UAE: Sheikh Mohammed launches national drive to train 10,000 young entrepreneurs

The United Arab Emirates has announced a new national campaign 'The Emirates: The Startup Capital of the World', with the goal of training 10,000 young entrepreneurs and positioning the country as a global hub for innovation. The initiative was launched on Sunday by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

The campaign will bring together more than 50 entities from both the public and private sectors and is expected to create 30,000 job opportunities over the next five years. Central to the initiative is Startup Emirates, a new platform developed in partnership with the New Economy Academy. The platform will provide free mentorship opportunities, connect youth with startups and deliver tailored training programs that cater to both beginners and advanced entrepreneurs.

The program will train Emirati men and women in entrepreneurship, offering a beginner track focused on essential concepts and practices and an advanced track covering business setup, sustainable growth and global expansion. Sheikh Mohammed stressed the importance of preparing the next generation to seize opportunities created by the nation’s economic momentum. He noted that small and medium-sized enterprises already contribute more than 63 percent of the UAE’s non-oil GDP and that the country leads among 56 global economies in creating supportive conditions for SMEs.

Alongside the entrepreneurship initiative, several other programs were launched. These include a specialized training scheme for 50 Emirati content creators in economics and entrepreneurship, a project management experts program to qualify 500 Emiratis in residential construction, and a tax agent program designed to license 500 Emirati professionals in collaboration with the Federal Tax Authority. The government also announced plans to support the launch of 250 Emirati-owned real estate companies and to organize nationwide entrepreneurship expos in schools and universities to showcase youth-led business projects.

The new campaign underlines the UAE’s efforts to diversify its economy and strengthen its startup ecosystem. Sheikh Mohammed called on all institutions to contribute to the success of the initiative, encouraging young people to take part in shaping the country’s future.