Health Authoritys Project SALAMA, before moving on to highlighting the organisational culture, leadership and performance at the Dubai Municipality, as well as the innovation management and business process reform at the Dubai Statistics Centre.

Titled The Happiness Agenda, part four of the book investigates the digital economys need for flexible social security, before exploring innovation in human resource management and its effects on peoples happiness at the Knowledge and Human Development Authority. The chapter also includes the Building a Happy City study, exploring Smart Dubais Happiness Agenda, in addition to exploring the impact of Twitter on the social and academic behaviour of university students, and Icelands success in preventing teenage substance use. The fifth and final part centres around the sharing economy, shedding light on Careems local problem-solving approach to the sharing economy and exploring the prospects of supporting social enterprises and social entrepreneurship.

Future Governments brought together several contributors, including officials and executives from all local and international bodies to present their pioneering experiences as a reference for a future government that meets the requirements of the present and tackles the challenges of the future.