The United Arab Emirates government approved a 2013 federal budget with expenditure of Dh44.6 billion ($12.1 billion) and no deficit, Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum said on Tuesday.

"There was a meeting of the Council of Ministers. We approved the draft budget for 2013 with total spending of Dh44.6 billion, without a deficit," Sheikh Mohammed, who is also Dubai's ruler, wrote on his official Twitter account.

"The government's plan over the coming three years is to spend Dh133 billion for strategic plan development," he also said.

The UAE federal budget accounts for only around 11 percent of overall fiscal spending in the UAE, with individual emirates accounting for the rest. – Reuters