10/05/2026
I've worked in the UAE for over 30 years. I've seen this country build itself into something the world didn't expect.
But walking through Make it in the Emirates this week — I stopped counting how many times I said to myself: I've never seen anything like this and feeling absolute proud.
The numbers alone tell a story worth pausing on:
146,000+ visitors. A 19% jump from the last edition.
1,245 exhibitors across 12 industrial sectors.
88,000 square meters of national industry on display.
200+ deals and MoUs signed — covering procurement, investment, national content, financing, and technology projects.
And this was the fifth edition. Five years ago, this platform didn't exist.
What struck me most wasn't the scale. It was the substance.
Government, private sector, investors, manufacturers, entrepreneurs — all in the same room, aligned on the same direction.
The Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, ADNOC, Abu Dhabi Investment Office, ADNEC Group — the weight of institutional commitment behind this event is unlike anything I've witnessed in three decades of working here.
What I saw this week is what that ambition actually produces when it's given time, structure, and real investment.
There's a particular kind of pride you feel when a country you've devoted your professional life to shows you it has gone further than you imagined. That's what Make it in the Emirates gave me this year.
The national industry of this country deserves every platform it gets.
This one earned its place — completely.
