Historically, Al Jaddaf, which literally means The Rower, was used as a dhow building area and is also the location of the Dubai Ship Docking Yard (Jadaf).

[3] New developments in the area include Dubai Culture Village (aka Jaddaf Waterfront), a zoned community dedicated to visual, performing and literary arts, and the second phase of Dubai Healthcare City.

As of 2017, there is a large dhow being constructed in the area, intended to break the world record for size currently held by Kuwait.

[6] It covers an area of around three million square metres (32,000,000 sq ft) and includes cultural and exhibition centres, a dockside development, and a harbour.

Projects include a Sculpture Park, the D1 tower (based on the Q1 building on the Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia), Manazel Al Khor, and Palazzo Versace Dubai.