Dubai’s Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), in partnership with the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ), has launched Dubai Mobility Labs at Dubai Silicon Oasis to test and certify autonomous and emerging mobility technologies.

The facility includes 248 testing scenarios spanning controlled environments and public roads extending to Al Qudra, as well as operational facilities and electric-vehicle charging infrastructure, the WAM report said.

Dubai Mobility Labs has already hosted trials involving autonomous-driving technologies and vehicles developed by global companies including WeRide, Pony.ai and Tesla.

Testing and certification

RTA has appointed DEKRA to operate the facility for its first three years. The company will oversee testing operations and facilities while working to ensure compliance with international safety standards and operating practices.

Read more: Dubai riders can now book fully driverless taxis on Uber

The launch comes as Dubai works to expand the use of autonomous transport across the emirate. RTA director-general and chairman of the Board of Executive Directors Mattar Al Tayer said the facility provides infrastructure for the Dubai Smart Self-Driving Transport Strategy.

The strategy targets autonomous travel accounting for 25 per cent of all mobility journeys in Dubai by 2030, Al Tayer said.

He added that the facility would support testing of advanced mobility systems while helping attract investment, specialised talent and technology developers to the emirate.

Push for commercial deployment

Mohammed Al Zarooni, executive chairman of DIEZ, said the project supports the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33 by developing an economy focused on knowledge and innovation.

He said Dubai Silicon Oasis offers an environment for developing and testing advanced technologies and moving them from trials toward commercial deployment.

The new facility adds to Dubai’s infrastructure for testing autonomous transport systems before they are introduced more widely, with testing taking place across controlled settings and selected public-road environments.

The partnership between RTA and DIEZ brings transport regulation and testing together with the technology-focused infrastructure of Dubai Silicon Oasis, according to the authorities.

UAE Minister of Foreign Trade Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi held talks with government counterparts, investors and business groups during the United Nations General Assembly in New York (UNGA), focusing on trade, investment and development finance.

Al Zeyoudi took part in ministerial meetings, investor roundtables and business council engagements during the week, with discussions also covering sustainable development, digital innovation and economic cooperation.

“The UAE’s active participation in the 81st session of the UN General Assembly underscores its commitment to playing a pivotal role in supporting global economic growth and prosperity,” Dr Al Zeyoudi said.

He said stronger international partnerships and greater economic integration could help boost trade and investment flows, accelerate innovation and create new avenues for sustainable growth.

Investment mobilisation and development finance were among the main areas discussed during the visit.

Dr Al Zeyoudi participated in a roundtable with the BCIU, a working lunch with partners of the Office of Development Affairs, and an Investment for Development roundtable organised by the Ministry of Foreign Trade in collaboration with the Office of Development Affairs at the Presidential Court.

He also joined a panel discussion at the UAE Investment Council focused on investment opportunities and public-private collaboration.

Al Zeyoudi met Thailand’s Minister of Commerce Suphajee Suthumpun, Peru’s Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism Rogers Espinoza and Argentina’s Minister of International Trade Pablo Quirno.

The discussions focused on deepening economic relations, increasing bilateral trade and investment and identifying opportunities for cooperation across strategic sectors.

Al Zeyoudi also participated in events organised by the UAE-US Business Council, the European Council on Africa and Middle East Affairs and the Invest in Bangladesh initiative.

The meetings provided opportunities for discussions with business leaders, policymakers and investors as the UAE seeks to expand its international trade and investment relationships.

The UAE said the engagements reflected its commitment to strengthening international trade and investment relations, with a focus on innovation, public-private partnerships and sustainable economic development.

Student enrolment at higher education institutions across the UAE rose to more than 218,000 during the 2025–2026 academic year, as the number of newly admitted students increased 15 per cent from the previous year, according to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research.

The figures point to a continued expansion of access to universities and other higher education institutions, alongside changes to admission policies that give institutions greater flexibility in setting entry requirements for individual programmes.

The ministry said the approach is intended to widen access to higher education while ensuring that students acquire the qualifications and skills required by the labour market.

