The UAE has maintained its first place globally in the mobile subscription index, while advancing from second to first in the international mobile broadband Internet subscription index, according to the UN E-Government Survey 2020.

The UAE also ranked first in the Gulf, Arab Region, and Western Asia, second in Asia and the seventh globally in the Telecommunication Infrastructure Index (TII), reported Emirates news agency Wam, citing the UN report.

As for the Internet users index, the UAE moved up to fifth from 13th globally, achieving a qualitative leap in the fixed broadband subscription index, as it moved up to 29th from 68th in the world.

These achievements resulted from efforts of the TII Executive Team headed by the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and UAE mobile operators (Etisalat and du), where the team worked to raise the country’s ranking in the TII sub-indicators by launching a number of initiatives over the past years, contributing to maintaining the UAE as a world leader in such indicators, the Wam report said.

Tariq Al Awadhi, Executive Director of Spectrum Affairs Department, TII Executive Team Leader, and Head of TRA's National Agenda Team, said: "The TRA has developed plans and strategies that contribute to strengthening the telecommunications sector infrastructure, out of its belief in the central role that this sector plays in achieving the UAE Vision 2021 and National Agenda goals. Telecom operators in the country have allotted a huge budget for infrastructure investment of up to AED 36 billion, making the UAE’s infrastructure among the best in the world in terms of fibre services and overall coverage."

Al Awadhi stressed that the significant development in UAE’s telecommunications sector infrastructure comes in preparation for the upcoming milestones.

"This achievement reflects the development and quality of the telecom sector infrastructure in the UAE, which was a key enabler that contributed to the business continuity of vital sectors in the country during the Covid-19 crisis, as well as raising UAE's readiness for future changes and technology. Owing to the evolved and quality infrastructure, the UAE was able to easily adapt to variables, adopt smart techniques such as distance learning and remote working, provide services ensuring the natural pace of work, and provide opportunities for growth in light of the ever-changing world.

"This achievement also reflects the efforts of the TRA in implementing the directives and vision of UAE’s wise leadership to up the readiness of the telecommunications sector to leverage modern technology in the country, especially 5G, where the UAE ranked 1st in the Arab Region and 4th globally in launching and using 5G networks. All this thanks to the cooperation and coordination with mobile operators to deploy and operate 5G networks, and the continued work and collaboration to develop the telecommunications infrastructure in keeping pace with future requirements, thus contributing to the on-going global leadership of the UAE in this sector," he added.

The UAE has been ranked first in the GCC, Arab region, and Western Asia, and 8th globally in the Online Service Index (OSI) issued by the United Nations within the E-Government Development Index (EGDI). The UAE is also ranked 4th in Asia in this indicator, advanced one rank in the E-participation Index, progressing to 16th from 17th in the 2018 index cycle.