Dubai Now is a comprehensive application for all smart city services and the first unified platform of its kind that covers most of the daily needs of Dubai residents through more than 130 smart services provided by government and private agencies in a single user experience, making city services more smooth and effective and transforming Dubai into a global digital capital .
Matar Al Humairi, Executive Director of the Smart Dubai Government Corporation, told Al Bayan: The number of transactions completed through the Dubai Now application has reached 18 million digital payment transactions, worth more than 9.4 billion dirhams, equivalent to 2.5 billion dollars, since the launch of the application, which began with more than 80 service in October 2019 until it exceeded 130 services in June 2022 provided by more than 30 agencies from the public and private sectors.
Pioneering degree trains students to create sustainable cities for the future
A unique and pioneering graduate degree program at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) Dubai is training students to combine innovation and creativity with social, technological and human factors, to develop a holistic model for building sustainable smart cities of the future.
A first of its kind in the region, and one of only two such programs anywhere in the world, the Master of Science in Professional Studies: Smart Cities program was launched in response to the Dubai smart city goals, to furnish and support the growth of intellectual capital in the sector.
Read more: AE: RIT Dubai smart cities program supports vision for holistic urban communities
Masdar City Square, which will span 29,000 square metres and comprise seven green buildings, aims to support its own and the UAE’s carbon-neutrality goals.
Masdar City, which combines a technology and innovation hub as well as a sustainable community in Abu Dhabi, has broken ground on a new square comprising seven green buildings to support its own carbon-neutrality goals and the UAE Net-Zero by 2050 strategy.
Read more: AE: Abu Dhabi smart city breaks ground on new development
The UAE Cabinet has approved the formation of the Higher Committee for Government Digital Transformation as the country presses forward with plans to develop a digital economy and make use of future technology.
The committee will be chaired by Ohood Al Roumi, Minister of State for Governmental Development and Future, the Dubai Media Office said in a tweet on Monday.
Read more: UAE to establish higher committee to drive digital transformation of government
Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) has signed an agreement with the Australian bus manufacturer BusTech Group to test the operation of an eco-friendly, zero-emission electric bus to verify its operational feasibility in Dubai’s climatic environment.
Innovative technology to improve customer service will also be put to the test during the trial run, allowing the bus to function as a smart asset completely connected into Dubai’s environmental mass transit system. In order to continually discover areas for development, the assessment will also take into account the advantages and performance of the bus as well as the comments from drivers and customers.
Read more: AE: Dubai’s RTA signs agreement to trial eco-friendly electric bus