Dubai, United Arab Emirates, 02 May 2017: Dubai Land Department (DLD) participated in the last edition of the World Bank Land and Poverty Conference as a bronze sponsor of the event held in Washington DC.
DLD met with many international delegations and presented the department's achievements, also participating in a range of panel discussions as a keynote speaker on real estate registration. In addition, the name and logo of the Government of Dubai and DLD were featured at all World Bank facilities and in the conference publications.
Sultan Al Akraf – Senior Director of the Real Estate Registration Department at DLD – commented: "Our participation in the conference aimed to lend DLD a distinguished presence on the international calendar of events related to real estate registration systems. It also aimed to present our successful experience on the global stage, as the World Bank Conference attracts delegates from all over the world who are keen to exchange their experiences given the importance of this area in urban development, the organisation of smart cities, and the promotion of sustainability."
Al Akraf added: "We participated with a number of international experts in this field and focused on three key pillars: establishment of a committee to safeguard the owners' rights, a central database with integrated systems, and a Dubai Real Estate Registration Model that offers transparency, quality and speed."
He emphasised that the participating delegations provided the latest research and practices, shedding light on a diversity of reforms, interventions and innovations in the worldwide land sector. This year's theme was on 'Responsible Land Governance: Towards an Evidence-Based Approach', focusing on the role of data and evidence for land policy reform, and identifying strategies for broad-based action and monitoring achievements.
Al Akraf headed a round table discussion on 'Regular Governance Control Over Land through Administrative Data Sources', which highlighted a diversity of themes addressed by a panel of experts.
The delegation met with the World Bank administration in the presence of the Director of the Conference, the representative of Europe, and the Director of the Registration Organisation. DLD's team was selected to represent the Arab States, Asia and North Africa, to coordinate the collection of land registration data including land plots owned by individuals and non-governmental organisations. The delegation participated in the Arab States' session as the official speaker on the challenges of land registration and the real estate sector in the Arab countries. It was agreed to hold a November conference in Dubai to host the Arab countries.
Al Akraf added that a team was formed between DLD and the World Bank in cooperation with the United Nations, to manage the event and define its agenda in addition to developing a specific website for the conference with sections for the agenda and registration.
DLD's delegation met with representatives of the World Bank to present some of the improvements suggested by the department, which were all approved, such as obtaining information about property registrations, land site and size, and complaints systems relating to the registration of property, to name a few.
The conference has become one of the largest international events in the field of land management and this year's edition attracted over 1,200 participants including government representatives, academics, civilians and the private sector.