Dubai launches initiative to develop apps in race for digital supremacy
▶ Emirate will train 1,000 UAE citizens as part of plans to triple the number of programmers by 2025
Dubai has launched an initiative to create an ecosystem for the development of digital applications in the emirate and also nourish local talent.
Create Apps in Dubai, a programme by the Higher Committee of Future Technology Development and Digital Economy, was launched by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai, on Wednesday.
The initiative aims to turn the emirate into one of the world’s most attractive destinations in terms of business opportunities by 2025 and train 1,000 Emiratis in partnership with Dubai’s private sector.
It intends to triple the number of app creators by 2025 and support 100 new national projects for the development of cutting-edge apps that will be made available in digital stores over the next 24 months.
“The digital transformation sweeping the world and the exponential growth of digital applications and platforms have created a new global competition for technological leadership,” Sheikh Hamdan said at the launch.
“Dubai seeks to be at the forefront of this global race by providing a platform for fostering the development of 1,000 highly skilled UAE nationals whose ideas and innovation will create a vibrant applications sector in Dubai.”
The emirate, which is seeking to cement its position as the global capital of the digital economy, recently launched the Dubai Economic Agenda (D33) plan.
The strategy aims to place it among the world’s top cities by economic strength in the next 10 years and involves a programme to help 30 private companies to become unicorns – businesses that are valued at more than $1 billion.
Spending on digital technology in the UAE – including information technology, telecoms and emerging technology such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, blockchain and robotics – is set to hit $20 billion over the next three years, according to a report by the Boston Consulting Group.
The UAE is well positioned to double the contribution of its digital economy to gross domestic product to 19.4 per cent, from 9.7 per cent, in the next 10 years, the BCG report said.
With global smartphone sales revenue exceeding $448 billion and two million new applications and games created in 2021, the sector has been steadily gathering momentum, the Dubai Media Office said. Users spent more than $160 billion on applications while the number of application downloads hit 230 billion in 2021, creating vast opportunities for investors, entrepreneurs and technology professionals, it said. Overseen by the Dubai Chamber for Digital Economy, Create Apps in Dubai will identify priority areas and support development plans aimed at empowering UAE citizens to play key roles in realising the country’s digital vision, the emirate’s media office said.
The UAE’s digital economy is expected to grow to more than $140 billion in 2031, up from about $38 billion at present, according to a recent report by the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy. The UAE Cabinet also approved the formation of the Higher Committee for Government Digital Transformation last year.
Spending on digital technology in the UAE is set to reach $20 billion over the next three years, a BCG report has said