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DATA FOR A BETTER FUTURE
The U.A.E. will participate with a large government delegation in the work of the "High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development", organized by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs at its headquarters in New York from July 8 to 17. The forum, which is being held this year under the theme "Promoting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Eradicating Poverty in Times of Multiple Crises: Effectively Implementing Sustainable, Resilient and Innovative Solutions", with the participation and attendance of more than 1,000 delegates and delegates from various governments of the world and international organizations, aims to promote sustainable development, follow up global efforts in this regard, anticipate current and emerging challenges and innovate solutions to them, by exchanging knowledge on the best experiences and expertise, coordinating and evaluating policies and supporting global efforts to accelerate the achievement of the goals Sustainable development for the good of societies. The UAE delegation will participate in key working sessions, multiple seminars and a series of bilateral meetings, during which it will present the UAE’s pioneering experiences and its distinguished model in achieving the path of sustainable development, which succeeded in bringing together Development initiatives, financing programs, development assistance and strategic partnerships with countries and governments of the world and international organizations and highlighting their distinguished efforts in supporting the transformation of the 17 basic goals set by the United Nations to reach an effective system for sustainable global development by the end of the current decade. The UAE delegation to the High-Level Political Forum includes a number of government officials, representatives of the National Committee for Sustainable Development Goals, the Government Knowledge Exchange Office, the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Center at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Masdar, the Emirates Red Crescent Authority, and the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, in coordination with the Permanent Mission of the UAE to the United Nations. The UAE government delegation will hold a series of bilateral meetings with leaders, political officials and experts from international organizations, institutions and global working groups that support societies and countries to achieve the sustainable development goals, and the delegation will also present a range of initiatives, programs and success stories implemented by UAE entities in various fields of sustainable development around the world. U.A.E A key supporter of the development goals Abdullah Nasser Lootah, Assistant Minister of Cabinet Affairs for Knowledge Exchange and Competitiveness, stressed that the UAE, under the directives of its wise leadership, has established its leading position on the world map as a key partner and key international supporter to achieve the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations until 2030, and that its tireless participation in the forum in the forum reflects its keenness to exchange knowledge and share successful experiences and best practices with world governments and international organizations to improve the lives of peoples and societies. Lootah added that the UAE adopts the approach of achieving sustainable development as a humanitarian mission to improve its society and the societies of the world and enhance human life, and invests great efforts in this in cooperation with various countries of the world, international organizations, and institutions concerned with supporting development, and works to launch qualitative initiatives and programs and provide funding contributions and humanitarian assistance in order to reach the sustainable development goals by the end of the current decade, based on the values of cooperation, partnership, exchange of knowledge, sharing best practices and distinguished experiences, providing support and working on Laying the foundations for impactful institutional action, It achieves sustainable and inclusive development, improves education and health care, promotes equal opportunities, conserves natural resources and protects the environment for future generations." Abdullah Lootah said: "The participation of the UAE government delegation in the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainability this year aims to strengthen the UAE’s international partnerships in the field of sustainable development, which is in line with the seventeenth goal of the Sustainable Development Goals, which is to strengthen and activate global partnerships between governments, countries and communities to achieve sustainable development. Continuous regulatory frameworks, policies and legislation, as well as partnerships and the use of technology, especially the use of artificial intelligence, and the activation of data in the service of achieving inclusive global sustainable development that creates opportunities and protects the planet’s resources." United Nations High-level Political Forum The High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development is the main platform of the United Nations. On sustainable development issues. Since its inception in 2012, it has played a pivotal role in following up and reviewing what has been implemented at the country level