The UAE (7.2) topped the list as the best country for entrepreneurs for the second year running, scoring above average on every Framework Condition. The third gulf country on this list, the country has created a national mission out of improve its national entrepreneurial context index (NECI) score since 2019. In the process, it has successfully improved its overall score every year and has broken two NECI records.

High levels of investment and government commitment have been cited as the main drivers in forming the entrepreneurial environment in the UAE. Particularly high on the NECI were Social and Cultural Norms (7.9), Physical Infrastructure (7.7) and Government Policy: Support and Relevance (7.5). Its lowest rank among the 51 GEM economies was fifth, for Physical Infrastructure. What’s more, the country was one of just three economies (along with the Netherlands and India) that scored 5.0 or more across all conditions.

In terms of current and prospective entrepreneurial activity, three in five adults in the UAE  knew someone who had started their own business recently, while seven in 10 saw good opportunities to start a business locally. Additionally, this economy topped the list for the percentage of adults expecting to employ six or more people in five years’ time (19.6 per cent), and proved to host the second highest proportion of those who expected to include more digital technology in their products (81.9 per cent).