UAE hits near-perfect digital services maturity score in new UN report
ISIDORA CIRIC (ABU DHABI)The UAE has achieved a near-perfect result of 95% in the UN's latest Government Electronic and Mobile Services Maturity Index (GEMS 2024). It received full marks in 24 out of 35 key performance indicators, putting it in the top tier of the "very advanced maturity" category - an honour reserved for only three of the 17 countries assessed.With a score of 0.95, the UAE came just 0.01 points behind the top-ranked country, Saudi Arabia. What set the UAE apart, however, was the consistency and depth of its digital government infrastructure, especially in mobile services, where it clearly led the region.The report, published by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, evaluates government service maturity across three core areas: Service Availability and Development; User Uptake and Satisfaction; and Government Outreach and Engagement.The UAE claimed the top spot in the first cluster with a flawless 100%. It also secured the highest position in the third cluster, where it shared the lead with Saudi Arabia at 99%. In the second cluster, the UAE came in second with a score of 88%, again one of the highest in the region.The GEMS Index stands apart from other international digital rankings by going beyond basic service availability. It also looks at how services evolve, whether people use them, how satisfied they are, and how well governments engage the public. The assessment spans 100 essential services people rely on in daily life - from health and education to employment, transport, and institutional procedures.The UAE delivered exceptionally high marks across all categories, but its edge was most visible in mobile service delivery. Of the 35 key performance indicators evaluated across all platforms, it ranked first in eight and shared the top spot in another 16, the majority of which were linked to mobile access and functionality. These included everything from service availability and platform sophistication to accessibility for people with disabilities, multilingual support, and overall user satisfaction.This year's results show clear progress for the UAE. The country improved by three percentage points over last year's score of 92%, reflecting the leadership's approach of not just expanding digital services, but also paying attention to how well they work in practice.
The Arab region as a whole showed modest improvement, with the average maturity score rising from 43% in 2023 to 45% in 2024. The report recorded a 16% increase in the number of services evaluated this year, which it said points to a broader regional move toward digital transformation, as more governments scale up efforts to digitise public services.
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