The UAE ranks first in the world for the fifth year in a row in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report 2025/2026
ABU DHABI, 26 April / WAM / The United Arab Emirates has maintained its global leadership in the entrepreneurship environment, as it ranked first in the world for the fifth year in a row in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor – GEM report for the year 2025/2026, outperforming many advanced economies, and confirming its position as the best environment for starting and practicing new businesses in the world.
The UAE ranked first among high-income economies in 8 indicators in the report, which included physical infrastructure, government policies in terms of support and convenience, government policies related to taxes and bureaucracy, government entrepreneurship programs, transfer of research and development, ease of entry in terms of market dynamics, ease of entry in terms of burdens and regulations, and entrepreneurial education, which reflects the integration and progress of the environment that supports entrepreneurship and the establishment of entrepreneurial projects and startup companies.
In addition, the country ranked second globally in the indicators of entrepreneurial financing and ease of access to entrepreneurial financing, which confirms the strength of the financial system and its ability to support entrepreneurs, and the readiness of the economic environment in the country to enable emerging projects and enhance their growth and expansion opportunities. The country is also among only 4 countries that have succeeded in achieving or exceeding the “adequacy” level in all conditions of the index’s entrepreneurship framework, so that the country’s entrepreneurial environment remains among the best in the world, supported by infrastructure, government policies, and digital readiness.
His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Tourism, said: “We are proud that the UAE is ranked first in the world in developing the entrepreneurship system, and is consolidating its position as the most supportive economy for entrepreneurship and the first destination for establishing projects and commercial activities. This achievement comes as a translation of the directives of the wise leadership that has given entrepreneurship and supporting small and medium enterprises a top priority, as it is an essential pillar for building a competitive knowledge economy based on innovation and knowledge, in addition to the high flexibility that the UAE economy enjoys.” And the ability to adapt to various regional and international variables.”
His Excellency added that these results reflect the integrity and strength of the competitive policies and legislation launched by the country to create an incubating environment for entrepreneurship, through supportive initiatives and strategies, including the success of the national campaign “The UAE is the Entrepreneurial Capital of the World,” which was launched recently to embody the country’s drive to be the first destination for talents, innovators and entrepreneurs globally, which contributed to creating a world-class entrepreneurship environment.
His Excellency stated that these results are in line with the objectives of the “We Are the Emirates 2031” vision, which seeks to consolidate the country’s position as a global center for the new economy, by supporting promising sectors such as technology, artificial intelligence, renewable energy, space, and financial technology, in a way that enhances the country’s competitiveness and consolidates its position as a global destination for entrepreneurship.
In detail, the UAE recorded an advanced performance at the global level in the quality of the entrepreneurial environment, achieving 7.0 points in the National Entrepreneurship Context Index (NECI) for the year 2025, which monitors the climate supportive of entrepreneurship in each country, based on a score of points according to the opinions of national experts in this field, which reflects the strength of its system that supports entrepreneurship and the high confidence of business owners and investors in the integration of the elements of this system and its role in consolidating the country’s position. As a global center for entrepreneurship and emerging projects.
The report indicated that the UAE is among only 6 countries whose business leaders agree on the paramount importance of artificial intelligence in the next three years, which reflects the country’s readiness to transform towards an advanced digital economy based on knowledge and innovation.
In this context, the UAE, along with three other countries: Taiwan, Norway and Sweden, received an “excellent” rating in both the sustainability priorities index and awareness of artificial intelligence, which reflects the integration of the trend towards innovation and sustainability in the business environment.
The UAE also achieved outstanding performance in the “International Access” index. It was ranked among the top 5 countries in the report in terms of the ability of its emerging companies to penetrate foreign markets, and this superiority is directly driven by the advanced and logistical infrastructure that the report described as distinguished and connecting the local entrepreneur with the global consumer.
The report confirms that the UAE has succeeded in creating an entrepreneurial environment characterized by continuity and growth, and has witnessed an advanced level of entrepreneurial activity. The number of adults who start new businesses exceeds 1 in 5 adults (more than 20%), which reflects the strength of incentives and capabilities that support emerging projects. As for the percentage of entrepreneurial activity in its early stages (TEA), it also recorded high levels, amounting to 19.2%. It also indicated that the flow of entrepreneurial projects in the country is the result of a stimulating environment that makes establishing a business an attractive career option thanks to the ease of procedures and the availability of government and financial support.
The report highlighted the attractiveness of the UAE environment for talent. The rate of entrepreneurial activity recorded 19.6% among citizens and 22.4% among residents, which reflects the UAE’s ability to attract talent and enhance the participation of different segments of society in entrepreneurship. The report also showed that the UAE provided an integrated entrepreneurial environment that contributed to promoting women’s entrepreneurship and enabling women entrepreneurs’ access to resources and capabilities.
In the same context, the report indicated that more than half of entrepreneurs believe that family traditions represent an important motivation for establishing and developing their businesses, which reflects the depth of the entrepreneurial culture in Emirati society. The country has also achieved remarkable progress in the entrepreneurship education index in schools, where it ranked among the top 5 countries, with a clear focus on developing creative thinking skills, problem solving, risk assessment, and identifying opportunities among students, which contributes to preparing an entrepreneurial generation qualified to lead the future.
The report indicated that entrepreneurship in the UAE is based on an advanced and flexible financing environment, which provides entrepreneurs with broad opportunities to obtain the capital necessary to launch and expand their projects, and that the strength of this environment is reflected in the diversity of available funding sources, including government initiatives, investment and capital funds, indicating that this support contributes to raising the level of confidence among entrepreneurs, and gives them the ability to transform ideas into practical projects that can be developed, thus enhancing the dynamism of the business environment and keeping pace with the country’s trends towards an economy based on innovation and knowledge.
The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor report is considered one of the most prominent global references in measuring and analyzing entrepreneurial activity, as it relies on a huge database that includes more than two million cumulative interviews since its inception, and in its current version, it is based on data from 53 economies, representing about 43% of the world’s population and 57% of the global gross domestic product.
The report includes more than 160,000 participants in the adult population survey, more than 2,000 national experts, along with 370 technical experts and researchers, giving it an accurate scientific methodology and comprehensive comparison.
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