Developing a Library and Information Science Bachelor's Degree Program in the United Arab Emirates

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As the world was bracing for the American, British, and Coalition invasion of Iraq with the intent of creating a regime change that would bring democracy to Iraq, in another part of the Middle East there was talk about democracy, economic development, free-market economy, and planning for library and information science program development within a private university. The place was the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which occupies an area approximately 32,400 square miles along the Arabian Gulf bordering the Gulf of Oman a country roughly the size of Portugal. The UAE is a federation of seven emirates (six that were formerly occupied by the British until 1971); the seventh emirate joined in 1972. The federation consists of the emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharga, Umm al-Qaiwain, Fujariah, Ajman, and Ra's al-Khimah. With a per capita income of $10,000, an annual Gross National Product (GNP) growth of more than five percent, and substantial revenue from oil and tourism, the UAE is one of the richest countries in the region and is ranked as the fourth country with the highest GNP in the world. With 40 percent of the population using the Internet, the country is ranked first among Arab countries in the use of the Internet and is ranked tenth worldwide.1 The country is proud of its newly built Internet City outside Dubai which provides the Arab version of Silicon Valley. The UAE has also been a leader in e-government, and its free market zone is a magnet for shoppers from around the world. The UAE suffers from a shortage of an indigenous workforce as most of the professionals working within the UAE are expatriates (the term used by UAE nationals for non-nationals working in the country). UAE nationals hold most of the key, power, and influential positions in the country, with expatriates in positions for which there is no, or limited, national expertise. Virtually all labor positions are held by expatriates. A new private university, The University of Abu Dhabi (ADU), is being proposed by a national family for altruistic reasons. ADU will educate na-