The press in the United Arab Emirates has begun complaining about the large number of foreigners in the country, saying it is altering the UAE’s demographic complexion. At the same time, people outside the UAE look with admiration at Dubai’s experiment that turned the city-emirate into a magnet attracting capital and investments from all over the world.

Emiratis living in Dubai have become foreigners in their own country, representing a tiny minority of the city’s population. Statistics indicate that natives make up a mere two percent of Dubai’s total population. Imagine a place where 98 percent of the population are foreigners whose presence is dictated by transient interests.

As for the number of UAE citizens compared to the overall population, they account for no more than 10 percent. An official report published recently in Abu Dhabi warned of a demographic “time-bomb” as a result of the increasing number of foreign workers in the country. The report clearly illustrates how concerned UAE officials are about the serious threats the country may face if the constantly increasing number of foreigners is not brought under control.

Here in the Kingdom, there is a large number of foreigners but nonetheless our situation is better than in other Gulf Cooperation Council countries. There are those among us who look at Dubai as the best model and one which should be followed. This must of course be viewed from another perspective, considering the job nationalization policy and the government-led Saudization drive aimed at replacing foreign workers with the Kingdom’s citizens.

Many of those who compare Dubai’s experiment with our approach to promoting business and commerce end up favoring Dubai. These are partial approaches intended to address a much wider situation and will only yield partial effects in either the short- or the long-term. No doubt, Dubai’s rapid development is impressive. Within a few years, the emirate has succeeded in promoting itself as an international business center, attracting investments from all four corners of the globe.

What was never factored into the equation, however, was how an overwhelming foreign presence would influence the UAE in economic, social, cultural, security and political terms. The question is whether the foreign presence will, in the long run, compensate for the diminishing role of citizens and their ability to run own affairs by themselves? It is a question facing not only Dubai but also every other Gulf country.

Here, the owners of small workshops, groceries and even places selling “fool” and “tamees” always praise Dubai’s free trade environment and threaten to move there whenever they encounter a bureaucratic obstacle. There is no problem with what they do, since every one, running a big or a small business, is free to do whatever will bring them profit. I doubt, however, that these are taken into consideration when the threats are made. What matters most is who laughs in the end.