Page 16 - Ministry of Economy - December 2017

Press Release

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Ministry of Economy heads 6 meeting of Global Innovation
Index Executive team

Abdullah Al Fan: ‘The team is shifting from data monitoring to

formulating policies for the sustainability of the UAE’s global
competitiveness in the field of innovation’

Abu Dhabi, December 14, 2017

The Executive Team of the Global Innovation Index operating under the UAE National
Agenda has held its sixth meeting at the Ministry of Economy’s Dubai HQ. The session

was led by H.E. Abdullah Sultan Al Fan Al Shams, head of the team, in the presence of
elite representatives from federal and local entities that are members of the team.

The group discussed the latest updates to the Global Innovation Index and available
development opportunities. They also reviewed the work methodology for the next phase

which will focus on formulating policies supporting an environment of innovation and the

sustainability of the country's competitiveness in this regard to help advance the national
target of becoming among the top 10 countries in the world by 2021.

The meeting emphasized the need to speed up several processes, namely those related to
the collection of expenditure data on education and scientific research in academic

institutions and the private sector as well as data on foreign direct investments (FDI) within
the country. The growth of the UAE’s imports and exports due to advanced technology and

the contribution of technology to the state’s total foreign trade was also discussed to

complete related initiatives and plans.

H.E. Alshamsi said that the Executive Team is currently more focused on the policy aspect

than the monitoring and data collection process. This is to keep abreast of international
developments and to enhance the competitiveness of the country regionally and globally