UAE established innovation as a culture

The UAE succeeded in establishing innovation, a key value and a distinctive characteristic of future societies, as a culture serving and developing all strategic sectors, Vice President, Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said during an award ceremony on Thursday.

"The UAE, led by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has changed the traditional idea about government work and employed innovation as an approach and a culture while establishing a competitive knowledge-based economy and enhancing services to achieve prosperity and happiness for society," he said at the Government Innovations Ceremony held by the Mohammed bin Rashid Centre for Government Innovation as part of UAE Innovation Week, being held from 20th-26th November.

Sheikh Mohammed honoured the three winners of the Afkari (My Ideas) competition, launched last year by the Centre, for coming up with innovative solutions to enhance government work and serve society.

First place winner Shaikha Al Raihi, an employee at the Emirates Identity Authority, proposed a customer friendly service in an app called My Services.

Second place winner Sheikh Khalid Al Qasimi, from the Ministry of Interior, proposed using drones to detect explosives, while third place winner Dr Huda Abdouli, from the Ministry of Health and Prevention, submitted a proposal for a 'Diabetic Footcare Clinic'.

"We are proud of your efforts and participations. All of them are valuable and appreciated. All of them are the good fruits of the creative ideas of nationals. We want each and every government employee to be innovative. Do not hesitate to present your ideas, because any idea, however simple, could be transformed into a project that can contribute to the development of government work and ultimately achieve happiness for our society," Sheikh Mohammed said.

He urged all government entities to encourage all their staff to be creative, and to adopt and develop their ideas to improve performance and increase productivity. "We want each and every government agency to become an incubator for innovation and to embrace its creative employees, support them, and turn their ideas into a reality that benefits society."

Expressing hope in a future being built by the Emirati youth, he said the UAE has long recognised that moving into the future requires the building of innovation and knowledge-based society. "We have worked on creating a favourable environment for talented minds and innovators, launched relevant initiatives and projects and encouraged government agencies, the private sector as well as the individuals, to invest in innovation in order to prepare generations that can master the science and technology of the future. We bolstered this efforts with the launch of the National Innovation Strategy."

Innovation, Sheikh Mohammed added, is no longer a philosophy or theories. "It is a vital need for societies preparing to move into the future."

"We have set our direction. Our goal is clear. So far we are satisfied at what we have achieved, but we aspire for bigger and more effective achievements.", he said.

Addressing the winners of the competition and the audience, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid said, "This is an encouraging beginning. We are waiting for more. We want you to be the driving force in the entities you work for to serve your society and state. We will support you to turn your ideas and innovations into a reality."

Those who attended the ceremony included H.H. Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, H.H. Lt. General Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Mohammad bin Abdullah Al Gergawi, Minister of Cabinet Affairs and The Future and Chair of the National Committee for Science, Technology and Innovation, along with ministers, senior officials and representatives of the private sector.