The world has entered a new stage of advancement. Innovation is driving economies at a rapid pace. This is to keep pace with new developments in technology, which affects all our lives - from improving the level of services to achieving sustainable development.

Over the past decade, the UAE has established itself as a pioneer of change worldwide. Thanks to the insight and vision of our wise leadership, the UAE is a global centre for attracting and nurturing talent. It is also a hub for a new generation of innovators who are capable of tackling future challenges. This is what has enabled the country to grow across global indicators and rankings. It’s all thanks to the government’s strategy on innovation.

This year, Expo 2020 will bear witness to the UAE’s push to promote creativity and innovation. The exhibition is the largest forum of its kind to showcase innovation. Expo 2020 will be held under the theme "Connecting Minds, Creating the Future", and will galvanize knowledge sharing between nations.

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) will launch several initiatives aimed at driving innovation and creativity across the board. This is to achieve the vision of the UAE government to assess government policies, with the aim to create an environment that supports innovation.

Thanks to these efforts, the UAE will expectedly be among the most innovative governments in the world by 2021. Therefore, MoF has embraced innovation as its core principle for every practice, process and service, and has launched several initiatives to spur the culture of innovation in the UAE.

As part of a federal government initiative, MoF launched the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund four years ago. With a total value of AED 2 billion, the aim was to create a programme that promotes innovation and shapes the future of the UAE’s economy. This is achieved by guarantees backed by the federal government for innovators, as well as services of the innovation accelerator programme to support innovators and unleash their full potential. Our work has been successful thus far thanks to the commitment, and collaboration between government and private entities. Furthermore, we are redoubling our efforts to place innovation at the top of our list of priorities. We want to make sure innovation remains part of our strategy and initiatives, in order to achieve the vision of our government.

Thus far, the fund has received 575 applications from 53 countries worldwide and has provided guarantees worth of AED 15 million. The support has helped members obtain financing for their projects with a total value of AED 61 million.

MoF continues to push innovation as an imperative to sustainable growth, and looks forward to strengthening cooperation with its strategic partners, business leaders and members of Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund. We will achieve this by placing innovation as the primary focus of our activities to enhance the standing of the UAE on the global stage. As we have learned from our wise leadership, we do not stop once we have achieved a specific success. Success is an ongoing process. One that is bolstered by people who provide solutions to the challenges we face.