The first Global Conference on Economic Diversification launched its two-day agenda in Dubai today, Thursday, 31 October 2024, organised by the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG) at its headquarters in the Dubai World Trade Centre.

The conference is set to become an annual event, convening thought leaders from renowned universities, policy-making institutions, and international organisations, to explore policy, thought leadership, methodological, and theoretical research related to economic diversification.

The conference builds on the Economic Diversification Index (EDI) series, the influential publication and dataset MBRSG compiles and publishes annually at the World Government Summit.

In a keynote speech delivered at the inaugural edition of the conference, Her Excellency Alia Bint Abdulla Al Mazrouei, UAE Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, said: “Under the guidance of its wise leadership, the UAE has established a leading global model for economic diversification. Non-oil sectors now account for a remarkable 74 per cent of the country's GDP. Despite rapidly evolving regional and global economic landscapes, the UAE remains committed to implementing policies and strategies that bolster economic competitiveness and sustainability, recognising the transformative power of entrepreneurship, innovation, technology, and forward-thinking industries in shaping our nation's future.”

“We continue our endeavours to stimulate growth in future sectors, such as renewable energy, circular economy, AI, biotechnology, R&D, and advanced manufacturing. Moreover, a wide array of initiatives was launched to enhance the competitiveness of the national entrepreneurship ecosystem, empower women in entrepreneurship across diverse sectors, and support businesses and startups operating in sectors of new economy, technology, and AI, in line with the objectives outlined in the ‘We the UAE 2031’ vision,” H.E. added, highlighting that the hosting of this conference by the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government is yet another reflection of the UAE’s effort to promote global dialogue on sustainable economic progress and addressing related challenges.

For his part, H.E. Dr. Ali bin Sebaa Al Marri, Executive President of MBRSG, said: “The Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government is committed to playing its part in the UAE’s vision for a sustainable future, which significantly prioritises economic diversification. MBRSG not only strives to empower the leaders of tomorrow, but also to develop datasets, insight, and tools for government leaders to use in their informed, evidence-based decision-making process.”

“The Global Conference on Economic Diversification – the first in this annual series of events – fulfils both of these objectives, building on the School’s thought leadership in developing the Global Economic Diversification Index” H.E. explained. “It offers leading specialists and government stakeholders from around the world a platform to share cutting-edge thematic research, analyse global findings and develop policy insights, while also bringing influential decision makers and prominent experts together to discuss challenges to economic diversification and chart the way forward.”

Dr. Fadi Salem, Director of the Policy Research Department at MBRSG and co-chair of the conference remarked that “the first edition of the conference has attracted extensive global participation and welcomed more than 150 experts and participants from 30 countries and over 130 local, regional, and international organisations, including government and academic institutions. Around 70 papers were submitted from academic institutions around the world and reviewed by an international scientific committee of thought leaders and academic experts. A total of 19 papers were accepted to be published by the MBRSG in the conference proceedings, which will be made accessible to researchers and practitioners worldwide.”

The agenda for day one the conference included a series of panel discussions, roundtables, and workshops. Following H.E. Alia Bint Abdulla Al Mazrouei’s speech, Prof. Cesar Hidalgo, Professor of Behavioural Sciences at the Toulouse School of Economics and Co-author of the Economics Complexity Index, delivered another keynote address on the links between economic diversification and complexity.

Next on the schedule was a panel discussion titled ‘Economic Diversification Pathways in the Gulf Region’ where prominent speakers discussed the strategies for economic diversification in the revenue, trade, and output pillars, in light of efforts to diversify away from fossil fuel dependence towards sustainable development. 

The panel featured H.E. Tariq Rashid Al Suwaidi from the UAE Ministry of Economy; Dr. Al Moatasim Al Yaaqubi, Executive Director of the National Programme for Economic Diversification (Tanweea) in Oman; Dr. Jarmo Kotilaine, Chief Economist at Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB), and Dr. Vito Intini, Regional Chief Economist for the Arab States at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Meanwhile, Dr. Khalid Al Wazani, Professor of Economic and Public Policy at MBRSG, moderated the discussion.

Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Agenda, and former Minister Investment in Egypt, then followed with a keynote address on ‘Financing Green Pathways to Economic Diversification’.

The conference continued with an international organisations-focused panel discussion titled ‘Global Reflections on the Challenges of Economic Diversification’, which explored the role of economic diversification in development amid a rapidly changing global landscape.

Moderated by Dr. Nasser Saidi, Co-author of the Global Economic Diversification Index, President of Nasser Saidi & Associates (NS&A), and Former Minister of Economy and Trade in Lebanon, the session featured Dr. Jihad Azour, Director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF); Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, UN Special Envoy on Financing the 2030 Agenda; Dr. Clovis Freire Jr., Chief of the Commodity Research and Analysis Section at the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD); and Dr. Youness Abouyoub, Chief of Governance and State Building at the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (UN ESCWA).

Day one continued with a Closed Policy Council on ‘Advancing Global Economic Diversification Measurement: Towards Data-driven Policy’. The session convened high-level policymakers and academic experts to discuss practical measures of economic diversification, challenges related to measurement and data availability, and potential improvements to expand the impact of the Global EDI index.

The day-one agenda also included two research paper sessions, covering diverse topics including artificial intelligence and economic diversification, informal economic sector legalisation for economic diversification, economic diversification and institutional quality, economic complexity and commodity dependence, as well as economic diversification and decarbonisation in oil and non-oil producing countries. The conference continues on the second day with a series of closed panel discussions.

Held on 31 October and 1 November 2024, the Global Conference on Economic Diversification 2024 is the first of an annual series of events, set to bring together global policy experts, government decision makers, research scholars, and academics from around the world, working on the frontiers of research and practice of economic diversification. The full conference proceedings and the MBRSG’s Global Economic Diversification Report are available at the conference website: https://economicdiversification.com/