The UAE's commitment

The UAE has set and continuously develops its legislations and policies to cater to immediate needs for a sustainable socio-economic and environmental development. It also welcomes discussions and collaborations with other governments and regional and international organisations that share the same vision of enhancing the cause of sustainability. Towards this end, the UAE has participated and concluded a wide scope of treaties and conventions that aim to achieve these initiatives. They are:

Policies on humanitarian work

The UAE's aid has only humanitarian objectives. It is neither governed by politics nor is not limited by geography, race, colour or religion of the beneficiary. This policy was laid down by the founder President of the UAE, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan who stressed that foreign aid and assistance is one of the basic pillars of the UAE's foreign policy.

When formulating its approach to providing foreign aid, the UAE has adopted the idea of sustainable development and improving the welfare of all mankind.

In order to consolidate the impact of its foreign aid, the UAE Cabinet formed the UAE Humanitarian Committee, which aims to channelise and combine the collective expertise of the UAE's humanitarian responders in order to facilitate, oversee and coordinate the country's humanitarian aid.

The UAE's contributions to the world

Africa

Africa was the continent to receive the largest portion of the UAE's foreign aid in 2014; AED 14.68 billion (USD 4 billion). Aids reached the following countries: Egypt, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia, Sudan, Algeria, Somalia, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Niger, Mauritania and Ghana.

Asia

Asia was the continent to receive the second largest allocation of the UAE's foreign aid in 2014; it received AED 5.12 billion (USD 1.39 billion). Aids reached the following countries: Jordan, Palestine, Yemen, Syria Pakistan, Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia.

For more details, read more about humanitarian aid to foreign countries.

Charity in figures

According to the UAE Interact website, between 1971 and 2014, government and non-government organisations in the UAE contributed AED 173 billion in foreign aid to 178 countries across the world.

AED 129 billion emanated from government institutions, AED 30.5 billion came from the Abu Dhabi Development Fund, 5.7 billion came from Emirates Red Crescent and AED 2.9 billion came from Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation.

Environmental laws and conventions

• Lifting the ban of import of all living animals, their meat, product and offal from the Arab Republic of Egypt (PDF)
• Procedures organising shark fishing (PDF)
• Prohibition and regulating the import of vegetables from some of the European Union Countries (PDF)
• Ministerial Decree No. 849 for 2010 amending the Ministerial Decree No. 554 for 2009 regarding Banned and Restricted Use of Pesticides in the UAE (PDF)
• Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer (PDF, 250 KB)
• Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer
• Basel Convention on the Control of Trans-boundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their Disposal
• United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

Refer to the UAE's State of Environment Report 2015 (PDF, 3.7 MB) for a full list of International and Regional Environmental Conventions signed by the UAE.

View all environmental laws of the UAE.

Human rights

The UAE is a party to the following international human rights treaties:

• International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD ) (1974)
• Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC ) (1997)
• Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW ) (2004)
• Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD ) (2010) (PDF)
• Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT ) (2012)

• UN's Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Optional Protocol (OP-CRPD) (2008).

In addition, the UAE is party to:

• Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide
• Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Two Additional Protocols of 1977
• ILO Conventions on the subjects of working hours, forced labour, labour inspections, night work for women, equal pay, the minimum age for employment and the worst forms of child labour
• The Convention against Transnational Organised Crime: the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (The Palermo Protocol)
• The Arab Charter of Human Rights.

The UAE is a signatory to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Read about the UAE and the UN human rights' treaty bodies.

Anti-Hatred, terrorism laws

• Federal Decree Law No. 34 of 2023 concerning Combating Discrimination, Hatred and Extremism

• Anti money Laundering and Terrorist Fnancing Laws and Legislations – Ministry of Justice

Related links

• Measures to Combat Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Crimes - Ministry of Economy

Anti-Human trafficking laws

• Federal Law No. 51 of 2006 on Combating Human Trafficking Crimes as amended under Federal Law No. 24 of 2023 

Federal Law No. 15 of 1993 Regulating the Transfer and Transplant of Human Organs aims to achieve the following:

• Control the process of preserving and transplanting human organs, tissues and cells
• Prevent trafficking human organs, tissues and cells
• Protect the rights of donors and recipients of human organs, tissues and cells.

Bylaw - on Federal Law No. 18 of 2009

The UAE introduced a bylaw in 2011 which is a regulation on Federal Law No. 18 of 2009. The bylaw modified the process of registration of births and deaths. This has been specifically developed so that parents can strictly confirm to birth and death registrations of children, which would help check human trafficking.

On Climate change

The UAE collaborates with the relevant international agencies and bodies namely United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, International Renewable Energy Agency, G20, G77 and relevant NGOs.

The UAE is a contributor to the following agencies:

• International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
• UNFCCC Conference of Parties meetings (UNFCCC)
• World Energy Council (WEC)
• Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All)
• Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN)
• Open Working Group of the Sustainable Development Goal (OWG-SDG).

Read more about the sustainable development goal Partnerships for the goals.