Mohammed bin Rashid approves the general budget cycle of the Dubai government for the years 2026-2028, with total expenditures of 302.7 billion dirhams.

DUBAI, 23rd November / WAM / His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, may God protect him, in his capacity as Ruler of the Emirate of Dubai, approved Law No. 15 of 2025 regarding the general budget cycle of the Government of Dubai for the fiscal years 2026-2028, and the general budget of the Government of Dubai for the fiscal year 2026.

Dubai Finance announced the adoption of the budget cycle for the three years 2026-2028, with total expenditures of 302.7 billion dirhams and total revenues of 329.2 billion dirhams, which is the highest budget in the history of the emirate. It came to meet future ambitions and confirm Dubai’s determination to continue developing the entrepreneurship and investment sectors, stimulating them, raising the levels of community well-being and meeting its requirements, and consolidating the emirate’s position as a platform for opportunities and innovation. This is done by establishing the principle of financial and economic stability.

During the implementation of the general budget cycle for the fiscal years 2026-2028, Dubai Finance expects to achieve an operating surplus of up to 5% of the emirate’s expected gross domestic product for the year 2026, in order to establish the foundations of the emirate’s financial sustainability.

His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence, and Chairman of the Executive Council of the Emirate of Dubai, said that the Dubai government’s budget cycle for the years 2026-2028 draws a financial road map to accelerate the achievement of Dubai’s ambitions towards enhancing the growth of its vital sectors and confirming its position as a global economic center, stressing that the new budget reflects the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. May God help us achieve the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, most notably doubling Dubai’s gross domestic product and making it one of the top three economic cities in the world by 2033, as well as the commitment to achieving a balance between great ambitions, growth and economic stability, with the support of rational financial policies.

His Highness added: The budget emphasizes supporting the main sectors that are important for the future, and moving to a new phase of growth based on knowledge and driven by innovation in the new digital world, while the budget enhances local entrepreneurship opportunities and creates a high-growth environment for all sectors. Also, the financial sustainability and competitiveness reflected in the budget increase Dubai’s attractiveness to investors and entrepreneurs from around the world, creating an ideal starting point for the emirate to achieve its aspirations to build a prosperous tomorrow.

The 2026-2028 budget cycle came to express Dubai’s vision for the future, by supporting space research, digitization, and artificial intelligence. It also focused on interest in entrepreneurship and creating a stimulating environment for the various sectors in the emirate.

Expenditures for the fiscal year 2026 are estimated at a total of 99.5 billion dirhams, a clear expression of the emirate’s continued support of development projects, stimulating the overall economy, and achieving the ambitious goals of the Dubai Plan 2033 and the Dubai Economic Agenda D33.

In the 2026 budget, Dubai continues to pay attention to social services, developing the health sectors, education and culture sectors, and construction projects, allocating the necessary funding to them according to priorities, and developing a governance framework that has been launched and circulated to all government agencies.

In contrast, revenues for 2026 are estimated at a total of 107.7 billion dirhams, of which a general reserve of 5 billion dirhams is held.

His Excellency Abdul Rahman Saleh Al Saleh, Director-General of Dubai Finance, stressed the importance of a flexible and scalable financial plan, which would achieve the government’s financial sustainability and increase competitiveness and transparency, which would have an impact on increasing Dubai’s attractiveness for foreign investments.

His Excellency explained that the budget for the fiscal year 2026 came to meet the requirements of the Dubai Strategic Plan 2033 and the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, and also works to achieve the vision of His Highness the Ruler of Dubai and the directives of His Highness the Crown Prince to increase government support for the sectors of social development, housing citizens, developing government work and digitizing the government, advancing scientific research, increasing institutional agility, and enhancing global competitiveness.

His Excellency said that the Government of Dubai is committed to working in accordance with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, regarding the necessity of adopting disciplined financial policies, which has led to the establishment of a general reserve that is deducted annually from revenues, which ensures the achievement of financial sustainability and strengthens the financial position of the emirate in the face of any future challenges.

