The UAE has affirmed its position as a leading start-up hub in the region, owing to its attractive investment environment, flexible business frameworks, and legislation that prioritizes innovation.
According to the latest reports from international institutions, the country’s ongoing efforts to create a favorable investment ecosystem for innovation have positioned it as a leader in global indicators related to start-ups, which has in turn positively impacted its ranking in global competitiveness indices, as reported by state news agency WAM.
Citing recent figures from Statista, the UAE has emerged as the top start-up incubator among GCC countries. With over 5,600 start-up companies registered across the country by the second quarter of this year, the data also highlights that the UAE leads the region in the number of fintech start-ups, which currently totals 550.
Meanwhile, a report by Startup Genome said that the emirates of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah have emerged as the “fastest-growing start-up ecosystems in the region” due to their proactive and incentivizing environment in key sectors.
Between the second half of 2021 and the end of 2023, Abu Dhabi recorded a value of $4.2 billion, solidifying its position as the fastest-growing start-up ecosystem in the Middle East and North Africa.
Dubai, on the other hand, has strengthened its leadership in fostering ecosystems that support start-up growth, ranking at the top of both global and regional start-up ecosystem valuations.
WAM stated that the emirate ranked first in the GCC and second in the region, achieving an ecosystem value of over $23 billion by end-2023, according to Startup Genome.
In addition, Sharjah has contributed to the UAE’s global start-up competitiveness and growth by hosting approximately 60,000 start-up firms across its six free zones and 33 industrial zones.
By the end of 2023, the emirate’s start-up ecosystem reached $424 million, with early-stage funding totalling $39 million.
