About Us

Her Excellency Ohood Khalfan Al Roumi is the Minister of State for Government Development and the Future in the UAE Government, a ministerial portfolio created in 2020 with the aim of advancing government development and enhancing the UAE’s readiness for future challenges and opportunities. 

H.E. Al Roumi is also the Chairwoman of the Federal Authority for Government Human Recourses, the federal entity responsible for the growth and development of UAE federal government human resources. In addition to her Ministerial work, H.E. is Chairwoman of the Higher Committee for Government Digital Transformation, and Vice Chair of World Government Summit Organization. She is a member of several boards, including the Emirates Competitiveness Council, the Frontline Heroes Office, the Dubai Future Foundation, and the Arab Government Excellence Award.

As part of her government portfolio, H.E. Al Roumi is focused on developing government talent, and enhancing the readiness of over 60,000 government employees with future skills through the largest transformational initiative for the new generation of government employees. As part of her Ministerial role in leading the future portfolio, H.E. works to institutionalize the future in federal government entities to enhance their readiness for future shifts. At the global level, she oversees the "Future Possibilities Index", the first index of its kind globally that utilizes future opportunities in drawing government priorities, and provides a source of scientific data for decision and policy makers around the world.

H.E. Al Roumi leads the UAE government efforts in developing and governing the digital transformation of the federal government, and enhancing digital readiness, competitiveness and coordination between digital projects and systems across government to enhance the efficiency of digital infrastructure and assets. H.E. also supervises the coordination of efforts between government entities to accelerate and maximize the impact of digital transformation.

H.E. Al Roumi served as Secretary General of the Preparation for the Next 50 Years Committee, and supervised devising developmental plans and designing the UAE’s future for the next fifty years, through a network of national working teams. She also led efforts to develop the "UAE Centennial 2071", a comprehensive and long-term vision spanning five decades which constitutes a roadmap for government action with the aim of enhancing the country's reputation and soft power.

H.E. Al Roumi headed the executive team to launch the first Government Summit in 2013, which developed over ten years to become a global influential platform that hosted 29,000 participants from 150 countries, and organized more than 1,100 sessions with the participation of 640 speakers. The World Government Summit charted future directions of the world's governments, and contributed to crystallizing visions and solutions to empower governments with new business models to build a better future for humanity.

In 2016, H.E. Al Roumi held the position of Minister of State for Happiness and Wellbeing, the first ministerial position of its kind in the world introduced by the UAE government. She led efforts to develop the National Wellbeing Strategy, and launched a number of national initiatives, including the establishment of the Digital Wellbeing Council, and the development of the National Wellbeing Index, the National Policy for Well Residential Communities, the Workplace Wellbeing Program, the National Charter for Happiness and Wellbeing, and the National Wellbeing Survey. H.E.'s efforts also resulted in the formulation of global partnerships, including the launch of the Global Coalition for Happiness and Wellbeing and the Global Council for Happiness and Wellbeing to disseminate the concept of happiness as a basis and goal for development and relations between nations, and to devote happiness as an approach to government action in all sectors.

H.E. Al Roumi served as the Director General of the Prime Minister’s Office at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs since its establishment until 2020, where she oversaw multiple strategic programs and initiatives, including the coordination and follow up on executing UAE Vision 2021. H.E. also oversaw UAE government strategy and innovation, government service development programs, as well as Sheikh Khalifa Government Excellence Program, Government Performance Management System “Ada’a”, Mohammed Bin Rashid Centre For Government Innovation and the UAE Government Leaders Program. 

Prior to her role at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, H.E. Al Roumi held several leadership positions within the UAE federal government and the Government of Dubai. She was the Director of Economic Policy at the Executive Office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. She also led several teams to develop multiple government strategies, such as the Dubai Economic Development Plan as well as the Federal Government strategy. She was also Director of Business Research at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

The United Nations Foundation appointed H.E. Al Roumi as member of the UN’s Global Entrepreneurship Council (GEC) in 2015, making her the first Arab member to hold that position.  She also made the Young Global Leaders (YGL) list with World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2012. H.E. was also listed among the World’s Greatest Leaders in 2017 by Fortune magazine in recognition of her accomplishments, making her the only Arab figure on the list. In 2021, the World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Agile Governance recognized H.E. on the 50 Agile List among the world’s most influential people leading agile governance to achieve radical transformations.

H.E. Al Roumi holds an Executive Master’s Degree in Business Administration (EMBA) from the University of Sharjah and a Bachelor’s in Economics from the College of Business and Economics, United Arab Emirates University. She is also a graduate from Mohammed Bin Rashid Program for Leadership Development.