UAE leads the way in digital innovation

UAE has emerged as the number one destination for start-up growth in the Mena with the largest number of investors, it was revealed during the Arabnet Digital summit.

According to figures made available today, 27 per cent of all investors are from the UAE, followed by Saudi Arabia (16 per cent), Lebanon (13 per cent) and Egypt (11 per cent).

The results were part of the State of Digital Investments in Mena report.

According to research by Arabnet, more than $750 million were invested in 450+ tech startup deals in Mena between 2013 and 2015.

The UAE captured the lion’s share of deals, with double the number of any other market, cementing itself as a key hub for digital startups.

The forum also saw detailed discussions on the online behaviour of residents in the region, with almost 80 per cent of all transaction still being cash.

It was revealed that almost 38 per cent of the population still refused to use cards online simply because of trust issues.  

Almost 50 per cent paid all government bills in person with about 35 per cent using online channels.

Although booking taxis online has gained traction with both Dubai taxi, Uber and Kareem gaining popularity, only 13 per cent of those who booked did it online.

Similarly only 13 per cent of restaurant reservations were made online and using apps.

Commenting on the launch of the report, Majed Al Suwaidi, Managing Director of Dubai internet City, said: "The report highlights that the UAE is emerging as one of the driving forces of technology investment and entrepreneurialism in the region. This not only reflects Dubai’s ambitions to become one of the most innovative cities in the world, but is also consistent with our own innovation strategy, which supports the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai".

Meanwhile, women power in the coming decade was emphasised with stats that indicated that close to one billion women would enter the workspace in the next decade. And about 13 per cent of founders of new technology in the Middle East are said to be women.

Commenting on Dubai emerging as the smart city hub, a senior official of Dubai Silicon Oasis said Dubai is positioning itself as a pioneer on Smart City and setting the blueprint.

“Our biggest challenge was about obtaining the knowhow. We wanted to develop local customised solutions and not merely copy and paste,” said Muammar Khaled Al Katheen.

The fourth edition of ArabNet was held in collaboration with Digital Media Services (Choueiri Group).

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