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UAE government initiatives for promoting skills-based economy have a positive impact on the economy
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More women enroll for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) courses
UAE ranks first in the MENA region and second globally in overall business skills, only after Luxemburg, said Coursera’s Global Skills Report 2021.
This year’s study draws on performance data–since the onset of Covid-19 pandemic– from more than 77 million learners on Coursera platform to benchmark skills proficiency across business, technology and data science in more than 100 countries.
UAE learners have been placed within the top 97 percentile or higher in business skills in communication, entrepreneurship, leadership and management, and strategy and operations.
These proficiencies are fundamental to accurately interpret and respond to the opportunities and challenges that determine an organization’s success.
While UAE’s overall business skills proficiency ranks near the top of the list globally, technology and data science skills represent areas for continued growth.
Also, with the UAE government’s prioritizing digital transformation as a driver of national development and economic advancement, the Global Skills Report presents UAE professionals with an opportunity to upskill in these fields, as the country’s talent pools for technology and data science skills rank only 72 and 71 respectively.
Coursera is one of the largest online learning platforms in the world, with 82 million registered learners as of March 31, 2021. Coursera partners with over 200 leading university and industry partners to offer a broad catalog of content and credentials.
“In recent years, the UAE government has implemented numerous initiatives, aimed at promoting a skills-based economy. These are having a positive impact on the economy as evidenced by the UAE’s business leadership position in our rankings,” said Anthony Tattersall, Coursera vice president for EMEA.
A promising finding has been a rise in women’s enrolment in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) from 33 percent in 2018-19 to 41 percent in 2019-20.
Another notable outlier in the overall technology skills performance of the country was its competitiveness in Security Engineering, where the UAE ranked in the 77 percentile.
Also, despite scoring in just the 34 percentile in overall data science skills, UAE learners have demonstrated strong capabilities in the highly-valued area of Data Analysis (82 percent), which is increasingly playing a part in streamlining business processes and enhancing employee productivity