Abu Dhabi’s Foreign Assistance Steals Spotlight
While Abu Dhabi has developed a reputation for its generous foreign aid, little attention is paid its significant internal aid, which keeps the other emirates afloat.
Although lost in the spotlight on Abu Dhabi’s foreign financial aid, historically the emirate has also been tremendously generous in its own backyard, where it counts the most.
For example, much has been said about the UAE’s assistance to post-Brotherhood Egypt over the past few weeks. The country, along with Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, had immediately provided Egypt with a generous package of $12 billion, with Abu Dhabi contributing $3 billion alone. Shortly thereafter, Abu Dhabi’s crown prince visited Egypt and pledged an additional $2 billion to the cash-strapped North African state. Abu Dhabi also sent seven shipments of fuel valued at $225 million in July in addition to a number of developmental projects. Closer in the Gulf, Abu Dhabi had granted Bahrain $2.5 billion early this year and pumped $500 million into Oman as part of the Gulf Aid Program.
