H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri was appointed Minister of Economy of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) under the new government structure approved in July 2020.
He is chairman of the General Civil Aviation Authority, UAE International Investors Council, and CSR UAE Fund’s Board of Trustees. Prior to his appointment, H.E. Al Marri held important positions in the government as a senior, top-ranking official. He was the Secretary General of the UAE Cabinet since 2017, during which he was instrumental in strengthening the interdependence between the federal and local governments. In this role, he also spearheaded many initiatives to get the pulse of the people and know their sentiments, as well as build the UAE’s long-lasting relations with international organizations such as the World Economic Forum.
H.E. Bin Touq formerly served as the head of Securities and Commodities Authority, and was also the former Director General of the Executive Office of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. He was part of the high-profile team that was behind the launch of ‘Area 2071,’ the nucleus of the future envisioned in the UAE Centennial Plan 2071.
Furthermore, the UAE Minister of Economy, in his previous post, took part in the unveiling of the Hatta Economic Zone development project and the relaunching of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development. In addition, he was the CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, enabling him to play a vital role in the successful launch of Dubai 10X and other initiatives of national importance.
The Dubai 10X initiative, in particular, aims to strengthen the emirate’s bid to become the city of the future. H.E. Al Marri is a member of the Boards of Directors of different federal entities. His memberships allow him to actively support the development of priority sectors in the country such as the Golden Visa initiative, which seeks to attract talented individuals from across the world.
The UAE Minister of Economy holds a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Sheffield in the UK. Also, he is a graduate of the UAE Government Leaders Program and Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development.
HIS EXCELLENCY ABDULLA BIN TOUQ AL MARRI
Minister of Economy & Cabinet Member
His Excellency Abdulla bin Touq been appointed as Minister of Economy of the UAE in light of the recent governmental reform in July 2020. He is driven by a purpose to
serve the vision and growth of the United Arab Emirates, by re-imagining, re- designing, and re-engineering today's economy into a diverse and sustainable one.
He was appointed as Secretary General of the UAE’s Cabinet in 2017.
As a pioneer and bridge-builder, he has launched many new instruments, bridging the gaps between the different areas of government: between Cabinet decisions at the federal and local government; between UAE and international organizations – leading the UAE-World Economic Forum partnership; between government and businesses – creating UAE Reglab, allowing for future technology-focused policies, laws, and regulations to be tested before being launched; and between government and citizens – launching the new Pulse Center which exists to accelerate the weak signals from society into theCabinet agenda.
Prior to this, His Excellency was appointed as Director General of the Executive Office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, where he was
one of the founders of Area 2071. Area 2071 is a global first: a 100,000 square-feet cluster of X-labs bringing together government, corporates, and startups, to solve for
‘billion-people’ problems. In addition, he championed the regional transformation of the Hatta Development Project, which has subsequently turned a historic district into a thriving hub for tourism, agriculture, and the economy. Furthermore, his deep belief in a ‘people-first’ approach led him to re-launch the Mohammed bin Rashid Centre for Leadership Development, where we can train the next generation of government leaders.
Bin Touq also served as interim CEO of Dubai Future Foundation, where he spearheaded the launch of Dubai 10X, which sets the Government of Dubai on a mission to be 10 years ahead of all other cities. He shares his wealth of experience – taking inspiration from his civil engineering background, to his on the ground government transformation work – with 10+ boards. For example, as a board member of the Authority of Identity and Citizenship, he was the driver behind the 10-year Golden-Visa scheme, designed to attract global investors, scientists, and entrepreneurs to the UAE. He also sits on the board of his childhood school, Rashid and Latifa School, to ensure that together we can raise the future generation of Emirati pioneers.
