UAE tops region in knowledge index
DUBAI: The UAE broke into the world’s top 20 countries in the knowledge index. The country is now ranked 19 at the global level and irst among all the Arab states, while retaining its second place globally on the economy index.
The achievement was revealed on Wednesday as the Global Knowledge Index (GKI 2018) was unveiled at the Knowledge Summit 2018 that opened in Dubai under the theme “Youth and the Future of the Knowledge Economy”.
Prepared under the umbrella of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF), the Global Knowledge Index provides valuable insights on knowledge assets that are key to more effective sustainable development.
According to the results of the Global Knowledge Index 2018, Switzerland retained its number-one rank, followed by Sweden, Finland, United States and Luxembourg.
The UNDP and the MBRF also launched the world’s irst ‘Future of Knowledge: A Foresight Report,’ a pilot study on the future ields of knowledge that will shape the transformation of knowledge societies.
The unique study, covering 20 countries, reveals a new knowledge measurement tool using big data. The report aims at better understanding the navigation of present societies to cope with the demands of the future ields that will shape the near and long-term future.
It alerts and guides policymakers, business leaders, researchers and civil society to the new emerging fields, i.e. Artificial Intelligence (AI), Blockchain, Cybersecurity, Biotechnology and Future Skills that will become strategic for the future of societies. The report puts our future in focus, be open and collaborative, and use our imagination, as the reports state.
During the session “Future of Knowledge Model”, a panel of experts presented the conceptual framework of the future knowledge model, the factors inluencing the future of knowledge, and how countries might be impacted positively. They stressed that the “Future of Knowledge” as documented in the report will empower forwardthinking strategy in the growth of knowledge economy and sustainable development around the world.