Research Problem and Background
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), as one of the Persian Gulf countries, has succeeded in positioning itself at the forefront of transformation and development despite possessing a non-democratic political system and a traditional authoritarian system of governance. By adopting distinctive development strategies, the country has achieved remarkable economic progress. Against this background, the central research question of the present study is: How have the governing elites in the United Arab Emirates contributed to the realization of economic development?
This study is based on the hypothesis that the governing elites of the United Arab Emirates have played a decisive role in promoting economic development by forming a cohesive governing elite coalition, adopting diverse fiscal, trade, and investment policies, and ensuring the rapid implementation of government decisions. These measures have significantly contributed to improving the country's economic development indicators and sustaining economic growth.
This research is conducted within the theoretical framework of Peter Evans's Developmental State Theory. Evans emphasizes the role of an efficient bureaucracy and development-oriented elites in the process of development and argues that successful states create the institutional capacity required for industrial and economic development through institutional cohesion and close linkages with society. His principal argument is that certain states, by relying on development-oriented elites, facilitate collective action and create the conditions necessary for development through strategic investment in infrastructure. Within this framework, the governing elite coalition constitutes one of the principal determinants of the success of developmental states.
The existing literature indicates that numerous studies have examined the role of the state in economic development. Evans (2004), Kohli (2004), among others, emphasize the importance of state capacity and development-oriented elites in the development process. Likewise, studies on the United Arab Emirates (e.g., Al-Khatib et al., 2021; and Ulrichsen, 2012) have primarily focused on economic growth, economic diversification, and human development indicators. Nevertheless, relatively few studies have directly examined the role of the governing elite coalition within Evans's theoretical framework in relation to the UAE's development policies. The present study seeks to fill this gap in the existing literature.
Research Objectives
The primary objective of this study is to analyze the role and strategies of the governing elites in the economic development of the United Arab Emirates based on Peter Evans's theoretical perspective.
Research Method
This study adopts a descriptive–analytical research method. The data were collected from library resources, scholarly articles, policy documents issued by the UAE government, and international statistical reports published by the World Bank and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
The theoretical framework of the study is based on Peter Evans's Developmental State Theory, with particular emphasis on the concept of embedded autonomy. Within this framework, the roles of state institutions, bureaucratic coherence, and the governing elite coalition in the process of economic development are examined.
Research Findings
Within the theoretical framework adopted in this study, economic development is defined as a multidimensional process that extends beyond the quantitative growth of gross domestic product (GDP). It encompasses structural transformation of the economy, increased productivity, improved resource allocation, enhanced employment, and the strengthening of the state's institutional capacity. In this context, the state, as the central actor in the development process, plays a decisive role in directing development through macroeconomic policymaking, economic regulation, and the establishment of institutional infrastructure. According to Developmental State Theory, an efficient bureaucracy, institutional cohesion, and the presence of development-oriented elites constitute the principal prerequisites for achieving sustainable economic growth.
According to Peter Evans's analytical framework, the developmental state is characterized by embedded autonomy. This concept refers to the state's ability to maintain institutional autonomy from particularistic interests while simultaneously establishing strong structural and institutional linkages with society and the private sector. This model is realized through four complementary state roles—**custodian, demiurge, midwife, and husbandry**—which collectively facilitate industrial and economic development.
The findings of the study indicate that the United Arab Emirates possesses the principal characteristics of a developmental state. Prior to the 1950s, the country's economy was based on a limited subsistence structure. However, following the discovery of oil and the establishment of the federation in 1971, the country entered a period of rapid economic transformation. In subsequent stages, the government's overarching development strategy focused on economic diversification, reducing dependence on oil revenues, and strengthening the non-oil sectors of the economy. Analysis of macroeconomic indicators demonstrates that, over recent decades, the United Arab Emirates has achieved significant growth in gross domestic product, foreign direct investment (FDI), and human development indicators.
The findings further indicate that the economic development of the United Arab Emirates is the direct outcome of the formation and continuity of a cohesive governing elite coalition within the country's federal monarchical system. By combining traditional sources of legitimacy rooted in tribal structures with modern institutions of governance, the UAE government has succeeded in establishing a high degree of socio-political stability.
The governance structure of the United Arab Emirates combines centralized authority at the federal level with the relative autonomy of the individual emirates. This institutional arrangement has facilitated rapid decision-making, centralized policymaking, and the coordinated implementation of development programs.
The coalition among the governing elites of the principal emirates—particularly Abu Dhabi and Dubai—has played a significant role in maintaining political stability and ensuring the continuity of development policies.
The development strategies adopted by the governing elites have been formulated and implemented within the framework of the country's national vision documents. These strategic frameworks aim to enhance global competitiveness, diversify the national economy, expand non-oil exports, and strengthen an innovation-driven economy. They have also contributed to improving coordination between state institutions and the private sector.
The UAE government has implemented a coordinated package of development policies in various fields, including:
Fiscal policies;
Monetary policies;
Trade policies;
Investment policies;
Privatization policies.
Finally, the development of advanced technologies, artificial intelligence (AI), e-government, and the knowledge-based economy has also played an important role in the structural transformation of the country's economy.
Conclusion
Overall, the experience of the United Arab Emirates demonstrates that, in developing countries, a coalition of development-oriented governing elites can play a pivotal role in accelerating structural transformation and achieving sustainable economic growth. This finding supports Peter Evans's argument that a developmental state must simultaneously possess two essential characteristics: an efficient bureaucracy and governing elites that pursue developmental objectives through close engagement with society.
 From the perspective of Peter Evans's theoretical framework, the United Arab Emirates exhibits the principal characteristics of a developmental state. The country's governing elites, which have achieved high rates of economic growth and successful structural transformation, have created the institutional capacity required for national development through the formation of a cohesive coalition of development-oriented leaders and the establishment of strategic relationships with citizens and the business sector.
Accordingly, the experience of the United Arab Emirates indicates that institutional capacity, coherent policymaking, and the strategic orientation of governing elites have collectively enabled the state to realize rapid economic development. The findings of this study therefore support Evans's proposition that development is not determined solely by economic resources; rather, it depends fundamentally on the state's institutional capabilities, bureaucratic effectiveness, and the capacity of development-oriented elites to formulate and implement coherent long-term development strategies.