UAE- The National Innovation Strategy

Innovation is the key that unlocks the potentiality and stability of business in this dynamic and competitive business environment. On a competitive edge, the concept of innovation has been widely accepted and implemented by every possible business sector. Located in the Middle East Region, the United Arab Emirates is recognized as one of the most transformational business grounds in the world, attracting millions of foreign expats worldwide. Whether a businessperson is looking to establish its business roots or to expand an established business, the UAE serves to be a ground for all. To embrace disruptive innovation and enhance the economic growth, the ruler of UAE, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has come up with a National Innovation Strategy that provokes investors to come forward and incorporate a business in the UAE.  This treatise will cover the insights of the Innovation Strategy built to leverage the growth of your company exceptionally well.

Innovative Measures in the UAE

Back in 2014, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum has launched the National Innovation Strategy to transform UAE as one of the most innovative nations within a span of seven years. Following the footsteps, the Government has announced the year 2015 as the “Year of Innovation”. A new set of laws were designed by the TECOM Free Zone for innovation-based companies who can find a roof in Dubai Internet City and Dubai Design District. Down the line, the innovation strategies have been adopted by different business sectors to speed-up the growth.

The SME’s are considered to be the backbone of any economy. The innovation strategy initiated by the Government has opened new doors for the SME’s as well as for established business entities to build up innovative models to boost their business potential and grow exponentially. Being focused on leveraging the business opportunities in the UAE, the upcoming Expo 2020 is expected to be a ground of collaborations. Let’s have a look.

Expo 2020

Initiated by the Government of the UAE, Expo 2020 turns out to be an event that will be held for a period of six months. Each day is expected to pave out international routes for business establishments, benchmarks and collaborations. The pavilion sets a ground for 192 countries that would feature their narratives and will be providing a world-class experience to its visitors. According to a report, the event would drive the UAE’s economy at its peak, generating a direct revenue of $24.2 Billion along with 2,77,000 job opportunities for small, medium and large-sized organizations. The next move to embrace economic growth is Vision 2021.

The National Strategy-Vision 2021

To get recognized as one of the world’s most innovative nations of the world, Vision 2021 has been built by the Government of Emirates. The primary focus embraces three pillars that include:

1.Creating an Innovation-Based Environment

Providing the right environment helps to carry out the projects in a much better way. Keeping this in mind, the Government of Emirates is looking forward to creating a new environment in all the possible domains to excel in the innovative plans built. Emphasizing more on this, they look forward to creating an regulatory framework that would:

1. Ease the legal proceedings

2. Promote entrepreneurship incubators

3. Set high-class infrastructure for technology promoting innovation

4. Proceed with innovative funding options and develop relevant laws

2. To Nurture and Build Innovation Champions

The next phase focuses on nurturing and building creative minds that will be responsible enough to carry-forward the innovative footsteps on a later part. Coming on to implementation, the innovative study culture focuses on attracting the best talents in the world. To infuse the key of innovation at an early stage, the Government is taking multiple steps to built innovative institutions and companies, which will be targeted to different business sectors penetrating change in each of them.

The Government stands as the voice of a nation that has got a great convincing power when it comes to dealing with the public. The UAE Government is taking multiple actions to infuse innovation in the steps taken to become a global pioneer.

3.To Focus on Different Business Sectors

Apart from the aforementioned areas, the Government of Emirates focuses on individual sectors to infuse technology and innovation to enhance each of them and enhance business opportunities. The priority sectors include:

4.Transportation

One of the most promising business areas of the nation, transportation plays a prominent role in building the economy. Be it roadways, airways or waterways, the region has got robust network connectivity. The airways in UAE carries out its operations across 75 international airports. Moving on to the waterways, it manages 65 seaports across six continents. The Government is taking multiple strategies to uplift the transportation sector by infusing innovation into it. By 2030, the Government aims at automating 25 per cent of the transport that would cut down the costs by 44 per cent, saving a count of AED 900 million a year.

