UAE Continues to Lead as Regional Hub for Trade, Business, Travel: World Bank.

Abu Dhabi: UAE continues to lead as a regional hub for trade, business, and travel, with a promising economic outlook for 2024 and 2025, according to Roberta Gatti, Chief Economist of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region of the World Bank. In statements made to the Emirates News Agency on the sidelines of the announcement of the World Bank Group's cooperation with the Abu Dhabi Global Market Academy, Gatti highlighted the UAE's progress in economic diversification and reduced reliance on oil.According to Emirates News Agency, Gatti projected the UAE's GDP to grow by 3.4 percent in 2024, with fiscal and monetary surpluses expected to continue in the medium term. She noted that the average growth in the MENA region is anticipated to reach 2.2 percent in 2024, a slight increase from 1.8 percent recorded last year, but still below the pre-pandemic average.The Chief Economist attributed the region's growth rate to the performance of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) economies, which are expected to grow by 1.9 percent in 2024, up from 0.5 percent in 2023. This growth is supported by the expansion of the non-oil sector in most GCC economies. Gatti further anticipated that GCC growth would accelerate to 4.2 percent in 2025, with developing oil-exporting countries growing at 3.3 percent and developing oil-importing countries at 3.5 percent during the same period.Gatti also underscored the critical importance of women's participation in the economy to support prosperity in the MENA region. She noted that closing the gender employment gap could lead to a 51 percent increase in the region's GDP per capita.