By Oliver Renwick, Founder & Managing Director, Palmes Advisory Group
A National Vision Aimed at the Stars
The United Arab Emirates has never been a nation content with the ordinary. From the world’s tallest towers to its thriving global capital markets, the country’s trajectory has been one of ambition, acceleration and strategic imagination. Nowhere is this more clearly exemplified than in its growing leadership in the field of space.
The UAE has not merely dipped a toe into the space economy; it has leapt. With the launch of the Hope Probe to Mars in 2020, the country became the first Arab nation to reach the Red Planet. Its astronauts – most notably H.E. Dr. Sultan Al Neyadi, who spent six months aboard the International Space Station – have carried the flag into orbit. Behind the headlines lies a robust programme of satellite development, academic partnerships and a clear roadmap for future missions. These are not symbolic gestures. They are expressions of national capability, long-term planning and an unwavering belief in the UAE’s potential to contribute meaningfully to one of the most advanced sectors in human history.
A Source of National Pride and Strategic Clarity
It is right that the UAE takes great pride in its space achievements. These milestones represent not only scientific prowess but also the endurance, talent and vision of the Emirati people, reflecting the spirit of the late Sheikh Zayed and the leadership he instilled.
But while celebration is warranted, the UAE’s approach has never been sentimental. It is strategic.
The country understands that space is not simply a scientific playground; it is fast becoming the next domain of global competition. With satellite infrastructure underpinning everything from communications and defence to agriculture and logistics, the ability to support and grow space-based capabilities is now a sovereign imperative.
From Oil to Orbit: The Continuity of Vision
The UAE’s momentum in space is not an outlier – it is the logical extension of a decades-long transformation strategy. At its core, this is about diversification: building an economy that thrives not just on natural resources but on human ingenuity and high-tech capability.
Where once the objective was to reduce dependence on oil by investing abroad, today the goal is more sophisticated: to reinvest the fruits of resource wealth into domestic capacity, intellectual infrastructure and advanced technologies. Space is a powerful, forward-looking expression of this shift.
Just as the UAE has created a world-class logistics and aviation hub, a thriving financial centre and an increasingly vibrant cultural and knowledge economy, it is now cultivating a serious and enduring role in the commercial and strategic space economy. The playbook is consistent: long-term planning, bold investment, global collaboration and clarity of purpose.
Free Trade, Free Orbit
There is also a philosophical underpinning. The UAE’s economic model is one of free and unimpeded movement of capital, people, goods and ideas. Its space programme echoes this ethos.
As new global players crowd into low-Earth orbit and beyond, the UAE’s participation in a mature space sector – built on access, collaboration and reliability – will further reinforce this flexibility and position it as a neutral and capable partner in an increasingly polarised world.
Such an approach also ensures that when the next generation of Emirati scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs look upward, they do so with a credible national track record behind them – one built on sustained ambition and speaking clearly to the country’s future.
Space as Strategic Legacy
This is what makes the UAE’s space ambitions so compelling: they are not reactive, they are architectural. They are not experiments; they are pillars of national strategy. The space economy will be one of the great theatres of human innovation, geopolitical competition and economic opportunity.
The UAE’s decision to engage deliberately, invest deeply and think generationally about space reflects the seriousness of its leadership – and its commitment to shaping the future, not simply observing it.
