DUBAI: The UAE’s government accelerators programme marked its first anniversary with a sevenfold increased in patents filed, said Huda Al Hashimi, Assistant Director General for Strategy and Innovation, UAE Prime Minister’s Office at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs and the Future.
Al Hashimi said that in attidtion to the increase in patents lodged with the Ministry of Education — 27 over a 60-day period — the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation had recorded a 106 per cent employment of Emiratis in the private financial sector, while the Ministry of Economy had achieved a 100 per cent improvement, successfully passing a by-law for venture capital activities in the UAE within a 50-day period.
“To become a global innovation leader, we need to improve efficiency, which is what we are doing with the government accelerators programme; as well as to engage the private sector in innovative collaborative partnerships,” Al Hashimi added, noting that developing innovation was challenging so “we need to admit the short-term failures in order not to have the big failures down the road.”
Al Hashimi was speaking at Innovation Live, held at the Meydan Hotel, Dubai, this week.
Recommendations from the event, which brought together 700 delegates from public and private sector, include focus on the UAE becoming a leader in manufacturing as well as research and development of advanced technology in areas of global interest like artificial intelligence, semiconductors, nanotechnology and 3D printing.
- Huda Al Hashemi | Assistant Director General for Strategy and Innovation, UAE Prime Minister’s Office
There were also plans to boost innovation in the SME sector with various funding and support mechanisms.
Recommendations from its think tank sessions are now being reviewed by the Prime Minister’s Office as to how they can be used to achieve the UAE’s Vision 2021.
