Performance-audited urban governance for the simultaneous pursuit of all 17 Sustainable Development Goals
Drawing on Dubai's 2006–2026 experience, the paper argues that cities can simultaneously achieve all 17 Sustainable Development Goals by implementing a performance-audit governance framework that links targets to accountability and openness, provided specific conditions regarding labor, citizenship, and executive continuity are met.
Original paper licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This is an AI-generated explanation of the paper below. It is not written or endorsed by the authors. For technical accuracy, refer to the original paper. Read full disclaimer
Cities are often told to follow a strict order when building a better future: first, grow rich, and only later worry about the environment, social fairness, or strong institutions. This traditional view suggests that trying to solve every problem at once is too expensive and too difficult for a developing place. However, a new perspective challenges this idea, suggesting that a city might actually grow faster if it tackles all seventeen global sustainability goals simultaneously. The argument rests on a simple but powerful observation: when a city successfully manages to be green, fair, and innovative all at the same time, it becomes a magnet for talented people and investment, which in turn pays for the very systems that make it successful. This approach treats the breadth of a city's ambitions not as a tax on its growth, but as the engine that drives it.
The paper examines a specific case study to test this theory: Dubai, a city in the United Arab Emirates, looking at its progress from 2006 to 2026. The author, Jasim Mohamed, argues that Dubai has managed to govern all seventeen sustainability goals at once, not by waiting for wealth to accumulate, but by creating a unique system where openness and strict accountability work together. The city has built a non-oil economy that makes up more than 95 percent of its total income, while hosting a population from over 200 different nationalities who are not forced to give up their own cultures to live there. This model, which the author calls "intact-identity openness," allows people to arrive and thrive without having to melt into a single, uniform culture. Instead of a melting pot where everyone blends together, the city functions more like a kaleidoscope where distinct identities recombine without dissolving, creating a coherent whole from dense adjacency rather than fusion. However, the author notes that this same structural feature, which preserves identity without demanding assimilation, is also the model's sharpest normative limit, as it creates a system where belonging is practiced daily but never formalized for many residents, particularly low-wage workers.
To make this complex system work, Dubai employs a specific style of leadership the author terms "majlis governance." This draws on a traditional Arabian concept of hospitality, where the city acts as a host and residents are received as guests. The key difference is that this hospitality is a permanent rule, not a temporary favor. The city offers long-term visas and legal protections against discrimination without demanding that residents become citizens or change their identities. This approach has attracted a massive influx of skilled workers and wealthy individuals, creating a diverse and capable workforce. The author suggests that this diversity, when supported by fair rules, boosts productivity and problem-solving, creating a cycle where the city's success attracts more talent, which fuels further success.
The paper details how the city manages to keep track of seventeen different goals without falling into chaos. It uses a rigorous system of performance auditing, which acts like a constant check-up on the government's work. This system operates on three levels. First, there is continuous measurement where officials check if services are actually working as promised. Second, there is annual disclosure where the government publishes rankings of its own performance, naming both the best and the worst departments. This transparency is crucial because it creates pressure to improve; when a department is publicly identified as underperforming, its leadership is often replaced. Third, there is direct inspection by the top leadership, who conduct unannounced visits to ensure standards are met. This creates a loop where clear targets, deadlines, and consequences keep the entire system moving forward at a fast pace.
The results of this approach are visible in the city's economic and social data. Between 2006 and 2026, Dubai built a non-oil economy that exceeds 95 percent of its GDP and became a leading destination for foreign investment. In 2025, the country recorded 48.3 billion dollars in foreign direct investment, ranking ninth globally. It also became the top destination for migrating millionaires for two years in a row. The city's creative industries alone contributed 4.6 percent of its GDP and created over 175,000 jobs. While the city's overall score on a global sustainability index was 69.8 in 2025, placing it 80th, the author notes that this score lags behind the rapid building of institutions and that the gap is partly due to the city's large environmental footprint, which remains a significant challenge.
The author is careful to state that this is a proposal for how a city can grow, not a claim that the problem is fully solved. The paper offers six specific tests, or propositions, that other researchers can use to prove or disprove these ideas. For instance, it suggests that cities governing all goals at once should grow faster than those that do it step-by-step, and that cities allowing people to keep their own identities should attract more high-skilled migrants than those that require assimilation. The paper admits that this model has limits. It relies heavily on a strong, continuous executive leader and a wealthy starting point, which not every city possesses. It also faces serious criticism regarding the rights of low-wage migrant workers and the city's massive energy use, issues that the model has not yet fully resolved.
Ultimately, the paper argues that the way a city handles diversity and accountability is not just a nice thing to have after it gets rich; it is a fundamental tool for getting rich in the first place. By treating sustainability as a simultaneous pursuit rather than a sequential checklist, and by holding its own government accountable with transparent, public data, Dubai suggests a new path for urban development. The study does not claim this is the only way forward, but it provides a detailed blueprint for how a city can attempt to do everything at once, turning the challenge of managing complexity into a source of economic strength. The findings suggest that if other cities can adapt these mechanisms, they might find that the very act of being open, diverse, and accountable is what accelerates their growth.
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