Dubai, July 17 : In a bid to enter the race to develop space technology, the United Arab Emirates has launched a project to send an unmanned spaceship to Mars by 2021 which will go down in history as the first space mission from the Arab world.

With a view to coincide the journey with the 50th anniversary of UAE's formation, a new space agency will be created to supervise the mission, Gulf News reported.

With this mission, UAE will be one of the nine privileged countries in possession of the space programme to explore Mars.

The report quoted President Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan as hailing the moment as the Islamic world's entry into the realm of space exploration. He also added that space technology will be used in enhancing the country's development plans.

The project is crucial to the Gulf state because it will establish itself as an important component of the country's economy in the years to come. (ANI)