Abu Dhabi's population has crossed four million for the first time after a 7.5 per cent surge in 2024, figures released on Monday show.
The emirate's population stood at 4,135,985 by the end of last year, spurred by a 9.1 per cent increase in its workforce.
Abu Dhabi's continuing population boom comes as the emirate cements its status as a leading destination for businesses and investors, while new residential and leisure developments take shape.
Abu Dhabi's population has increased by 51 per cent in the past decade, rising from 2.7 million in 2014 to more than 4.1 million, data from the Statistics Centre in Abu Dhabi shows. The sustained growth coincides with an expanding economy, including an increase in GDP of 3.8 per cent last year, reaching a record Dh1.2 trillion ($33 billion).
"Abu Dhabi's sustained population growth reflects the government's success in creating an environment that attracts international talent and investment," said Ahmed Al Kuttab, chairman of the Department of Government Enablement in Abu Dhabi and chairman of the statistics centre.
"Through strategic policy development and infrastructure investment, Abu Dhabi has established itself as a leading destination for professionals seeking growth opportunities in a stable, innovative environment.
"The 7.5 per cent population growth validates Abu Dhabi's talent-first strategy. The government and its leadership continue to demonstrate that in today's knowledge economy, communities that offer genuine innovation opportunities – like pioneering AI-native governance – combined with world-class health care and safety standards, will attract the world's best professionals. Abu Dhabi is not competing in the traditional talent market, the emirate is creating an entirely new category as a global career destination."
Growing population in numbers
An expanding workforce of 2.76 million has served as a catalyst for the emirate's economic rise and growing population.
The number of professional roles increased by 6.4 per cent in 2024, as Abu Dhabi focuses heavily on knowledge-based industries including AI, technology, financial services and advanced manufacturing. Men make up 2.77 million of the population (67 per cent), with women accounting for 1.37 million (33 per cent). The median age of the population is 33.
The data reveals 54 per cent of residents are aged 25 to 44, in their peak years to contribute to the emirate's development.
Authorities are taking steps to ensure there is ample housing to keep pace with the rising number of new residents. The number of buildings across Abu Dhabi increased from 281,780 in 2023 to 299,360 in 2024, with the number of units rising from 754,555 to 783,970 in the same period.
The 2024 figures comprise 211,185 residential buildings – up from 199,320 in 2023 – and 54,640 commercial buildings, rising from 50,080.
Driving progress
Dr Ilya Kashnitsky, a former assistant professor at the University of Southern Denmark's Interdisciplinary Centre on Population Dynamics and now a senior researcher at Statistics Denmark, said Abu Dhabi's attraction to new workers puts it in a position of strength.
"Any rich country or region that is a destination for labour migration is in a privileged situation," Dr Kashnitsky told The National.
"It's always beneficial to receive labour. It's a very nice problem to deal with. It's way more difficult to manage the outflow of the population, like is happening in some, for example, Bulgaria, Romania or Baltic countries.
"It's way easier to deal with the inflow of the population, you're on the beneficial site of migration. You're getting people in prime working ages without the decades-long necessity of providing to their kids."
Dr Kashnitsky said the arrival of large numbers of people to work in a country contributed to economic growth.
"It's not a secret that in the future ... developed, richer countries will be in quite a fight for human resources, for people in their prime working ages."
Dr Alexandra Gomes, a research fellow at the London School of Economics who helped create an exhibition staged in London and Abu Dhabi called 'Abu Dhabi (dis)Connected', said population growth "presents an opportunity for higher levels of densification".
This, in turn, "can and should support improved public transport connectivity", Dr Gomes added.
"The key question now is: how can Abu Dhabi enhance its public transport system to attract current drivers, while also ensuring that new residents are not compelled to rely on private cars?" she said.
"Urban planning and transportation should go hand in hand, and public transport must become a viable alternative to car use, offering connections to places people want to go to, good frequencies, dedicated lanes and comfort."
Attractive destination
The latest statistics come as Dubai's population is also expected to pass four million this year. It stood at 3.96 million as of Monday, up from 3.75 million on the same date last year.
Dr David Roberts, a reader in international security and Middle East studies at King's College London, said population growth in the Gulf region was based on the idea that there remained "hundreds of thousands of affluent foreigners around the world who are looking for an alternative" place in which to live and work.
"I think the appeal of the Gulf is straightforward in many ways. Some people can see it as an alternative future," said Dr Roberts, author of Security Politics in the Gulf Monarchies: Continuity Amid Change. "These are fast modernising, swiftly changing young states that are very attractive to a lot of foreigners."
Places such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar were, Dr Roberts said, seen by many foreigners as "forward looking and futuristic".
He said the tax regime and the perception that the region offered "entrepreneurial flexibility" drew in expatriates.
While population growth creates pressures, such as on transport systems, Dr Roberts said the infrastructure in Abu Dhabi and Dubai was "pretty much first-rate".
