2-millionth resident to join Dubai soon

Published Sunday, December 04, 2011

By Vicky Kapur

Dubai’s population clock is within touching distance of reaching the 2-million landmark, with Dubai Statistics Centre’s population clock reaching 1,995,125 yesterday, up by almost 100,000 since the beginning of 2011.

The emirate needs less than 5,000 residents to reach the landmark, and with the population growing by more than 8,000 residents every month this year, Dubai will see its 2 millionth resident in 2011 itself, data shows.

Despite the global economic slowdown impacting the numbers in 2009, Dubai’s population has shown steady growth over the years, with population reaching 1.905 million at the end of 2010.

Moreover, Dubai has an active population of more than 3 million during the day, with more than 1 million individuals entering the emirate’s borders for trade, tourism and employment purposes on a daily basis, DSC statistics show. The active population swells by more 55 per cent when the number of tourists, sailors and workers in the government as well as the private sector residing outside Dubai is taken into consideration.

According to numbers released by the official statistics centre, active population during the day at the end of the second quarter of 2011 was 2.97 million, when resident population was at 1.95 million.

Dubai continues to add more than 8,000 residents per month, data shows. This data is in stark contrast with earlier estimates by external agencies that Dubai's population would shrink as the emirate’s real estate and construction sectors suffered a slowdown.

Analysts now highlight that the increasing affordability and availability of residential accommodation in the emirate has meant that Dubai’s population has continued to swell. Rents in Dubai have declined by up to 60 per cent since peaking in 2008, which has seen residents from neighbouring emirates shift to Dubai in order to be closer to their place of work.

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