The UAE expects a 20 per cent increase in the number of patent applications in 2022, aided by a new industrial property law that aims to attract more foreign investments to priority sectors and making it easier for start-ups to operate.
The Ministry of Economy received 2,428 patent applications last year, up from 1,917 requests in 2020, mainly within sectors including machinery, construction, chemical engineering, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, electricity, metals and information and communication technology, the ministry said in a media briefing on Tuesday.
The total number of patent applications tripled over the past decade to reach 24,511 in 2020, up from 8,028 in 2010.
This new law forms a part of extensive legal reforms announced last November.
The UAE will reach its growth goals by "accelerating the transformation towards a new, more flexible and sustainable knowledge-based economic model that keeps pace with the latest economic trends in which innovation, technology, research and development, national competencies, investors, talent and entrepreneurs are the key drivers of progress", said Ahmad Al Falasi, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs.
The number of patent filings is one of the metrics used to gauge the level of innovation in a country, according to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (Wipo). The UAE – the Arab world’s second-largest economy – climbed one spot in Wipo's Global Innovation Index 2021 to rank 33rd out of 132 countries.
The country ranked 32nd among the 51 high-income group economies and third among the 19 economies in Northern Africa and Western Asia.
Wipo placed the UAE at the top spot among Arab nations for the sixth consecutive year, citing its infrastructure, business sophistication, human capital and research and market sophistication.
The UAE's new industrial property and patents law is expected to particularly benefit individual investors, universities or academic institutions that oversee the development of inventions by their students, companies with inventions or R&D centres, innovative entrepreneurs, small and medium businesses and start-ups, the information and technology sector, and tech companies.
The Ministry of Economy reduced the direct cost of applying for patents from Dh7,500 to Dh1,000 for students, Dh3,500 for entrepreneurs and Dh5,000 for large companies, making it a more accessible, cheaper and faster process for a range of applicants, Mr Al Falasi said.
The new legislation introduces fundamental amendments to the previous industrial property law No. 31 of 2006 to improve the intellectual property and patent environment in the country, he said.
Through the new law, the ministry aims to reduce the time taken for patent examinations to six months, from 42 months previously, in line with best practices followed by global patent offices in Japan, South Korea, US, China and EU.
The new law now protects industrial property rights by adding rights that were not included in the previous legislation. These are the protection of integrated circuit layout designs and the protection of undisclosed information that will encourage research in industrial and commercial areas.
The new law will also add several new procedures for flexibility in managing and examining applications.
Firstly, this includes a fast-track for patent applications that require swift actions and secondly, converting patent applications to utility certificates and vice versa. Thirdly, it will be possible to divide patent applications, utility certificates and industrial design into several filings to allow protection of the invention in the various stages of its development, the ministry said.
Overall, the new law will create a more competitive and stimulating environment for investment in areas related to innovation and invention, and support the country's industrial development goals, Mr Al Falasi said. It will also increase the UAE's attractiveness as a destination for innovative companies and improve the country's ranking in relevant indicators such as the Global Innovation Index.
In 2014, the UAE introduced its National Innovation Strategy with the aim of making the country one of the world’s most innovative within seven years. The strategy identifies education, health care, technology, transportation, renewable energy, space and water as the main priority sectors.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster who has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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Book%20Details
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Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
8 UAE companies helping families reduce their carbon footprint
Greenheart Organic Farms
This Dubai company was one of the country’s first organic farms, set up in 2012, and it now delivers a wide array of fruits and vegetables grown regionally or in the UAE, as well as other grocery items, to both Dubai and Abu Dhabi doorsteps.
www.greenheartuae.com
Modibodi
Founded in Australia, Modibodi is now in the UAE with waste-free, reusable underwear that eliminates the litter created by a woman’s monthly cycle, which adds up to approximately 136kgs of sanitary waste over a lifetime.
www.modibodi.ae
The Good Karma Co
From brushes made of plant fibres to eco-friendly storage solutions, this company has planet-friendly alternatives to almost everything we need, including tin foil and toothbrushes.
www.instagram.com/thegoodkarmaco
Re:told
One Dubai boutique, Re:told, is taking second-hand garments and selling them on at a fraction of the price, helping to cut back on the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of clothes thrown into landfills each year.
www.shopretold.com
Lush
Lush provides products such as shampoo and conditioner as package-free bars with reusable tins to store.
www.mena.lush.com
Bubble Bro
Offering filtered, still and sparkling water on tap, Bubble Bro is attempting to ensure we don’t produce plastic or glass waste. Founded in 2017 by Adel Abu-Aysha, the company is on track to exceeding its target of saving one million bottles by the end of the year.
www.bubble-bro.com
Coethical
This company offers refillable, eco-friendly home cleaning and hygiene products that are all biodegradable, free of chemicals and certifiably not tested on animals.
www.instagram.com/coethical
Eggs & Soldiers
This bricks-and-mortar shop and e-store, founded by a Dubai mum-of-four, is the place to go for all manner of family products – from reusable cloth diapers to organic skincare and sustainable toys.
www.eggsnsoldiers.com
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
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Company profile
Name: The Concept
Founders: Yadhushan Mahendran, Maria Sobh and Muhammad Rijal
Based: Abu Dhabi
Founded: 2017
Number of employees: 7
Sector: Aviation and space industry
Funding: $250,000
Future plans: Looking to raise $1 million investment to boost expansion and develop new products
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Gulf Under 19s final
Dubai College A 50-12 Dubai College B
Fixtures:
Wed Aug 29 – Malaysia v Hong Kong, Nepal v Oman, UAE v Singapore
Thu Aug 30 - UAE v Nepal, Hong Kong v Singapore, Malaysia v Oman
Sat Sep 1 - UAE v Hong Kong, Oman v Singapore, Malaysia v Nepal
Sun Sep 2 – Hong Kong v Oman, Malaysia v UAE, Nepal v Singapore
Tue Sep 4 - Malaysia v Singapore, UAE v Oman, Nepal v Hong Kong
Thu Sep 6 – Final
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
