Scope of Vision 2021 for health

Providing world-class healthcare is one of the six pillars of the National Agenda in line with Vision 2021 . The Government will work in collaboration with all health authorities in the country to have all public and private hospitals accredited according to clear national and international quality standards of medical services and staff.

Furthermore, the National Agenda emphasises the importance of preventive medicine and seeks to reduce cancer and lifestyle related diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases to ensure a longer, healthier life for citizens. In addition, the Agenda aims to reduce the prevalence of smoking and increase the healthcare system's readiness to deal with epidemics and health risks. This will result in the UAE becoming among the best countries in the world in terms of quality of healthcare by the year 2021.

The UAE has set Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to measure its performance against its targets of 2021. They are:

1. Number of deaths from cardiovascular diseases per 100,000 Population
2. Prevalence of diabetes
3. Prevalence of obesity amongst children
4. Average healthy life expectancy
5. Prevalence of smoking any tobacco product
6. Number of deaths from cancer per 100,000 population
7. Percentage of accredited health facilities
8. Healthcare Quality index
9. Number of physicians per 1,000 population
10. Number of nurses per 1,000 population

Federal budget

For the year 2020, the health sector was allocated AED 4.84 billion budget, which is 6.89 per cent of the total federal budget.

Innovation in health

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Fund to Finance Innovation

In November 2015, Sheikh Mohammed launched the Fund to Finance Innovation with a value of AED2 billion, which is a federal initiative designed to provide financing solutions for innovators across various sectors within the UAE. Priority will go to renewable energy, transport, education, health, technology, water and space sectors, and applicants must provide a business development plan to be eligible for funding. The fund is managed by Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with local banks and various investment entities.

National Innovation Strategy

In 2014, H. H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the National Innovation Strategy that aims to make the UAE among the most innovative nations in the world within seven years. The strategy targets seven sectors:

• renewable energy
• transport
• education
• health
• technology
• water
• space.

The first phase includes 30 national initiatives to be completed within three years, which include:

• new legislation
• innovation incubators
• investment in specialised skills
• private-sector incentives
• international research partnerships
• an innovation drive within government.

The strategy will promote advanced technologies in healthcare services. It will stimulate the growth of the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries while also working with strategic partners to support medical research.

For more information read:

• National Innovation Strategy -UAE Innovates (PDF)

Health strategies

Additionally, the UAE Governments launched Abu Dhabi Healthcare Strategic Plan and Dubai Health Strategy 2021.