UAE ranks 9th in Global Competitiveness and leads the MENA region

The UAE leads the MENA region for the fourth year in a row in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2020. It is ranked number one globally in the female parliamentary representation index and 9th in the list of most competitive countries in the world.

The rankings were published by the World Competitiveness Centre of the World Institute for Management Development, IMD, in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In 2020, the UAE retained its place among the top ten competitive countries in the world. UAE is ahead of countries such as the United States, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Germany and the United Kingdom, as the only Arab country that managed to establish itself four years in a row in the Big Ten Club in the World Yearbook on Competitiveness, after entering the top ten in 2017. The remarkable achievement is despite the global pandemic and the challenges caused by it.

The United Arab Emirates ranked first in 23 indicators and sub-factors worldwide while ranking among the top five in 59 indicators worldwide and top ten in 106 indicators worldwide, out of 338 indicators covered by this year’s study.

UAE took the lead in 7 factors and gained an increase in 7 factors at the sub-factors stage, ranking 1st position in the labor market factor worldwide, and 5th position in the job factor globally, 6th place in the pricing factor. The UAE is also leading in other sub-factors, such as the socio-economic system, education and technology, health and environmental infrastructures, while retaining its position in two sub-factors, the Attributes and Values factor, which is second in the world and the Tax Policy factor, which is the third in the world.

Sheikha Manal bint Mohammed, President of the UAE Gender Balance Council, President of Dubai Women Establishment, and wife of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, congratulated UAE’s leadership for their role in this achievement.

“Gender balance was among the principles on which the UAE was founded nearly five decades ago, stemming from the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan’s belief that women are equal partners in achieving sustainable development. Today, we reap the fruits of this vision – which our leadership instilled through various legislations, initiatives, and programs – leading to the establishment of gender balance across all sectors.”

Commenting on the UAE’s performance, Abdullah Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority said, “Within the UAE2021 vision and in preparation for the Golden Jubilee, the UAE is moving forward with an ambitious strategy that anticipates the future, nurture a culture of excellence to be in the lead of world competitiveness at various levels. Thanks to the vision and guidance of the UAE’s leadership, the country managed since 2017 to join the top 10 competitive countries in this report, and to consolidate its well-deserved position among the top ten globally in the overall ranking and regional leadership. ”

Rapid changes Hanan Mansoor Ahli, Executive Director, Competitiveness Sector, said, “The annual change in the ranking of the top ten countries in the yearbook reflects the intensity of the competition between the leading countries in recent years. And thanks to the guidance and support of UAE’s leadership and continuous efforts by the government to enhance the country’s world competitiveness, the UAE has succeeded in solidifying its position among the top ten most competitive economies in the world.”

The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2020 is based on gathered questionnaires (33.33 percent) and country statistics and data (66.67 percent). The report focuses on four factors including Economic Performance, Government Efficiency, Business Efficiency and Infrastructure, in its country classification, each with 20 sub-factors covering 338 competitive indicators.