"The late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. ARCHIVE

The UAE marked the first death anniversary of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Saturday (May 13). Sheikh Khalifa, then UAE president, died on May 13, 2022 at the age of 73. He ruled the UAE from 2004 until his death, serving as President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Khalifa was the eldest son of UAE’s founding father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, who served as UAE president before Sheikh Khalifa. Sheikh Khalifa became President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi on November 3, 2004. He was the second President of the UAE and the 16th Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

Sheikh Khalifa’s legacy

Continuing his father’s legacy, Sheikh Khalifa led the UAE to many milestones, including becoming the second largest economy in the Arab world and the first Arab country to reach Mars. He also reinforced the Wadima Law, ensuring that children get the right to education and making education mandatory for everyone from the age of six until the end of secondary school. Before his death, Sheikh Khalifa also made sweeping changes to the country’s personal and civil laws, seen as one of the biggest overhauls of the UAE legal system. ALSO READ: 11 big changes to UAE laws by Sheikh Khalifa

Who was Sheikh Khalifa?

Sheikh Khalifa was born on September 7, 1948 in Al Muwaiji fort in Al Ain. He studied in the first local school in Al Ain, which was established by Sheikh Zayed. At 18, he first entered public service after Sheikh Zayed became ruler and moved to Abu Dhabi. Sheikh Khalifa was appointed Crown Prince on February 1, 1969, and became Prime Minister of Abu Dhabi as well as Defence and Finance Minister in 1971. In 1974, he became chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council. That year, he was also appointed Deputy Prime Minister of the Federal Cabinet. In 1976, he was appointed as Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces. Since becoming the president of the UAE, Sheikh Khalifa has led a major restructure of the UAE’s federal government as well as the Abu Dhabi Government. His projects and policies were aimed at improving the lives of all UAE residents and citizens under a sustainable development plan. His notable projects include the Principles of the 50, the UAE Vision 2021, the UAE Net Zero by 50 Initiative, the Digital Government Strategy 2025, the UAE Strategy for Artificial Intelligence, the UAE Government Services Strategy 2021-2025, the Energy Strategy 2050, the National Food Security Strategy and the National Space Strategy 2030. ICA/Expat Media
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