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(Recast) UAE official stresses importance of education, unity

Xinhua, February 9, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi said here on Monday that investing in education and the nation's unity was key to maintain prosperity.

The young generation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) should learn about the hardship the older generations went through, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed told the third annual UAE government summit.

Although the UAE, which was founded in 1971, was blessed with oil, "unity and state loyalty of our citizens and our nation is a bigger wealth," said Zayed, who also serves as the Gulf state's deputy minister of defense.

Oil and gas wealth is limited, but unity is for good, he said.

The crown prince said the current low oil prices were not affecting the economy, because it was "strong and diverse."

According to the UAE Ministry of Economy and Foreign Trade, although the UAE harbors approximately 8 percent of the world's known oil reserves, only 29 percent of its gross domestic product is based on oil.

World oil prices started to drop dramatically in June 2014 and reached a nearly six-year low at end of last January. Endit