In 2025, the United Arab Emirates achieved remarkable results in global competitiveness rankings, leading various international and regional indicators and reports.
The UAE continued to excel in numerous global reports focused on the economy and business, securing the top spot worldwide for the fourth consecutive year in the “Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2024/2025” report.
This report recognized the UAE as the best location for entrepreneurship and small to medium-sized enterprises among 56 economies assessed this year.
The UAE also ranked among the top five in the annual Competitiveness Report 2025, published by the Global Competitiveness Center of the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), achieving a score of 96.09 out of 100, improving two positions from 2024, and maintaining its status as the leading regionally for the ninth year in a row.
Additionally, the UAE placed tenth globally in the Global Soft Power Index for 2025, which was announced in February at the annual Soft Power conference in London.
The nation’s media identity value rose from one trillion dollars to over one trillion and two hundred and twenty-three billion dollars for 2025.
The UAE advanced to ninth place globally in the Global Talent Report issued by the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne for 2025, climbing eight ranks compared to its classification last year.
The UAE maintained its top position regionally among countries with very high human development in the Human Development Index 2025 report released by the United Nations Development Programme, improving by 11 places in the global ranking compared to the 2021-2022 report.
The country ranked 15th worldwide among 193 nations outlined in the report, being the only Arab nation in the top 20.
Moreover, the UAE ranked first globally in health awareness programs, community involvement in health policies, and enhancing the quality of life, according to the “Health Inclusivity Index” launched by Halion in partnership with Economist Impact last July during a discussion session held in Abu Dhabi.
The significance of the “Health Inclusivity Index” lies in its role as an international assessment tool that compares the performance of 40 countries across 58 sub-indicators in health culture, awareness, inclusivity, and equity.
The UAE secured second place globally in implementing a comprehensive health system and was among the top five countries for patient-centered healthcare, while ranking tenth worldwide in health culture.
Digital Transformation
The second edition of the Digital Transformation Report in the UAE revealed that the country leads globally in several critical governmental indicators, ranking first worldwide in telecommunications infrastructure, the digital government framework, digital content, and digital knowledge, as reported by the United Nations.
The UAE achieved the number one position globally in the digital government capability index published by Oxford Insights, came in third in the government service delivery index, fourth in the digital government transformation maturity index by the World Bank, and eleventh in both the digital competitiveness index from the International Institute for Management Development and the UN’s digital government development index.
Furthermore, the UAE was ranked ninth globally in the 2025 Global Digital Competitiveness Report published by the International Institute for Management Development in Lausanne, reinforcing its status among the top ten nations worldwide for digital performance and maintaining regional leadership.