New economic licences issued in Abu Dhabi in the first quarter of the year increased by 21 per cent year-on-year as the emirate continues to attract new businesses despite the uncertainty caused by the Iran war.
The latest government data shows that new commercial licences during the January to March period grew by 20 per cent, while professional licences increased by 193 per cent, according to the Abu Dhabi Registration Authority (Adra), an arm of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (Added) that develops and regulates the business sector in the emirate.
New licences in agriculture, fisheries and livestock activities also grew by 5 per cent.
Industrial licences transitioning into the production phase in the first three months of the year increased by three per cent, with 34 new industrial units entering the full operational phase, the data shows.
The number of active licences in the emirate also increased by 12 per cent during the three-month period.
“Amid global and regional challenges and changes, Abu Dhabi continues to demonstrate its ability to transform challenges into opportunities for growth and prosperity,” Added undersecretary Hamad Sayah Al Mazrouei said.
“These strong indicators reaffirm the resilience and attractiveness of Abu Dhabi’s economy, as well as the effectiveness of the emirate’s policies and legislative frameworks in establishing solid foundations for an advanced business sector.”
Abu Dhabi retained its high-grade credit rating with a stable outlook despite economic uncertainty driven by the war in Iran.
The UAE capital's credit rating was affirmed at AA on the back of "very strong fiscal and external metrics", Fitch Ratings said in May. The agency noted that the resilience of Abu Dhabi's oil export revenue amid the Iran crisis "significantly offsets the negative impact of the war".
An AA rating is the third-highest on Fitch's rating scale, just two notches below the top grade. An investment-grade rating makes it easier to access capital markets and raise funds when the need to borrow arises.
The data also shows a rise in Tajer Abu Dhabi (Abu Dhabi Trader) licences, which increased by 17 per cent, while freelance licences surged by 261 per cent.
“Mobdea” licences grew by 15 per cent, reflecting the enabling environment for starting and running businesses in the emirate. A Mobdea licence is a specialised economic licence issued by the Abu Dhabi government (via Adra) that allows Emirati women to run home-based and creative businesses without needing a physical office.
Promotional offers also continued to grow by 2 per cent during the quarter, while advertisements increased by 26 per cent.
Abu Dhabi has continued its shift away from oil and has taken several measures to attract international investors, boost its competitiveness and improve the ease of doing business.
In 2022, the emirate launched an industrial strategy to improve the contribution of the sector to the economy by investing to more than double the emirate’s manufacturing output to Dh172 billion by 2031.
Abu Dhabi also laid out long-term strategies to develop sectors including tourism, aviation and technology, with new investments in artificial intelligence.