in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This edition of the International Forum is held under the theme "Promoting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Eradicating Poverty in Times of Multiple Crises: Effectively Implementing Sustainable, Resilient and Innovative Solutions". Throughout the 8-17 July 2024 edition, delegates participating in this year’s edition of the Forum will work on in-depth revisions of five of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Goal 1 to eradicate poverty in all its forms everywhere, Goal 2 to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture, Goal 13 to support climate action and call for urgent action to combat climate change and its repercussions, and Goal 16 to promote peaceful and inclusive societies to achieve development. Goal 17, which focuses on global partnerships to promote the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Proactive meeting of the National Committee for Sustainable Development Goals The National Committee for Sustainable Development Goals preceded the participation of the UAE government delegation in the work of the United Nations High-Level Political Forum, with a preparatory meeting for the members of the Committee, before the delegation’s departure to New York, during which it discussed the agenda and agenda of the UAE’s participation in the forum, reviewed the UAE’s performance in the reports of indicators of sustainable development goals, and the data that has been provided and improved, as well as a number of files related to the work of the Committee. The meeting reviewed the report of the Sustainable Development Goals Index issued by the Sustainable Development Solutions Network for the year 2024, pointing to the performance of the UAE, which ranked 70th globally, 3rd regionally and Arably, and first in the Gulf, reflecting the country’s commitment to achieving the goals and strengthening its position globally. The meeting discussed plans, workshops and initiatives that are being implemented to enhance the quality of data and achieve progress in goals, and challenges in data collection, including the need to review data with international organizations, remove some indicators that do not apply to the UAE, and formulate indicators in line with the laws of the country. Coordination and cooperation between government and private entities to ensure the collection of consistent and analyzable data in a uniform manner. The meeting was attended by Abdul Allah Lootah, Assistant Minister of Cabinet Affairs for Competitiveness and Knowledge Exchange and Chairman of the National Committee for Sustainable Development Goals, Rashid Mohamed Al Hemeiri, Director of the Development and International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Hussein Abdul Rahman Al Rand, Assistant Undersecretary for the Public Health Sector at the Ministry of Health and Prevention, Hassan Obaid Al Muhairi, Assistant Undersecretary for the Policies and Economic Studies Sector at the Ministry of Education, Nasser Ismail, Assistant Undersecretary for Social Welfare Affairs at the Ministry of Community Development, Maria Hanif Al Qassim. Assistant Undersecretary for Economic Policies and Studies Sector at the Ministry of Economy, Eng. Alia Abdul Rahim Al Harmoodi, Assistant Undersecretary for Sustainable Communities Sector at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Eng. Nawal Yusuf Al Hinai, Director of the Future Energy Department at the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, Hanan Ahli, Director of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Center at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, and Mohammed Ahli, Executive Director of the Statistics and Data Science Sector At the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Center.
The UAE Ambassador in Washington Acknowledges FCSA’s efforts Locally and Regionally
FCSA Highly Values the Role of the UAE Diplomatic Mission in Washington in Supporting the State’s Competitiveness Efforts in Global Reports and Indicators.
New York, Dubai, 24 March 2019:
H.E. Youssef Al Otaiba, the UAE Ambassador in Washington, received H.E. Hanan Ahli, the Executive Director of the Competitiveness Sector in the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority (FCSA), and the head of the UAE delegation visiting Washington D.C. to meet several representatives of the international institutions and organizations.
The UAE Ambassador welcomed the visiting delegation and highly commended FCSA’s efforts channeled to improve the performance of the UAE in the reports and indicators of global competitiveness and to support statistics and data sector.
H.E. the Ambassador discussed with the delegation different methods to boost and support the efforts of the UAE at the global level in all areas under the responsibility of the Authority. Al Otaiba praised the spirit of joint cooperation and action between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and the UAE’s diplomatic missions with the federal and local government authorities.
HE acknowledge the ongoing cooperation to serve the best interests of the UAEand enhancing international standing by achieving the vision of the wise leadership to realize the national agenda and the UAE Vision2071.
During the meeting, the delegation highlighted the achievements of FCSA and its partners of federal and local government institutions, in particular, the members of the executive teams concerned with the competitiveness reports, such as the Ease of Doing Business Report issued by World Bank.