This strategy fetches out more business opportunities for business investors looking forward to investing in the transportation business in Dubai.  The opportunities will turn out to be double in number as high-end technology and Artificial Intelligence will back it. On the other hand, there exist possibilities for individuals to work as a tour guide, for which they initially need to obtain a Dubai Tour Guide License.

5.Space

The nation is nowhere behind when it comes to the Aerospace Sector. The developed countries of the world are deeply involved in acquiring innovative techniques in space research. When it comes to the United Arab Emirates, the region has invested a total amount of AED 20 Billion in space technologies. The nation is looking forward to sending the first Arabic-Islamic unmanned Probe to Mars by 2021. Moreover, the Government has taken a call to build the largest space centre of the MENA Region in Abu Dhabi.

Considering all the future possibilities, the National Innovation Agency has taken a step to promote the Space Innovation building out ways for industries looking forward to settling and develop satellite communication technologies.

6.Technology

Technology has become a lifeline for every individual in today’s world. Be it personal or professional front; the influence of technology has changed the entire lifestyle of an individual. Moreover, it has brought a massive transformation in the way businesses take place. Free Zones like Dubai Internet City (DIC) has been continuously grabbing foreign investors and owners who want to establish a company dealing with technology. Recently Abu Dhabi has got its first Artificial Intelligence News Anchor.

It can be stated that the nation has been aiming towards becoming the world’s famous AI and Tech-hub. Investing in Technology sector in Dubai turns out to be a profitable option for business investors, and the National Innovation Strategy takes the step of promoting the various opportunities regarding the tech sector.

7.Education

Education is the foundation of an economy.  It paves out numerous ways for a nation’s growth and future progress. The Government of UAE is building grounds for a remarkable education system that would be the first step regarding massive transformation. To promote the number of educational institutions in Dubai, the region has specific grounds like Dubai Academic City (DAC), Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV) that helps educational institutions to come forward and establish their educational centres. These regions are widely chosen by investors who plan to invest in the education sector in the UAE.

8.Health

The health sector turns out to be one of the booming business sectors in the UAE. The Government has taken adequate measures to infuse technology in the same. The medical sector in the UAE has also boosted the Medical Tourism to a great extent. Free Zones like DuBiotech (Dubai Biotechnology and Research Park) provides an ultimate platform for companies to come forward and set up a business dealing in the healthcare and medicine sector.

The Government is aiming to develop the pharma and biotechnology industry by enhancing medical research and usage of advanced technologies like robotic surgery and telemedicine techniques. If you are looking for a business to invest in the health sector, the UAE is the best platform.

9.Water

We all know that the scarcity of water has become one of the global threats that need immediate attention. To solve out the issue, the Emirati Government has accepted it as a challenge and have uncovered techniques to figure out sustainable solutions for the same using solar energy. To feature and promote the strategies the National Innovation Strategy has taken a step forward to create awareness and enhance water production to meet the needs. At the same time, it opens up many doors for start-ups, medium and large-scale organizations to start a business in Dubai, dealing in the same sector. 

10.Renewable and Clean Energy

The demand for energy has been continuously increasing in the worldwide market, but the overall supply is comparatively less. This becomes an alarming call that the world needs to look into it and innovate solutions for the same. When it comes to the UAE, the Government has taken multiple projects like Masdar, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, and the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, which will build a ground for global innovation.

It can be seen that the UAE is on the edge of transforming itself to be game-changer. The continuous efforts by the Government have contributed a lot in transforming the UAE from ‘Land of Desert’ to ‘Land of Business’. The opportunities for business establishments are humongous and can cater to all priority sectors. The exciting point is that even if an investor starts a small-scale business, it takes less time to reach the next level.

Commitbiz is here to help you in the business setup process as an experienced business consultant who is well-versed with the legal proceedings and business-establishment processes in UAE so that you can focus more on the core business activities.

Being a premier business consultant, our business experts take the responsibility of understanding your business and cater to tailor-made solutions accordingly. To have a word with our experts, do contact us-we’d be glad to assist.