In 2025, the United Arab Emirates achieved remarkable results in global competitiveness, leading various international and regional reports and indicators.
These achievements reflect the effectiveness and efficiency of the comprehensive development strategy adopted by the nation, showcasing its innovative approach to government operations, economic strength and attractiveness, safety and stability, and the high quality of life it offers to both citizens and residents.
The UAE secured a spot among the top five in the 2025 Global Competitiveness Report published by the International Institute for Management Development (IMD), scoring 96.09 out of 100, advancing two positions from 2024, while maintaining its regional leadership for the ninth consecutive year.
In the 2025 Global Soft Power Index, announced in February during the annual soft power conference in London, the UAE ranked 10th globally. Additionally, the value of its national media identity rose from $1 trillion to over $1.223 trillion for the year 2025.
The UAE ascended to the 9th position worldwide in the Global Talent Report by the IMD in Lausanne for 2025, advancing eight spots compared to the previous year.
Regionally, the UAE maintained its leading status among countries with very high human development in the 2025 Human Development Index report from the United Nations Development Program, improving 11 ranks from its position in the 2021-2022 report.
It ranked 15th globally out of 193 countries analyzed and was the only Arab nation in the top 20 countries.
According to the “Health Inclusion Index,” launched by Halio in collaboration with Economist Impact, the UAE achieved the top ranking globally in health awareness programs, community engagement in health policies, and enhancing quality of life, as announced during a discussion session held in Abu Dhabi in July.
The significance of the “Health Inclusion Index” lies in its role as an international assessment tool that evaluates the performance of 40 countries across 58 sub-indicators in the areas of health culture, awareness, inclusion, and fairness.
The UAE also ranked second globally in implementing a comprehensive health system, and was among the top five countries for patient-centered healthcare, in addition to ranking 10th worldwide in health culture.
The second edition of the UAE’s Digital Transformation Report revealed the nation’s top performance in vital governmental indicators on a global scale, as it secured the number one position worldwide in communication infrastructure, the institutional framework for digital governance, digital content, and digital knowledge, according to United Nations assessments. Furthermore, it ranked first globally in the digital government capability index published by Oxford Insights, third in government service delivery, fourth in the maturity of digital government transformation as per World Bank analysis, and eleventh in both the Digital Competitiveness Index by IMD and the UN’s Digital Government Development Index.
The UAE has strengthened its image as one of the most attractive countries for those wishing to live and work in a secure and stable environment, being recognized as the safest country in the world by mid-2025 according to a report from the global statistics site Numbeo.
It achieved a safety score of 85.2 out of 100, based on various metrics assessing safety levels, including crime rates, public safety, the quality of security services, and socio-economic stability.
The UAE has once again excelled in numerous global reports focused on economy and business, retaining its first position globally for the fourth consecutive year in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) Report for 2024/2025, which identified the UAE as the best location for entrepreneurship and small to medium-sized enterprises among the 56 economies analyzed this year.
According to the 2025 World Investment Report by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the UAE ranked 10th globally as a major destination for incoming foreign direct investment flows, achieving a record level of inbound foreign direct investments valued at 167.6 billion dirhams (approximately $45.6 billion) in 2024.
Additionally, the UAE ranked 9th globally in the 2025 Global Digital Competitiveness Report issued by the International Institute for Management Development in Switzerland, further solidifying its position among the top ten countries for digital performance while maintaining its regional leadership.