Enrollment passes 218,000

In an interview with the Emirates News Agency (WAM), Dr Ahmad Sultan Al Shoaibi, undersecretary of the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research, said the increase in admissions has been supported by greater use of real-time data connectivity between the Ministry and higher education institutions.

The system allows the ministry to monitor admissions and enrolment indicators on an ongoing basis while giving universities greater responsibility for managing their own admission processes within the laws, regulations and national frameworks governing the sector.

Read more-Beyond the degree: How the Gulf is building a workforce for jobs that don’t exist yet

During the previous academic year, the number of students admitted to higher education institutions rose 15 per cent compared with the preceding year. The total number of students admitted and enrolled exceeded 64,000, including about 32,000 Emirati students.

“The number of students enrolled in higher education institutions exceeded 218,000 during the 2025–2026 academic year, including approximately 124,000 Emirati students,” Al Shoaibi said.

The increase has also been accompanied by a significant expansion in alternative qualification pathways.

The number of students enrolled in diploma and higher diploma programmes rose from 3,995 in the 2021–2022 academic year to 10,926 in 2025–2026, an increase of 173 per cent.

Al Shoaibi said the growth in these programmes gives students additional educational routes while providing qualifications and skills designed to support their transition into the labour market.

Universities given greater flexibility

The changes form part of a wider adjustment to the way admissions are governed across the UAE’s higher education sector.

Under the current approach, institutions have greater flexibility to determine admission requirements based on the nature of their academic programmes and specialisations. The ministry said the policy is intended to give universities more responsibility for determining which criteria are appropriate for their programmes while maintaining accountability for educational outcomes.

Al Shoaibi said the development of admission policies and criteria is aimed at expanding access to university places and making the higher education system more responsive to students’ different academic pathways.

At the same time, institutions remain subject to an outcomes-based assessment framework designed to monitor the quality of education and the performance of graduates.

The ministry’s position is that greater institutional flexibility should not be interpreted as a reduction in academic standards.

Al Shoaibi stressed that institutions remain responsible for ensuring their admission requirements are appropriate for their programmes and that the Ministry would not accept admission practices that compromise the quality of education or the standard of graduates.

The framework therefore places greater emphasis on the relationship between institutional autonomy and accountability.

Universities can determine admission criteria that reflect the demands of individual programmes, but they are expected to demonstrate that those decisions produce acceptable academic and employment outcomes.

Admission rules shift toward outcomes

The ministry said the UAE’s approach represents a move away from a system focused primarily on controlling admissions at the point of entry and towards one that places greater weight on what happens after students enter higher education.

Under this model, admission criteria are only one part of the assessment. Other indicators include student retention and completion, the quality of education, graduate employment and the extent to which graduates’ skills match labour market requirements.

Al Shoaibi said the higher education sector has made broader changes in recent years, with greater emphasis on governance and measuring educational outcomes.

The performance of higher education institutions is monitored and evaluated on an ongoing basis, with the objective of ensuring that greater institutional flexibility is accompanied by accountability.

He said the shift does not amount to a relaxation of quality requirements. Instead, it is intended to link institutional autonomy more closely with responsibility for academic and employment outcomes.

An outcomes-based assessment framework operates alongside the more flexible admission system, allowing the Ministry to evaluate whether institutional policies are producing the intended results.

Conditional admission and alternative pathways

Ministerial Resolution No. 19 of 2024 on Admission Criteria for Higher Education Institution Programmes in the UAE sets out the framework under which institutions establish admission requirements.

The resolution requires institutions to establish clear criteria for their programmes while allowing conditional admission in cases where students need to complete preparatory or remedial courses.

Those programmes can be used to address gaps in students’ academic skills rather than automatically excluding applicants who do not initially meet every requirement.

The framework also provides for diploma, higher diploma and partial qualification pathways, giving students additional options depending on their academic abilities and educational goals.

The Ministry said the absence of one standard minimum secondary school grade or specialised-subject grade across every higher education institution should not be interpreted as a removal of academic controls.

Instead, requirements can differ according to the nature of a programme, its specialisation and the level of academic preparation expected of students.

Those policies remain subject to monitoring, evaluation and oversight.

