The UAE cabinet has approved a zero-deficit federal budget for the next three years (2019-21) with spending of AED180bn ($49bn).

The 2019 budget was unveiled with a total spending of AED60.3bn, a 17 per cent increase on the planned spending for 2018.

"I have chaired today a cabinet meeting, during which we approved the federal budget of AED180bn for the next three years," said UAE Vice-President, Prime Minister and Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum on his official Twitter account. "Fifty-nine per cent of the budget will go to education and social development," he added.

The cabinet said the focus of the spending for 2019 will be directly linked to citizens’ well-being, health and education. The planned expenditure includes 42.3 per cent for community development, 17 per cent for education development and 7.3 per cent for healthcare services.

The budget for 2018 was AED51.4bn, which was a 5.6 per cent increase on the budget for 2017.