DUBAI, 25th January, 2023 (WAM) — The UAE government announced the launch of the “UAE Innovates 2023,” held in collaboration with Executive Councils across the country.

The press conference for the 2023 edition unveiled that it will witness hundreds of events and activities during February.

This was revealed at the press conference led by Huda Al Hashimi, Deputy Minister of Cabinet Affairs for Strategic Affairs; Abeer Tahlak, Director of the Mohammed bin Rashid Centre for Government Innovation; and in the presence and participation of Fatima Al Zaabi, from the Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK); Sharina Lootah, from the Dubai Executive Council; Khulood Elias, from the Sharjah Executive Council; Shouq Al Shamsi, from the Ajman Executive Council; Khalid Al Zarei from the Umm Al Qaiwain Executive Council; and Jamila Al Sagheeri from Diwan Al Amiri in Fujairah.

Speaking at the conference, Huda Al Hashimi stressed that UAE Innovates 2023 will catalyse the nations endeavours in supporting innovation and sustainability, in line with the directives of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in declaring 2023 the “Year of Sustainability”.

She stated that the nation-wide celebrations reflect the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, that the future belongs to whoever can imagine it, design it and implement it, adding that the event will also focus on promoting the culture of innovation in the UAE government and the wider community.

Al Hashimi further stated that UAE Innovates is the largest national event celebrating innovation and talents across the country with government and private sector entities.

For her part, Abeer Tahlak touched upon new features of the UAE Innovates 2023, which will witness hundreds of in-person and virtual events, including competitions, presentations, and innovation hackathons across various regions within the UAE, adding that events during February will reflect the leadership’s vision in adopting and incorporating suitability in vital sectors, primarily; innovation.

This year’s edition of the UAE Innovates Award 2023 will also have an additional category for the most sustainable innovative project, which is a special category included this year, in line with the UAE year of sustainability. In addition, the winners of the UAE Innovates 2023 Award will be recognized in a ceremony that marks the end of the event.

During the press conference, representatives of the UAE Innovates Executive Councils shared details of the events and activities planned from each of the emirates.

Abu Dhabi will witness up to 50 events planned, primarily knowledge sessions, innovation labs, workshops and more, organised by 15 government and private entities.

In Dubai, the main event will be “Innovation Dialogues” that will attract government and private entities as well as the community.

Sharjah will witness 27 workshops, 3 competitions, a virtual forum that attracts community members, in addition to organising two innovation labs.

The events will also showcase 40 academic projects and 27 innovative projects.

In Ajman, activities will focus on organising the virtual innovation exhibition throughout the month, and will witness the participation of 13 government and private entities in 35 events.

In Umm Al Qaiwain, 15 government and private entities will participate in organising numerous activities, namely; showcasing 30 innovative projects, organising 20 workshops and brainstorming sessions, and two major innovation exhibitions.

Furthermore, Fujairah will witness organising 57 events and activities within 5 key pillars, primarily; industry, economy and trade; environmental and municipal services; security and safety; content and new media; in addition to the lifelong education.

One of the key events is the Ministry of Education’s annual National Science, Technology and Innovation Festival from 1st-5th February. The festival, which focuses on “We the UAE 2031” vision, is a pioneering platform to promote a culture of innovation for future generations and will comprise competitions and events, as well as offer a platform to display innovative students’ projects.

A total of four innovative projects will be selected, and the winners will be honoured as part of the festival. The jury, consisting of nine chief innovation officers, will evaluate the entries.

A student retreat will be held for the winners, bringing them face-to-face with ministers to present and develop their ideas for implementation across relevant government entities.

Among the events, multiple partnerships will be launched such as the new collaboration between MBRCGI and noon Mahali that will expand the platform to Emirati product developers to showcase and sell their unique, scalable products with a “Made for UAE Innovates” Stamp, as well as learning how to develop and sell a product through noon, to expand their skills for future products.

The UAE Innovates 2023 will also serve as a platform to launch the partnership between MBRCGI and Ferjan Dubai, to highlight the stories of Emirati innovators and talents and spread the culture of innovation around neighbourhoods in the city.

Since its inception in 2015, UAE Innovates has become an annual flagship event in the UAE that supports the government’s vision to enrich the culture of innovation and to reinforce UAE’s position as a global centre for innovation to benefit the future of humanity.