The success of Emirati women is a national achievement

The progress of Emirati women is often told through individual stories of success. But behind each of those stories is another: that of the people, institutions and opportunities that helped make it possible.

As a child, long before I’d earned the title, my father called me ‘Doctora’. The nickname was a small expression of something bigger: his belief in what his daughter could achieve and his confidence that I would make full use of the opportunities before me.

Emirati Women’s Day reminds me that my story is not unique. From the earliest years of the UAE, the country’s Founding Father, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan understood that building a nation meant investing in its people: expanding access to education and healthcare, creating opportunity, and establishing pathways to allow future generations to prosper.

As Emirati women, we grew up surrounded by people and institutions who encouraged us to learn, contribute and lead. From the families who believed in us; to the schools and universities that opened doors; to leadership that championed our progress. Our achievements are not just examples of individual determination, but a symbol of what is possible when people are given the means to excel.

This same belief anchors the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity, and its work to advance health outcomes around the world. Here too, progress depends on a strong ecosystem – from skilled health workers, to modern infrastructure, and the right resources, equipment, and systems to support them. Each is a thread in the tapestry helping to ensure people can survive and thrive.

For women especially, the benefits are two-fold. Stronger health systems give women access to the care they need at critical moments in their lives. But they also create opportunities for women themselves, who represent two-thirds of the global health workforce.

In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, a mother or newborn still dies every 14 seconds from a preventable cause. Through the Beginnings Fund, the Foundation is working with governments and partners to change this by improving the care available before, during and after birth. By 2030, the Fund aims to reach more than 34 million mothers and babies with quality care, saving more than 300,000 lives.

In Pakistan, our partnership with the Emirates Polio Campaign is creating opportunities for women through training and employment. More than half the 103,000 vaccinators the campaign deploys are women, who go door-to-door in remote communities to protect children from polio – while also earning an income to support their own families.

In both cases, this is impact that extends far beyond the individual. The benefits are felt in healthier families, stronger communities, and greater opportunity for the next generation.

Today, I have the privilege of working alongside both women and men who embody the ambition of the UAE. I see in them the same values with which I grew up: service, determination, and the conviction that we have a responsibility to pay forward the opportunities we have been given.

My father saw potential in me before I could see it myself. Today, when I look at the young women of the UAE, I see possibility without limits. My hope is that they continue to seize every opportunity before them, and to forge new paths for those to come.