The UAE Cabinet has approved the country’s largest national budget, with expenditures reaching Dh71.5 billion ($19.47 billion) for the 2025 fiscal year, reflecting a 12% increase from 2024.
Despite the rise in expenditures, the budget remains balanced, as revenues are also projected to match the spending figure.
Breaking down the figures, almost 40% of the 2025 budget will be dedicated to social development and pensions, amounting to Dh27.9 billion. Within this category, education will receive the largest share (15.3% of the total), followed by healthcare (8%), pensions (8%), social affairs (5.2%) and public services (2.5%).
The second umbrella category in terms of percentage of funds is government affairs, which accounts for 35.7% of the total budget, totalling Dh25.5 billion. Meanwhile, the infrastructure and economic affairs sector has been allocated 3.6% of the budget, amounting to Dh2.6 billion; while 4%, or Dh2.9 billion, has been designated for the financial investments sector.Â
The budget is a part of the UAE’s ongoing financial strategy for 2022-2026. Last October, the country approved a three-year budget plan amounting to Dh192 billion ($52.3 billion) for the period encompassing 2024 to 2026.
The country’s governmental capital expenditure increased by over 50% in the first half of the year and is expected to continue to rise through 2025 in 2026.
