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UAE-based firm Majid Al-Futtaim (MAF) has announced a AED5bn ($1.4bn) investment to upgrade Dubai's Mall of the Emirates with new retail, dining, wellness and entertainment facilities.

According to an official statement, the 20,000-square-metre expansion will add 100 new stores.

The statement added that over AED1.1bn has already been allocated to undertake major enhancements that are currently under way, including a new wellness club, a cultural hub, a dining precinct and infrastructure upgrades.

The new assets include a wellness club called Seven at Kempinski Hotel Mall of the Emirates and a cultural hub called New Covent Garden, which will be developed with Dubai Performing Arts Academy.

New Covent Garden is due to open this year and will include a 600-seat theatre.

A new dining precinct will also be added to the mall, which will open in 2027. 

The client will also add four new entertainment concepts, including enhanced Vox cinemas, slated to launch by 2026.

The investment also includes a complete revamp of the mall's west end, with infrastructure upgrades already under way. 

In October last year, MEED reported that Beijing-headquartered construction firm China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) had commenced the construction works on a bridge that serves traffic going into the mall.

The single-lane bridge, for traffic coming from the direction of Jebel Ali on Sheikh Zayed Road, provides direct access to the mall's car park.

The project scope covers the construction of a 300-metre-long bridge and the widening of the current ramp at the Umm Suqeim intersection.

The works also include upgrading 2.5 kilometres of roads around the mall, three intersections and the bus station at the Mall of the Emirates metro station, as well as upgrading the street next to the Kempinski hotel from one-way to two-way and improving pedestrian and cycling lanes.

The project is being developed by Dubai’s Roads & Transport Authority (RTA).

MEED’s May 2025 report on the UAE includes:

> GOVERNMENT & ECONOMY: UAE looks to economic longevity
> BANKING: UAE banks dig in for new era
> UPSTREAM: Adnoc in cruise control with oil and gas targets
> DOWNSTREAM: Abu Dhabi chemicals sector sees relentless growth
> POWER: AI accelerates UAE power generation projects sector
> CONSTRUCTION: Dubai construction continues to lead region
> TRANSPORT: UAE accelerates its $60bn transport push