The UAE is set to accelerate its entrepreneurial landscape, aiming to boost the number of companies to over two million and nurture 10 unicorns by 2031, Minister of Economy and Tourism Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri announced.
The initiatives were highlighted during the launch of the national campaign, The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World.
Al Marri emphasized that startups and entrepreneurs form a cornerstone of the UAE’s economic growth, noting that roughly one million of the country’s 1.2 million companies are entrepreneur-owned, representing nearly 94% of the total. This underscores the critical role of entrepreneurs in strengthening the national economy.
The minister highlighted that small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) already contribute 63.5% to the non-oil GDP and make up 95% of all companies operating across UAE markets. The campaign aims to provide an enabling environment for youth to launch and scale businesses, fostering innovation and expansion.
Supporting these goals, the UAE has developed comprehensive strategies covering economic clusters, food security, innovation, intellectual property protection, and economic openness through Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements. Al Marri noted that both federal and local infrastructures are fully prepared to sustain the growth of startups.
With around five unicorns already emerging from the UAE, the government aims to see this number double in the next decade, reflecting its commitment to positioning the nation as a global hub for entrepreneurship and innovation.
News Source: Emirates News Agency
