UAE should foster entrepreneurship for sustainable growth

The United Arab Emirates should promote entrepreneurship and business planning among its youth to ensure sustainable development, an expert has said.

“In order for sustainability to be embedded in the blue- print of any country, there are inevitably going to be areas that require nurturing – but they can be categorised as risks if left unaddressed,” said Global Agenda Council on the Future of Government (World Economic Forum) vice chairman Yasar Jarrar.

He pointed out that one such area that needed to be nurtured strongly by both the UAE and other regional countries was education. “This doesn’t only mean improving existing curriculums but also welcoming the concept of alternative education and embed- ding subjects like entrepreneurship and business planning from a young age,” said Jarrar, who also co-authored MasterCard’s 2015 Middle East and Africa Inclusive Growth Report.

The UAE was ranked first in the Middle East and Africa in the report with a score of 57. It was followed by Qatar (55) and Bahrain (54).

The ranking was an indicator of the pace and pattern of regional economic growth and sought to benchmark MEA developing nations against the developed countries of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Jarrar urged all Middle East governments to invest in their economies, create jobs and foster young talent.

“It is important for governments to modernise their education systems to provide individuals with the right skill set to excel at their jobs; this goes hand-in-hand with building a solid infrastructure across healthcare, technology and even roads in order for individuals to easily access jobs and opportunities,” he said.