The UAE has ranked 19th place in the 2019 Global Talent Competitiveness Index report, retaining its spot in the top 20 and paving the way for Middle Eastern countries.

The National reports that the annual report, which was published by graduate business school INSEAD on Monday, takes into account how countries and cities grow, attract and retain talent. 125 countries and 114 cities are evaluated across all groups of income and levels of development.

Other countries forming part of the top 20 included thirteen in Europe, three in Asia, two in North America and two in Oceania. Switzerland, Singapore and the United States have retained their rankings as the top three.

“The non-European leaders of the GTCI rankings can be broadly classified into two groups: economies that have long benefited from global talent (the United States, Canada and Australia), and economies that have a clear focus on becoming ‘talent hubs’ (Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar),” the report states.

The rankings were based upon six pillars: enable, attract, grow, retain, vocational training skills and general knowledge skills. The UAE boasted strong results in the ‘attract’ pillar, ranking third after Singapore and Luxembourg. External openness, strong vocational and technical skills and high degrees of employability were some of the UAE’s fortes.

On the other hand, the global city rankings were measured on five pillars: enable, attract, grow, retain and be global. Abu Dhabi placed 55th while Dubai placed 59th, both scoring highly in terms of internet access, individuals in social networks and personal safety. On the other hand, room for improvement was seen in the Research & Development expenditure, environmental quality and workforce with tertiary education.

The continent with the highest number of cities (11) in the top 20 was Europe, however Washington DC placed first.

The report found that the highest-ranking countries and cities are often the most open to entrepreneurial talent, and the talent gap between higher and lower-income countries has widened over the last five years.

Felipe Monteiro, INSEAD affiliate professor of strategy and co-editor of the report, said: “Entrepreneurship appears to be a decisive talent to succeed. All types of organisations have to attract and enhance entrepreneurial talent, in an era where ecosystems around the globe are drastically reshaped by digital transformation.”

The report was published in partnership with human resources consultancy The Adecco Group and global digital infrastructure provider Tata Communications.