Ministry retains oversight role

The increased autonomy given to universities also changes the way the ministry exercises its supervisory role.

Institutions are not required to seek prior Ministry approval for every individual change to an admission criterion. The ministry said the model is designed to give universities greater responsibility for their academic decisions while maintaining oversight of their performance.

The ministry monitors compliance through academic accreditation renewal processes, periodic inspections and monitoring visits, as well as ongoing assessments of admission practices and educational outcomes.

The change effectively places less emphasis on procedural approval before an institution alters an admission requirement and more emphasis on assessing the results of those decisions over time.

This allows the Ministry to examine how admission policies affect students, academic programmes and graduates, as well as their eventual transition into the labour market.

Where admission practices are found to affect the quality of education, the Ministry said it can take the necessary measures.

Flexibility does not mean open admission

The Ministry also drew a distinction between regulated flexibility and what it described as “open admission” without adequate academic controls.

Under the UAE’s model, institutions have discretion over admission requirements but operate within a wider system that includes academic accreditation, inspection, preparatory and remedial programmes, oversight and continuous monitoring of educational outcomes.

The ministry said the effectiveness of the approach should therefore not be measured solely by the requirements students face when they enter university.

Instead, the broader assessment should consider whether students remain enrolled and complete their programmes, whether graduates find employment and whether their skills meet the requirements of the economy.

This places greater emphasis on the performance of the higher education system after admission rather than treating entry requirements as the sole measure of academic quality.

Focus shifts to labour market needs

The ministry is also developing mechanisms to better anticipate changes in the labour market and identify skills and specialisations required by priority economic sectors.

The work includes monitoring learning and employment outcomes, developing partnerships with economic and industrial sectors and assessing the future readiness of graduates.

The aim is to ensure that the expansion of higher education does not occur in isolation from changes in the UAE economy.

As new industries and economic activities develop, the Ministry is seeking to align education and training pathways with the skills expected to be in demand.

That approach also places greater importance on the ability of institutions to demonstrate the relevance of their programmes and the outcomes achieved by their graduates.

Balancing access and quality

The rise in enrolment and admissions comes as the UAE continues to expand the range of higher education pathways available to students.

The ministry said broader access and graduate quality are not competing objectives, arguing that the two can be pursued through a system that gives institutions greater flexibility while retaining monitoring and accountability mechanisms.

For universities, the model provides more room to tailor admission criteria to individual programmes. For regulators, it shifts part of the focus toward measuring whether those decisions result in strong educational and employment outcomes.

Al Shoaibi said the ministry will continue to monitor admission policies and institutional performance indicators as the system evolves.

The stated objective is to expand opportunities for students while maintaining the academic standards of higher education institutions and ensuring graduates have the qualifications and skills required to participate in the labour market.

With enrollment already above 218,000 and diploma and higher diploma participation rising sharply, the latest figures show that the UAE’s higher education system is expanding not only in the number of students it serves but also in the range of pathways available to them.

The next stage of the policy will depend on how institutions use that flexibility and how effectively their admission decisions translate into student completion, graduate employment and skills aligned with the needs of the UAE economy.

As the Gulf pushes deeper into 5G-Advanced and begins laying the groundwork for 6G, the challenge is shifting from network deployment to commercial value.

Ahead of MWC26 Doha, Jawad Abbassi, head of MENA at GSMA, speaks to Gulf Business about monetising 5G, the growing role of AI, network resilience, spectrum policy and what it will take to build more inclusive digital economies across the region.

The Gulf is already among the world’s most advanced 5G markets, while operators are beginning to prepare for 6G. Where should they be investing now, and how do they avoid moving towards 6G before they have fully monetised 5G and 5G-Advanced?

It is important that operators do not look at 5G and 6G as two completely separate journeys. The priority now should be to get more value out of the 5G investments already being made, while putting in place the capabilities that will eventually support 6G.

That means continuing to scale 5G Standalone and 5G-Advanced, while also focusing more closely on the commercial side: how operators can develop, sell and support enterprise services at scale.

