“Higher Education” sets a national road map for health education programs

The Advisory Committee for Higher Education and Future Skills held its second meeting during the year 2025, headed by the Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation and the Acting Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Awar, at the headquarters of the Mohammed bin Rashid University of Medicine and Health Sciences, and in the presence of committee members who are representatives of higher education institutions and vital economic sectors in the country, during which it was announced the formation of a working group to prepare a national road map for health education programmes.

During the meeting, the formation of three new working groups was announced: With the aim of covering more vital and future sectors, it includes: “a working group for developing legal competencies, a working group for drone skills, and a working group for enhancing national competencies in the energy, renewable energy, and water sectors.”

With this announcement, the total number of working groups affiliated with the Advisory Committee for Higher Education and Future Skills becomes eight groups, as the committee had announced in its first meeting the formation of five groups, whose membership includes an elite of academic and industrial leaders in the country, namely: “the health sciences group concerned with health education and training programs and the health workforce, the group for employing artificial intelligence techniques in higher education, the group for partnership between economic sectors in the labor market and higher education institutions, the group for the future of jobs and skills in the labor market, in addition to the group of supply and demand for the workforce in public and higher education.”

Dr. Abdul Rahman Al Awar said: “We are keen to ensure that the higher education system in the country is more integrated and connected to national priorities and the needs of the future labor market, so that universities and research centers are an active partner in advancing sustainable development. Hence the importance of the Advisory Committee for Higher Education and Future Skills emerges, as it provides a model for planning and participatory work that brings together experts, academics and economic leaders, with the aim of transforming ideas into initiatives and executive programs that enhance the readiness of human capital for the future.”

Al Awar stressed that the advisory committee provides a leading national platform that anticipates the skills of the future and supports integration and coordination between the higher education sector and various economic sectors in the country. He pointed out that the formation of the new working groups represents an important step within the efforts of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research to build a comprehensive national network linking universities with scientific research centers and the industrial and business sectors. These groups also serve the future directions of the UAE government and enhance its leadership and global competitiveness.

Initiatives and forums
The meeting reviewed a number of initiatives and projects led by the working groups, the most prominent of which are: “Developing an ethical framework for using artificial intelligence in higher education efficiently and responsibly, and initiatives to include future skills within educational programs to ensure that they meet the growing needs of the labor market, in addition to efforts to prepare a national road map for health education programs, which includes developing curricula and academic programs, enhancing clinical training, and employing innovations and modern technologies to improve health care services.”

It is scheduled to organize specialized forums for each working group in which stakeholders participate, during which the initiatives and achievements that have been achieved will be presented, and work will be done to exchange experiences, knowledge and expertise between the sectors of education, scientific research, business and economics.

It is noteworthy that the Advisory Committee for Higher Education and Future Skills is one of the committees emanating from the Higher Education Committee, affiliated with the Council for Education, Human Development and Society. The committee aims to enhance integrated institutional work and achieve alignment between the outputs of higher education institutions and the needs of the future labor market, in line with the objectives of the “We Are the Emirates 2031” vision and the UAE Centennial 2071.