Dubai needs affordable as well as expensive provisions for its residents

Dubai is arguably the top world destination for expat professionals looking for tax-free top salaries and a luxurious lifestyle to match, but the city in a desert is now one of the world’s most costly.

Ranked as the 20th most expensive world city, Dubai’s drain on even the highest salaries comes mainly due to the costs of renting suitable accommodation and the exorbitant international school fees. Private schools charge up to Dh100,000 per school year, dependent on the quality of facilities, staff salaries, curriculum and other services provided. Dubai authorities monitor school fees as well as rentals, occasionally resulting in decreases in both sets of charges.

At the present moment, a recently released survey noted that residential area rents have fallen by between 15 and 20 per cent, along with a corresponding reduction in private school fees. It’s good news for expats, as the two essentials form the major drain on even the most generous salaries and therefore should be tailored to the budgets of their main users. Expensive international schools with massive swimming pools and other luxury facilities cater exclusively for wealthy expats, even although high prices don’t always equate with quality in the education sector. Even so, schools with basic facilities and fees bordering on the nominal still have a responsibility to provide quality education for their pupils.

Nowadays, construction in Dubai seems to be centred on cutting-edge educational institutions and ultra-modern residential properties aimed exclusively at the wealthy as an illustration of the success of the ambitious city. However, a healthy city needs to provide affordable essentials for all its residents, from the abnormally wealthy to the far less fortunate, with failing to do so setting up a scene for resentment and unhappiness within the status quo for everyday citizens. Dubai’s rulers seem to want a happy city crammed with happy citizens, the which can only be achieved by increasing efforts to achieve a mix of provisions for all levels of residents.