The sort of all-encompassing development he undertook was the making of a modern nation
With the accession of late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, a new approach emerged on what the region could be like under a leadership that proposed an ambitious programme.
And a vision of what Abu Dhabi and the nine emirates of the Gulf — the UAE’s seven emirates plus Bahrain and Qatar — that gained their independence could look like, including on matters related to economic development.
These came at the right time as the region was experiencing profound fluctuations and was in need of a wise leader such as the Shaikh Zayed.
In less than two years after putting Abu Dhabi in order, he called for a meeting between leaders of the nine Emirates in Abu Dhabi, to form a union that would be capable of defending the UAE, its stability and pave the way towards development.
Comprehensive programme
This clearly indicates that the Shaikh Zayed had in mind a comprehensive programme of what a modern country could be like on all levels as he was fully confident that if the nine Emirates remained as they were, that would not offer a single guarantee for the desired stability and development.
