His Highness Sheikh Khalid bin Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, member of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and head of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office, briefed on the medium-term financial plan developed by the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance for the period 2020-2025, which focuses on maintaining the economic climate and accelerating economic growth, which reflects strength and flexibility Finance for the emirate.
During a meeting held in the Department of Finance with the head of the department Jassem Bawtaba Al-Zaabi and a number of officials, His Highness explained an explanation of the most prominent features of the plan that are in line with the clear vision of economic diversification.
Efficient expense and revenue management strategies and a medium-term debt management strategy are essential pillars of the agreed financial plan.
His Highness listened to an explanation about the department’s efforts in light of the global uncertainty caused by the "Covid-19" epidemic, as the department is re-establishing the financial strength of the emirate, the low level of debt and the solid asset base.
His Highness praised the efforts made to consolidate financial power and maintain the flexibility of the economy, which enabled the emirate to pursue its strategy to diversify sources of income away from oil, and to implement initiatives and projects based on serving the community members.
His Highness directed continuously focusing exchange priorities on everything that serves the citizen and the resident, and creating economic and social solutions that help individuals and companies of all sizes to overcome the current challenges and turn them into opportunities.
His Highness also directed the department, being a key partner of government agencies, to inculcate a culture of financial excellence, in the context of a collective effort to support the financial strength and flexibility of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and implement the leadership vision for a prosperous post-oil economy.
Abu Dhabi has maintained its resilient economy, through a number of major initiatives and reforms, which include enhancing liquidity and increasing government financial reserves, rationalizing government spending and increasing the return on public investment, implementing appropriate stimulus plans while maintaining the financial position, and continuing economic growth with a focus on sectors with Higher added value and non-oil sectors.
The department continues to implement the medium-term debt management strategy for the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, which aims to improve the capital structure of the emirate by making use of various sources of financing, while maintaining the current credit rating.
Abu Dhabi's economy is the only AAA rated in the region, which establishes the emirate's credit standing.
Abu Dhabi recently successfully issued multi-sovereign sovereign bonds, valued at $ 7 billion and $ 3 billion, and came at an appropriate time to seize market opportunities and appropriate financing terms.
The Emirate of Abu Dhabi maintains moderate levels of debt, with total government debt reaching 12.1% of GDP at the end of 2019, which is among the lowest in the world.