Competition, credibility key amid geopolitical fragmentation: UAE ministers

LONDON: Competition and credibility are essential for economies looking to offset the negatives of what a trio of Emirati ministers described on Wednesday as the onset of a fragmented global decade.
Addressing a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Economy Minister Abdulla Bin Touq Al-Marri; Omar Sultan Al-Olama, minister of state for artificial intelligence, digital economy and remote work applications; and Thani Ahmed Al-Zeyoudi, minister of state for foreign trade, concurred that the world is fragmenting amidst a wave of geopolitical shocks.
But they said the UAE’s economic diversification has not only reduced economic susceptibility to certain shocks, but has afforded the country “credibility.”
Al-Olama said: “Our economy has really transformed itself from a purely oil economy to one beyond this. We talk about artificial intelligence, but we started investing in this in the early 2010s, so, many years before it becoming a world focus.”
He added: “What that tells people is that when we say we’ll do something, we’ll do it. People believe in us, and consequently we gain credibility.”
Such has been the transformation of the UAE’s position in the high-tech sphere that in the past two years, it quadrupled its high-tech workforce to 120,000, comprised of some 200 nationalities which, Al-Olama said, has provided for a wider pool of innovation talent.
Al-Marri cautioned against a perceived rising tide of protectionism, noting that the Gulf states have proved the vitality of global competition in transforming and growing economies.
“Look at the seven emirates (of the UAE). Between them the competition is amazing, and you need this, particularly in the private sector, as it’s in this competition that you see the creation of innovative new services,” he said.
“This ethos of competition is what’s bringing a lot of people to the region. They want to compete with one another as they know it works.”
Seeking to support his claim of the essentiality of competition in this moment of heightened geopolitical tensions, Al-Marri said despite being in one of the most turbulent parts of the world, the Gulf countries are forecasting a collective 5 percent gross domestic product growth in 2024.
Al-Zeyoudi said amidst the fragmentation of the global order, it is important that governments do what they can to buffer domestic security and stability from its effects.
“We’re continuing like this. We’ve managed well in the past few months. We’ve ensured that international politics isn’t intervening and creating fragmentations within the social sphere,” he added.