ABU DHABI, 12th August, 2026 (WAM) -- The Board of Directors of the Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority (TDRA) has announced the renewal of the Public Telecommunications Licences of Emirates Telecommunications Group Company PJSC (e&) and Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company PJSC (du) for another 20 years, based on the Federal Decree-Law on the Regulation of the Telecommunications Sector, as amended.
The renewed licences will be effective from 9th August 2026 until 8th August 2046, replacing the licences issued in 2006. The renewal provides the sector with a long-term regulatory framework that offers the stability required to sustain investment in digital infrastructure and future technologies.
Over the past two decades, the telecommunications sector has evolved from providing traditional services into a strategic enabler of digital transformation, government services and smart cities. According to the latest international indicators, the UAE has ranked first globally in fibre-to-the-home penetration for the tenth consecutive year, reaching 99.7 %.
Talal Belhoul, Chairman of TDRA, said, “The infrastructure of the national economy relies on telecommunications networks across all vital sectors, including government services, financial services, healthcare, education, energy, transport, industry and digital commerce. The next phase takes on added importance in light of the Digital Economy Strategy, which aims to double the digital economy’s contribution to GDP from 9.7 % in 2022 to 19.4 % over the next ten years.“The sector is also expected to gradually transition from connected networks to intelligent, autonomous networks, where artificial intelligence becomes an integral part of the intelligence of the network itself.”
Eng. Majed Sultan Al Mesmar, Director-General of TDRA, said, “The renewal of the two licences is a strategic decision that reflects the UAE’s confidence in a sector that has proven to be one of the pillars of national development. Together, TDRA and the licensees have built one of the world’s most advanced and future-ready digital infrastructures.
Today, we are providing the sector with a long-term framework that lays the foundation for a new phase in which connectivity evolves into intelligence, and digital infrastructure becomes a national platform for innovation and sustainable growth.”
Eng. Mohammed Al Ramsi, Deputy Director-General of the Telecommunications Sector at TDRA, said the new licences reflect the transformation of telecommunications networks into critical national infrastructure. They require licensees to geographically diversify international connectivity through multiple terrestrial systems and submarine cables, eliminate single points of failure, implement and regularly test disaster recovery mechanisms, and develop qualified national talent capable of operating and restoring networks under exceptional circumstances.
He added that the objective goes beyond developing faster networks to building smarter, more secure and more resilient ones. The licences include enhanced obligations covering network resilience, backup capacity and international connectivity, as well as quality of service, interconnection and access, national roaming, universal service, subscriber protection and the prevention of anti-competitive practices.
The renewal reflects the depth of the partnership between TDRA and the two licensees, based on transparency and commitment to the regulatory framework. TDRA will continue to monitor compliance with licence conditions, ensure a fair competitive environment, protect subscriber rights and enhance service quality across the UAE.
The next 20 years are expected to mark a transition from connectivity leadership to AI leadership, and from building networks to building the economy of the future, after the UAE consolidated its position among global leaders in digital infrastructure and connectivity.