The budget for the fiscal year 2026 showed the extent of the government’s concern for people, as it allocated 28% of total government spending to the social development sector, which includes the areas of health, education, scientific research, housing, family, women and child care, attention to youth and sports, and attention to the elderly, retirees and people of determination.

The government gave great attention to the security, justice and safety sector, allocating 18% of total spending to support and develop it and make it able to perform its role professionally and proactively, until it became one of the sectors that the emirate is proud of globally.

The expected spending on infrastructure, including roads, tunnels, bridges, means of transportation, sewage stations, gardens and parks, renewable energy and waste treatment plants, and other service buildings, amounted to 48% of the government’s total expected spending for the fiscal year 2026. The government was also interested in supporting the government development sector, by allocating 6% of total government spending to develop performance and consolidate a culture of excellence, innovation and creativity.

Arif Abdul Rahman Ahli, Executive Director of the Planning and Public Budget Sector at Dubai Finance, confirmed that the Dubai government’s adoption of medium-term financial planning and the announcement of a three-year financial plan come as a translation of the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and in implementation of the directives of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, noting that the budget for the fiscal year 2026 came in response to the requirements of the Dubai Plan 2033 and beyond, and a transparent expression of The emirate’s stable financial position, based on the implementation of disciplined financial policies based on best practices, is expected to contribute to achieving an operating surplus of 22% of total government revenues, thus achieving the desired financial sustainability for the emirate.

He added: In Dubai Finance, we seek to develop government spending efficiency programs, and we continue to implement the program and performance budget development plan, which will link strategic planning with financial planning, which confirms the Dubai government’s adoption of the principles of leadership and transparency. Government agencies today contribute to reaching the budget to global heights in terms of preparation and achieving performance ratios consistent with the best international practices, through the government obtaining the highest scores in implementing budgets during previous years according to the government performance index developed by the global “Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability” program.

For his part, Ahmed Ali Muftah, Executive Director of the Central Accounts Sector at Dubai Finance, praised the department’s efforts to consolidate development and innovation through developing collection programs.

He stressed that the Dubai government is interested in publishing financial data and enhancing transparency, noting that the financial data platform contributes to making financial data available to government agencies, institutions and individuals, which contributes to raising the emirate’s competitiveness.

He pointed out that the department attaches special importance to enhancing the transformation towards the digitization of life in Dubai, and to this end it continues to implement Dubai’s cashless strategy so that the emirate becomes a global model in reducing dependence on cash and expanding the use of safe and smart digital payments, based on three axes: Governance, innovation and society, explaining that this strategy contributes to raising the efficiency of government financial operations, accelerating the pace of digital transformation, enhancing transparency, and facilitating access to services, in a way that supports the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda and enhances the emirate’s position as a global center for the digital economy.

He added: Dubai Finance continues to develop programs that will achieve the objectives of the emirate’s strategic plans, to improve the public finance system and achieve financial excellence, such as applying international accounting standards for the public sector. This made the Dubai government one of the first governments to implement these standards in the region, which would clearly affect the results of budget implementation and the development of government performance.

For his part, Hamed Abdul Ghafoor Al Awadhi, Executive Director of the Shared Services Sector at Dubai Finance, stressed that the sector plays a pivotal role in supporting the government work system in Dubai through specific programs and initiatives that contribute to achieving operational efficiency and raising the quality of government services.

He pointed out that the recently announced Dubai Government Unified Contact Center is a central platform to enhance communication with customers and provide a unified experience that reflects government integration, in addition to the joint government procurement program “Tasharek,” which enhances the efficiency of government spending by unifying efforts between government agencies and achieving sustainable financial savings.

He explained that Dubai’s budget for the fiscal year 2026 comes to support these efforts by providing the necessary resources to develop the technical infrastructure and enhance innovation in shared services, which contributes to achieving the government’s digital transformation goals and raising the efficiency of spending, and at the same time keeps pace with the ambitious vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to build a smarter, more efficient and sustainable government.

• For more: Follow Khaleejion 24 Arabic, Khaleejion 24 English, Khaleejion 24 Live, and for social media follow us on Facebook and Related