A number of records were also tackled, such as hosting the world’s most important activities and events related to the statistics and data sector by the State. This included hosting the second session of the United Nations World Data Forum in October 2018 by the UAE, as an additional opportunity to meet with stakeholders and focus on how to harness data power to serve humanity.
UAE Participation in the 50th Annual Meeting of the International Statistical Commission
- Nusseibeh: Data plays a vital role in enhancing the reputation of the UAE
- Lootah: The Permanent Mission is making every effort in support of the visiting delegations
Dubai, March 9, 2019
The UAE official delegation participating in the 50th Annual Meeting of the International Statistical Commission headed by H.E. Abdulla Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Federal Authority for Competitiveness and Statistics (FCSA), paid a courtesy visit to the UAE Permanent Mission to UN in New York.
The delegation was received by HE Ms. Lana Zaki Nusseibeh, the UAE Permanent Representative to the UN. During the meeting, they discussed the role of national statistical centers in providing, making available and disseminating data, in addition to other several topics and issues of mutual interest.
H.E. Lana Nusseibeh underlined the importance of the role of data in achieving sustainable development. She stated: “Indeed, the participation of the UAE delegation in the meetings of the UN International Statistical Committee and exhibiting UAE’s efforts in this field will contribute in elevating the reputation of our dearest homeland as one of the most committed countries in consolidating the international partnership and cooperation and supporting the global sustainable development goals through innovation, global partnerships, modern technologies, artificial intelligence and other sectors that shape the future of UAE and the role of UAE future generations will play.”
H.E. Lana Nusseibeh hailed the diligent and dedicated efforts of the delegation for their contributions to the progress of UAE rank in one of the most critical global competitiveness reports and indicators.
The UAE delegation participating in the International Statistical Commission includes a number of the senior officials of the statistics and data centers in the UAE.
In his turn, H.E. Abdullah Naser Lootah, Director-General of FCSA expressed his gratitude for the outstanding role played by the Permanent Mission of UAE to UN, especially in supporting the State delegations in their official missions.
He said: “The Permanent Mission of the State at the United Nations has always been a pioneer in facilitating the tasks of official missions from the UAE with all efforts to overcome any obstacles which may be faced by any of the members of the delegation.”
The UAE delegation is participating intensely in this year’s annual meetings of the United Nations Statistical Committee, following the hosting of the United Nations World Data Forum by the State at its second session held in Dubai in October last year. The State’s hosting of this forum has a tangible impact on data experts, statistics and national competencies in the country as a result of the exchange of information, experiences and the best success stories of data and statistics.
H.E. Abdullah Nasser Lootah highlighted , during his meetings with all directors of statistics centers in the world participating in the meetings of the Statistical Committee, the importance of putting the “Dubai Declaration” into effect so that the countries of the world can continue their march towards achieving SDGs agenda in 2030.”
At the end of the meeting, H.E. Lana Nusseibeh thanked the delegation of the FCSA for visiting the headquarters of the Permanent Mission in New York and wished them success in their meetings at the fiftieth session of the International Statistical Commission in New York.
Forecasting the Vision of the Youth Role in Harnessing Future Technologies
Dubai, UAE- 28th February 2019:
As part of plan to involve young people in the activities of the Emirates Innovation Month 2019, the Federal Authority for Competitiveness and Statistics (FCSA) organized a brainstorming session for young people at the Arab Youth Center in Dubai on 27 February 2019.
The brainstorming session was conceptualized to encourage the ideation of new outputs and ideas which center the main themes of the national strategy of the 4th Industrial Revolution. This was conducted in accordance with the aspirations of youth and in line with the efforts exerted by the FCSA and its partners to achieve the goals of the National Agenda and the vision of the UAE 2021.
More than 40 young talented Emiratis attended the brainstorming session from various sectors concerned with the national strategy of the 4th Industrial Revolution. The themes tackled during the session were on genetics and health care through robotics, smart and interactive cities, water and food future security, economic security and digital transaction technologies, . Topics such asestablishing a global center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, building an integrated and secure data environment and developing specialized talent and entrepreneurs were also tackled.
