ABU DHABI, Sept 24: The economy of oil-rich Abu Dhabi is expected to expand by 3.9 per cent in 2012, the emirate’s Department of Economic Development said on Monday, revising an earlier forecast for five per cent growth.

The department announced the figure in its “Economic Horizons of Abu Dhabi 2012-2016” which also foresaw an increased pace of growth of 5.7 per cent annually between 2013 and 2016.

It also forecast growth of 5.5 per cent this year in the non-oil sector of the emirate which sits on almost all the oil wealth of the United Arab Emirates.

“Non-oil sectors will drive the growth in the future,” said the department’s undersecretary, Mohammad Abdullah.

Abdullah had said last year that the economy of Abu Dhabi was expected to grow by 4.5 per cent in 2011 and five per cent in 2012.—AFP