Saud bin Saqr al Qasimi

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Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr al Qasimi (born February 10, 1956 in Dubai) is the crown prince of Ras al-Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates. He has held the position of crown prince since 2003. The Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, he is the fourth son of His Highness Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad al-Qassimi.

Sheikh Saud completed both his primary and secondary education in Ras Al Khaimah. At the age of 17, he was sent abroad by his father to the American University of Beirut (AUB) to pursue his studies in economics. The breakout of civil war in Lebanon in 1975, however, made it impossible for him to complete his degree at the AUB and he transferred to the University of Michigan, where he completed his studies.

On his return to Ras Al Khaimah in 1979, Sheikh Saud was appointed as Chief of the Ruler's Court to assist his father, HH Sheikh Saqr, in the administration of the Government of Ras Al Khaimah. In 1986 he became the Chairman of the Ras Al Khaimah Municipal Council. On June 14, 2003, Sheikh Saud was appointed by his father as the Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah.

In 2006, Sheikh Saud established the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (RAKIA) to implement and manage Ras Al Khaimah's developmental and infrastructural overhaul. RAKIA is among a myriad of semi-governmental organizations, including RAK Properties, Rakeen, and the Investment and Development Office. In January 2008, Standard and Poor and Fitch announced that the Government of Ras Al Khaimah was awarded an A rating.

Sheikh Saud has also created the Sheikh Saqr bin Mohammad Al Qasimi Scholarship Award to encourage and enable local men and women to pursue higher education at first class international universities. Additionally, 2005 saw the opening of George Mason University's first international campus in Ras Al Khaimah, making it possible for youth throughout the region to obtain an American college degree without leaving the Emirate. Sheikh Saud has also sponsored the building of the Ras Al Khaimah University of Medical and Health Sciences to train future generations of doctors, nurses and pharmacists for the UAE as a whole. In 2007, Sheikh Saud opened the doors of RAK Hospital, a joint Swiss-UAE venture and the first full service private hospital in the Emirate.

Policy Concerns

Several areas across the northern sections of Ras Al Khaimah faced significant water shortages throughout 2009 due to frequent interruption to the water supply and the inability of the central government to place reasonable controls on water tanker operators and other market players ^[1].

According to Ras Al Khaimah Federal Electricity and Water Authority, schools and universities along with other public interest commercial buildings are to be given top priority when distributing power connections in the RAK. Unfortunately this has failed to occur with numerous university buildings as well as brand new shopping centers and other public spaces have been without power since their development. Additionally, they have been informed by the Authority that these priority connections will not be made available until 2015. ^[2]

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