Today's Edition
SARA ALZAABI (ABU DHABI)
Women have been integral partners in the UAE’s development journey, with empowerment established as a core priority since the country’s early years. This commitment has produced remarkable results, positioning the UAE as a regional role model for gender balance, as women continue to take on increasingly prominent roles across diverse industries.
A recent KPMG report highlighted the UAE’s success in advancing women’s participation in leadership and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), driven largely by the efforts of its Gender Balance Council. Today, women represent 70% of all university graduates in the country and 56% of STEM graduates from public universities.
In the workforce, they account for about 46% of all employees, 66% of public sector positions, 45% of roles in the national space sector, and about 20% in the nuclear industry.
With women gaining greater influence and decision-making power across businesses and industries, KPMG examined their perspectives and found an optimistic outlook for the region’s economy.
According to KPMG’s Middle East Female Leaders Outlook 2025, a large majority (87%) of surveyed women executives are confident that their industries will experience growth over the next three years, despite global economic uncertainties.
In fact, 64% expect growth between 2.5% and 9.9% during this period.
The report also revealed that 74% of respondents believe achieving gender equity in the C-suite would help organisations meet their growth targets, while 45% confirmed that ESG principles have been integrated into their business strategies to drive greater value.
“Women leaders in the Middle East are demonstrating that resilience and clarity move together. Their confidence in growth is clear, matched by a call for stronger alignment between vision and execution within organisations,” said Kholoud Moussa, Partner, Head of Our Impact Plan at KPMG Middle East.
Balancing investments in both people and technologies would be key to sustaining growth, the respondents said. Sixty per cent, however, said their organisations were prioritising talent over tech.
Forty-four per cent identified AI as a key investment priority, and 72% expect to see returns on AI investments within three years. Notably, 62% already attribute improvements in efficiency and productivity to AI, making it a vital factor in boosting competitiveness.
