The Municipality also featured a futuristic image of how the project would appear when it is completed in the end of 2014.

The project, which is estimated to cost Dh150 million, will provide a new home for animals in the Dubai zoo.

“Dubai Safari project is under construction in Al Warqa 5, Aweer Road in an area of 396 hectares,” detailed the Dubai municipality on the social media.

“It will include: Arabian Village, Asian Village, African Village to accommodate animals from different continents, in addition to open safari, butterfly park, golf courses, entertainment and recreational areas,” read the Facebook status message.

Dubai Safari, which is estimated to cover 60 hectares, is “aimed at establishing the best center for wildlife in the world, providing a variety of environments appropriate to different animals”.

As soon as the news of the new home for the animals had hit the stands last year, twitter was abuzz with messages applauding the initiative to provide a better environment for the animals currently housed at the Dubai zoo.

“The reclassifications of the MSCI Qatar and MSCI UAE Indices will coincide with the May 2014 semi‐annual index review,” the index developer said in a statement.

With this new classification, shares in the UAE and Qatar together are expected to attract about 1 per cent of total global investments in the emerging markets space, which will work out to about $400 million worth of potential foreign investments in the countries’ share markets, with the UAE expected to be a bigger beneficiary than Qatar.

The real estate consultancy's index showed that the emirate was the second best performing country out of 55 covered between Q4 2012 and Q1 2013, behind China which registered growth of 10.7 percent.

Dubai's 9.2 percent growth brought annual price rises in the emirate to 21.1 percent compared to Q1 2012.

The index also showed that prices in the Dubai property market rose on average by 18.9 percent since Q3 last year.

Property prices in all world regions, except Europe, increased in the year to March with the Middle East performing best, rising by 10.6 percent on average.

Europe was the weakest-performing region with house prices falling by 0.3 percent on average during the last year.

This was very much the thinking behind the original plans for Dubailand the implementation of which was delayed by the global financial crises of 2008-09,” said Plumb. “Leisure and entertainment forms a key part of many of the large mixed-use projects that have been announced in Dubai over the past 12 months.

“This is a reflection of the weight attached to the hospitality and tourism sector in the long term growth of the city. With a relatively small local population [around two million], Dubai’s growth has been heavily dependent upon attracting visitors from elsewhere.”

“It is therefore not surprising that many of the major mixed-use projects are leading with their entertainment components, as these form the major anchor responsible for attracting most visitors and investor demand to the wider project.”

The first phase will expand the mall by 1 million square feet, the fashion portfolio of the mall will be further strengthened, enhancing the city’s high-end retail offerings.

“Our strategy to create compelling new retail and lifestyle experiences also supports the city’s growth outlook of further strengthening its core economic sectors, including retail, tourism and hospitality. The current expansion will redefine Dubai’s retail sector, cementing its reputation as a global hub for the latest in fashion,” said Mohammad Al Abbar, Chairman of Emaar Properties, in a press release.

The mall saw traffic of over 65 million visitors in 2012, and a record 20 million visitors in the first three months of the year, the highest so far during a three-month period.

The Fashion Avenue in The Dubai Mall will add new and personalised flagship stores; The overall expansion will also bring in other high-end lifestyle and entertainment brands.

The new additions to The Dubai Mall are being implemented with minimal impact on the ongoing mall operations. Visitors will continue to have full access to the mall.

The Dubai Design District, announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is intended to develop the city's fashion, design and luxury sectors.

The development is to be situated next to the Business Bay area and is to be operated by Tecom Investments, part of Dubai Holding.

The district is to be a full service commercial hub for design industry-related organisations, brands and supporting enterprises within the value chain.

"It will feature a custom-built creative community that will encompass purpose-built commercial and retail facilities for established and emerging designers, design institutes, waterfront promenade, convention centre and event venues and related academic institutions," said a statement from the government's media office.

The location was chosen for its proximity to The Dubai Mall, the world's largest shopping centre, which attracted 65 million visitors last year and two international airports.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and Emirates chief executive Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum signed an agreement at the team’s Bernabeu Stadium in the Spanish capital, giving the Dubai carrier its fifth shirt sponsorship deal in European football. They also unveiled a new shirt design.

Emirates also sponsors the shirts of Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain, Hamburger SV and AC Milan. The compay also has a sponsorship deal with Greece’s Olympiacos that does not include shirts.

“Both of us are at the top of our game and we are very proud to be associated with the most successful football team in the world,” said Shaikh Ahmad.

Real Madrid is the world’s richest football club, with an annual turnover of 513 million euros (Dh 2.4 billion). It is home to the world’s most expensive player Cristiano Ronaldo, as well as Karim Benzema, Pepe and Luka Modric, all of whom attended the signing to display the new strip.

Emirates launched daily flights to Madrid in 2010 and and began sponsorship of Real in 2011 with a stadium presence. Emirates also flies daily to the home of Real Madrid’s main rivals, Barcelona.