H.E. Abdullah Lootah, the Director-General of the FCSA, applauded this unique initiative and stressed that this initiative was developed to be part of the activities of the Emirates’ month for innovation, based on the guidance of the wise leadership to encourage the role of the youth for the the future.
“Youth has a central role in the UAE’s quest to achieve its vision of being the best country in the world by 2071, the centennial of founding the UAE. TheUAE has always been proactive in launching initiatives and programs that harness the creative energies of young people and transform their passion towards technology, sustainability, obtaining knowledge, new sciences and their applications to real initiatives and programs to serve the country and drive progress.” Lootah Said.
H.E. Saeed Mohammed Al-Nathri, the Director-General of the Federal Youth Foundation, visited the brainstorming workshop and praised the efforts of FCSA in providing outstanding opportunities for young people and enabling them to present their creations that support the achievement of the goals of the national agenda. He has also thanked the team of FCSA for organizing and managing the brainstorming session.
Participants were divided into seven teams. They were selected among those who have knowledge and cognizance of this subject and among those entities, which support our national strategy. Entitiesincluded the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Infrastructure Development, the Central Bank and a number of universities, such as UAE University, Khalifa University, University of Sharjah, American University of Sharjah, Higher Colleges of Technology, Dubai Health Authority Board, Future Economic Youth Council, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), Dubai Smart, Abu Dhabi Police, Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company (DU), ADNOC, Statistics Center-Abu Dhabi, General Authority of Civil Aviation, Department of Economic Development in Dubai and others.
At the end of the session, each of the seven teams reached a set of ideas on the key theme they worked on. The FCSA experts, in cooperation with other concerned parties, evaluated proposals and presented the best ones to the relevant officials in each body.
Malik Al Madani, the Director of Strategic and Future Department and CEO of Innovation at the FCSA, concluded the session by saying: “ FCSA is keen to take advantage of the opportunities and harness them to empower young people. The Emirates Innovation Month is no exception to this rule. Therefore, we have responded promptly to various sectors to organize interactive session with young people and involved them in presenting the ideas that the young generation can implement.”
An Innovative Model for Exploring the Future of Institutional Government Action
- Lootah: This Race Combines Exploring the Future and Turning the Culture of Innovation into Sustainable Work
- Al Madani: The Core Theme of the Race to the Future is To Be A Better Model Tomorrow Than Today
Dubai, UAE- 25 February 2019:
As part of the plan adopted by the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Authority (FCSA) for the UAE Innovation Month of 2019, the FCSA innovation team organized a knowledge session on the “Race to the Future” initiative, which aims to develop a conception on how the shape and work and procedures mechanism of the Authority will be in the medium future, namely, after 6 to 10 years from today.
On this occasion, Abdulla Lootah, the Director-General of the FCSA, said: “This race combines exploring the future and turning the culture of innovation into sustainable work within institutional government work.”
He added: “Every effort by FCSA and it’s employeessee the impact on the future, and this in itself is a positive catalyst to draw and shape the future of the FCSA since today by its experts and staff. They put yesterday’s and today’s experience to build a prosperous and sustainable future for the Authority, the children of the homeland and its residents.”
Malik Al Madani, the Director of Strategic and Future Department and CEO of Innovation, has led the session and said: “Tomorrow will be better than today. This is the essence of this innovative initiative. However, its mold is the race, for its positive factors in motivation and joint action for Achieving success by teams competing among themselves and with themselves for the future of the Authority.”
Malik Al Madani explained: “The race launches in the innovation month of each year for five weeks and aims to explore the future of the Authority and its work method during the medium-term future, i.e., during the next 6 to 10 years. This is the first stop of Emirates centennial 2071, by building internal capabilities in the field of strategic planning and looking ahead, by creating an innovative tool for dealing with future, and ensuring readiness for global leadership, by relying on fostering a culture of institutional leadership and continuous improvement initiatives.”