The biggest opportunity is not necessarily faster consumer connectivity. It is in areas where advanced connectivity can have a measurable impact on how businesses and public services operate, particularly in mission-critical environments. Private networks, edge computing, network APIs and technologies such as RedCap can all help extend the value of 5G beyond the traditional consumer use case.

This is where the industry needs to take some of the lessons from the first phase of 5G. Network deployment on its own does not create a business case. Operators need to focus on use cases that can scale, build the right partnerships and develop business models that generate value.

5G-Advanced is particularly important in that respect. It allows operators to improve network performance, efficiency and intelligence today, while building some of the capabilities that will underpin more AI-native networks in the future.

This makes MWC26 Doha particularly timely. This first-of-its-kind co-location with the ITU Plenipotentiary Conference will bring together leaders from government, international institutions and industry for a pivotal period of digital policy engagement and connectivity showcases in Doha.

The conversation at MWC Doha will increasingly be about managing that transition, not simply when 6G arrives, but how we ensure the investments being made today deliver value now while laying the groundwork for what comes next.

GSMA research suggests AI use among MENA operators has so far been focused heavily on operational efficiency. What will it take for AI to become a meaningful new revenue stream for telecom companies rather than primarily a cost-saving tool?

Operational efficiency is a natural starting point. AI can help operators make networks more predictive, improve energy efficiency, optimise traffic, identify faults before they affect customers and make customer service much more responsive.

But the larger opportunity lies in the use of the assets operators already have, such as connectivity, data, trusted customer relationships, distributed infrastructure and increasingly edge capabilities, to help other industries adopt AI. That requires a shift from using AI internally to turning AI-enabled capabilities into products and services. For consumers, that could mean more personalised services, smarter customer care and more relevant offerings.

For enterprises, the opportunity is much broader, from AI infrastructure and GPU-as-a-service to edge inferencing, secure data services and industry-specific solutions for healthcare, transport, manufacturing and energy.

Network APIs are another important piece of this. Through initiatives such as GSMA Open Gateway, operators can make network capabilities available in standardised ways, allowing developers and enterprises to build services around areas such as identity, fraud prevention, security and quality on demand. The global network API market is expected to reach $7.6bn by 2030, which gives a sense of the commercial opportunity if operators can make these capabilities easy to use at scale.

Ultimately, the challenge is moving from individual AI pilots to solutions that can be repeated, scaled and monetised. That will require investment in cloud and data-centre capacity, edge infrastructure, skills, data governance and partnerships. Operators do not need to own every part of the AI value chain, but they do need to be clear about where they can add real value.

Network resilience and digital sovereignty are becoming much bigger priorities across the region. What does a genuinely resilient telecom network look like, and where are the biggest vulnerabilities operators still need to address?

A genuinely resilient network starts with the assumption that disruption will happen. The question is how quickly and effectively the network can respond when it does.

That means having redundancy at multiple levels: diverse subsea cable routes, alternative terrestrial connections, resilient data centres, backup power, intelligent traffic rerouting and strong cybersecurity.

Most importantly, operators need tested business-continuity plans and close coordination with governments, other operators and international partners. This has only proven its importance, especially during these challenging times, as telecom networks are no longer simply communications infrastructure. They support financial services, healthcare, public safety, emergency response and the wider economy. As more services become digital and increasingly autonomous, the impact of an outage becomes much greater.

The priority is to reduce single points of failure, whether in a particular cable route, terrestrial connection, cloud dependency or energy source, while treating cyber resilience as an integral part of the network rather than something added on afterwards. That means looking at security across network design, operations and the supply chain.

Non-terrestrial networks can also play an important role, particularly in remote areas or during emergencies when terrestrial infrastructure is compromised. Digital sovereignty should not mean isolation or duplication for its own sake. It should mean having secure, trusted and resilient infrastructure, capabilities and partnerships needed to keep critical services running when conditions are challenging.

Spectrum will be critical to the transition towards 6G. What decisions need to be made now to ensure Gulf markets remain at the forefront of next-generation connectivity?

Spectrum policy is one of the decisions that needs to be made well ahead of the technology itself. While commercial 6G deployments are generally expected around the end of this decade, the international discussions and planning that will shape those networks are already underway.

