The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has published the findings from the inaugural Dubai Innovation Index. Introduced last year, this index is part of the Chamber’s plan to encourage innovation and global best practices in the private sector. The index identified medical care, media, marketing, IT, and retail industrial sectors as the most innovative, while professional services, agriculture, fisheries, construction, and energy were identified as the least innovative in Dubai.

This report provides comparisons with other innovative global cities and the private sector, analyzes economic sectors, and makes recommendations. Developed in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and based on top international standards, this index is the first of its kind to assess innovation in a developing economy.

Dubai ranked 16th out of 28 similar global cities recognized as leaders in innovation and creativity. It achieved an innovation rate of 39.14% and ranked 11th in efficiency for innovation outputs.

The report indicates that Dubai outperforms the average in the Government category. This suggests that Dubai’s government is at the forefront of innovation, cultivating a supportive environment. However, the report also points out that the private sector prioritizes performance and prefers long-term strategies for innovation.

The report highlights Dubai’s strength in output and performance, particularly in new product and service launches and technology outputs. Areas for improvement include intellectual property, collaboration opportunities with institutions and economies for scientific work, and cooperation between public and private sectors.

The innovation benchmark set by the Dubai Innovation Index aligns with the findings of the Global Innovation Index 2016, which recognizes Dubai’s strengths in infrastructure and information technology.

The Dubai Innovation Index recommends improving business policies and regulations in Dubai and the UAE to enhance the ease of doing business. In the past year, the Chamber has taken various initiatives to enhance the business environment and advocate for policies that improve the ease of doing business in the UAE, especially in Dubai, to enhance the country’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index 2016.

Since the index’s launch a year ago, Dubai has witnessed the launch of numerous initiatives, including the Dubai Innovation Fund, the Ministry of Happiness, Dubai Innovation Labs, the Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Fund to Finance Innovation, Dubai Science Park, the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Innovation Award, and Dubai Innovation Week.

The results also provide a detailed look at the drivers and outcomes of innovation. While the government leads the way in innovation investment and drivers, the private sector’s investment in innovation doesn’t yet match the emirate’s ambitions and requires further development.

The report emphasizes the need for increased awareness and exceptional efforts to boost the private sector’s contribution to Dubai’s overall innovation efforts. It also highlights the need for greater investment opportunities as the foundation for a more innovative future.

H.E. Majid Saif Al Ghurair, Chairman of Dubai Chamber, emphasized the crucial role of innovation in sustaining and developing an economy in today’s dynamic global landscape. Businesses that are slow to embrace innovation will struggle to meet future demands.

Al Ghurair praised Dubai’s early adoption of an ambitious vision to become the world’s most innovative city under the leadership of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. He noted that, thanks to this leadership, Dubai is now a leading global innovation hub.

As the voice of the private sector, the Chamber aims to stimulate an innovation culture within Dubai’s business environment. They encourage the private sector to assess its strengths and weaknesses, addressing shortcomings with a clear action plan to advance innovation. Al Ghurair believes the Chamber-launched Dubai Innovation Index successfully sets the private sector on the right path for advancement in its innovation endeavors.

H.E. Hamad Buamim, President and CEO of Dubai Chamber, explained that supporting the development of the emirate’s innovation environment and stimulating an innovation culture within the business environment are key components of the Chamber’s innovation strategy. This aligns with their commitment to adopting innovation and excellence in all their activities. The goal is to empower the private sector to keep pace with and contribute to the emirate’s growth.

Buamim described the Dubai Innovation Index as a vital element of Dubai Chamber’s innovation strategy, promoting and supporting private sector innovation while strengthening the Chamber’s standing as one of the world’s most innovative chambers of commerce.

He highlighted the index’s unique features, including its measurement of innovation across 28 cities with a focus on the private sector’s impact on Dubai’s overall innovation. It compares Dubai’s innovation performance to leading global cities recognized as key players in innovation and creativity.

Buamim emphasized that with 90% of Dubai’s private sector comprised of SMEs, innovation is crucial. The index serves as a guide for these businesses to foster creativity, encouraging growth aligned with the emirate’s business landscape. Additionally, the index helps the government identify highly innovative sectors and those requiring support to strengthen their innovation strategies.

The President and CEO of Dubai Chamber announced the Chamber’s increased focus on raising the private sector’s contribution to innovation in the coming months. The index will provide a foundation for a long-term strategy to develop the private sector and bolster Dubai’s competitiveness in global rankings.

He added that the index results will be published annually to track and promote Dubai’s innovation environment.

Anil Khurana, Strategy & Innovation Partner at PwC Middle East, stated that private sector perspectives highlight the challenge of finding and retaining talent that drives innovation. The private sector also sees creating and nurturing an innovative culture within their organizations as critical to innovation.

Based on recommendations from the first Dubai Innovation Index cycle, the Chamber has distributed the questionnaire for the next index cycle to over 57,000 companies across various sectors in Dubai. The findings from the second edition of the index will be unveiled during Innovation Week in November of the following year.