The idea of the race is based on a previous initiative launched last year by the Authority in the name of the 50×50 Competitiveness Race, which aimed to devise a 50-speed accelerator program for the most critical competitive indicators and find solutions for them within 50 working days, within a comprehensive framework that sets the indicators of high sensitivity and significant importance which affect various sectors within the priorities of some federal and local government agencies.
UAE maintains its ranking in the top ten for the fourth year in a row
June 16th, 2020 – Dubai, United Arab Emirates:
For the fourth year in row, the United Arab Emirates is leading the MENA region in the IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2020, issued by the WCC (World Competitiveness Center) of the World Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, Switzerland, which puts the UAE at 9th place in the world among the most competitive countries in the world.
The UAE maintained its position among the top ten competitive countries in the world in 2020, ahead of countries such as the United States, Ireland, Finland, Luxembourg, Germany, and the United Kingdom, to be the only Arab country that succeeded in asserting itself in the Big Ten Club in the World Competitiveness Yearbook for 4 years in a row, since joining the top ten in 2017, despite the challenges of COVID-19 pandemic that influenced the 2020 edition.
According to the results of the report, the United Arab Emirates ranked first globally in 23 indicators and sub-factors, while it ranked among the top five globally in 59 indicators and in top ten globally in 106 indicators, out of 338 indicators covered by the report this year.
The IMD World competitiveness yearbook 2020relies on questionnaires collected (33.33%) and on statistics and data provided by countries (66.67%). The report focuses in its classification of the countries on four factors (Economic Performance, Government Efficiency, Business Efficiency and Infrastructure) with 20 sub-factors each that cover 338 competitive indicators in various economic, financial, legislative, management and social fields, along with some new indicators added in this year’s edition of the yearbook. Some of the new additions reflect the importance of achieving sustainable development objectives, and provide a vision of the economy’s position with respect to the various sustainable objectives that must be met within ten years, such as education, environment, empowerment, ageing and health.
UAE takes the lead in 7 factors (The UAE achieves great leaps in 7 factors)
At the sub-factors level, the UAE achieved an improvement in 7 factors, ranking at 1st place globally in the Labor Market factor, and the 5th globally in the Employment Factor, the 6th place in the Pricing Factor. The UAE is also advancing in other sub-factors, such as the social framework, education, and technology, health and the environment infrastructures, while maintaining its rank unchanged in two sub-factors, the factor of Attributes and Values (second in the world) and the factor of Tax Policy (third in the world).
Commenting on the UAE’s performance in this year’s IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook, His Excellency 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 anticipate 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.”
Fourth in the world in Economic Performance despite the global pandemic
Despite the emergency circumstances that the whole world is going through because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the UAE has achieved a balanced performance in the factors of the report, as it moved forward three places in the Economic Performance factor, with the Netherlands topping the global ranking, followed by The United States and Singapore, while the UAE ranked 4th in the world, moving forward three places comparing to last year’s report, ahead of countries such as Germany, China, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Canada, Japan and others.
UAE is leading the world in 23 indicators
The UAE ranked first globally in 23 indicators included in the report within its factors and sub-indicators. In addition, the UAE ranked first globally in the indicators: Bureaucracy Absence, Immigration Laws, Redundancy Costs, low Central Government Foreign Debt, Tax Evasion, Collected Personal Income Tax (%), Collected Indirect Tax Revenues (%), Real Personal Taxes, and the percentage of Females in Parliament, all of which are indicators included in the factor of the Government Efficiency and its sub-factors.
Furthermore, the country ranked first globally in many other indicators such as Labor Force out of the total population, Working Hours, Competent Senior Managers, Industrial Disputes and Foreign Labor Force, all of which are included in Business Efficiency factor. The UAE once again topped the ranks globally in indicators such as Dependency Ratio, Public-Private Partnership and Environmental Laws within the factor of infrastructure and its sub-factors.
SDGs Talk with HE Maitha Al Shamsi, Minister of State
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