For the Gulf, one of the priorities should be long-term capacity planning, particularly around mid-band spectrum, which is expected to remain central to balancing coverage and capacity in future networks. GSMA analysis suggests that 6G networks could require up to three times today’s mid-band spectrum to meet projected demand growth. That means identifying potential bands early and ensuring the region is actively involved in the international discussions that will shape the spectrum environment for next-generation connectivity.

Harmonisation is equally important. When markets align around common spectrum bands, it creates economies of scale for devices and network equipment, while making regional and cross-border services easier to develop.

The other consideration is how spectrum is priced and allocated. Governments need to manage a valuable public resource, but the broader investment equation also matters. If spectrum costs absorb too much capital, that can affect the funds available for network rollout and upgrades.

The GCC has an opportunity to be proactive in shaping the next generation rather than simply waiting for the global ecosystem to settle around 6G.

There is still a significant gap between the Gulf’s advanced networks and connectivity in other parts of MENA. As technology moves towards AI-native and eventually 6G networks, how do you prevent that gap from widening further?

The digital divide is becoming about much more than whether a network reaches a particular location and is shifting to whether people and businesses can actually make meaningful use of this connectivity.

Across MENA, mobile broadband coverage has expanded significantly: 96 per cent of the population lives within mobile broadband coverage, yet only 49 per cent were using mobile internet at the end of 2023. There are still barriers around affordability, access to suitable devices, digital skills, relevant local content and trust. Those issues become even more important as networks become more sophisticated.

The objective should be to make sure that better connectivity translates into real economic and social opportunities. That means continuing to invest in affordable, high-quality networks, but also in digital literacy, devices and services that address local needs, whether in education, healthcare, agriculture, financial inclusion or support for small businesses.

There is also no single technology that will solve the connectivity challenge. Terrestrial networks will remain the foundation, but satellite and other non-terrestrial technologies can complement them in remote communities, across difficult terrain and in areas where conventional infrastructure is difficult or uneconomic to deploy.

More broadly, connectivity needs to be considered alongside cloud infrastructure, data, skills, cybersecurity, investment and regulation. If these elements develop at very different speeds, the digital divide can become more pronounced even where basic network coverage is strong.

The goal should therefore be to ensure the next generation of connectivity is not simply faster, but more accessible, useful, and capable of creating opportunities across the region.

MWC26 Doha will bring technology leaders, operators, and policymakers together to discuss many of these issues. What concrete business or policy outcomes would you like to see emerge from Doha, particularly around AI, spectrum, investment and the path to 6G?

The most valuable outcome would be practical alignment. We need policy frameworks that give industry the confidence to invest, and industry commitments that turn technology ambitions into measurable economic and social outcomes.

On AI, I would like to see more partnerships move beyond broad statements of intent and into projects that bring together operators, cloud providers, governments, universities and enterprises. That could include AI infrastructure and data centres, edge computing, trusted data frameworks and the skills needed to make those investments useful.

On spectrum, Doha can help build momentum around long-term policy approaches that support capacity, investment and regional alignment. The region has an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to the global 6G conversation rather than simply responding to decisions made elsewhere.

Investment is another important part of the discussion. Innovation only has an impact when it can scale, so the focus should be on creating the conditions for that, such as predictable regulation, interoperability, cybersecurity, access to capital and effective public-private partnerships.

When it comes to 6G, the conversation should remain grounded in what we have learned from 5G. Before we talk about technology for its own sake, we should be asking what problems it will solve, which industries will benefit, what partnerships are needed and what the sustainable business models will look like.

Ultimately, I would like to see the conversations in MWC26 Doha translate into something tangible: new partnerships, clearer policy direction and investment decisions that help build more intelligent, resilient, inclusive and sustainable digital economies across the region.

Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan arrived in Washington on Monday for talks with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the Saudi state news agency said, amid escalating hostilities between Riyadh and Yemen’s Houthis.

The two will discuss bilateral ties as well as key regional and international developments, the agency added.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman sought US military help this month against the Iran-backed Houthis, but Washington declined to launch strikes, though it agreed to supply intelligence and targeting support, sources had told Reuters.