The United Arab Emirates is keeping a stiff upper lip in the face of gloomy economic reports, saying it will continue with infrastructure investments despite the recent decline in international oil prices.

“When it comes to infrastructure such as hospitals, schools, roads, wherever that is needed, we have the capacity to finance it. None of that is going to be affected in the next four to five years,” Minister of Economy Sultan al-Mansouri said.

He made the statements after it was said that the government would cut or even halt spending on some projects because of the dramatic fall in oil prices.

The UAE depends on oil as its biggest source of income. Over the past several months, crude prices have fallen to levels not seen since 2009, impacting billions of dollars worth of investments for countries which mostly rely on oil as the main source of revenue.

Al-Mansouri said the UAE is prepared to use some of its financial reserves to bridge the gap between spending and income.

According to the minister, the building campaign would not be affected by the decline in oil prices “simply because the UAE has created a large and substantial reserve over the years".

“We have managed our budget over the years in a very effective way,” he said.

The country has several ambitious construction plans this year, most notably to expand the main international airport in Dubai.

The UAE has lately been hit by a string of gloomy economic outlooks and reports.

Earlier this month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said Abu Dhabi is set to post its first fiscal deficit since 2009.

Just last month, the IMF urged Persian Gulf States to cut public spending “over the medium term” this year due to low oil prices.

HDS/HB