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Article: The desert reformist marks 30 years rule. (Abu Dhabi, UAE's Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan)(includes related article on the role of the Abu Dhabi women in the emirate's progress)(Special Report)
- Article from:
- The Middle East
- Article date:
- July 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 IC Publications Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Christine Osborne has witnessed the mammoth changes that have taken place in Abu Dhabi during the 30-year rule of statesman environmentalist Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan.
"Money is of no value unless it is used to benefit the people," said Sheikh Zayed on taking office on 6th August 1966. A descendant of the great Bani Yas tribal confederation who settled in Abu Dhabi in 1793, Zayed has stayed true to his word.
Unlike some of the oil-rich emirs of the Upper Gulf, he has spent lavishly on making his home state one of the most attractive places in the Arab World.
Until as recently as the mid-1960s Abu Dhabi remained poor and undeveloped. A barren ...