Findings of a new white paper by Middle East Communications Network (MCN) in partnership with Fast Company Middle East have revealed that diversity, inclusion and equity (DE&I) drives business growth for 85 per cent of Middle East companies.
Campaign Middle East was on ground at Athar Festival 2025 when MCN and Fast Company Middle East released the new white paper detailing DE&I as not just a social imperative, but a powerful driver of creativity, business performance, and sustainable economic growth across the Middle East.
The Middle East’s Inclusive Economy white paper draws on proprietary survey data, regional case studies, and official statistics to explore how DE&I is reshaping high-impact sectors including finance, oil and gas, hospitality, healthcare and retail.
It is based on a region-wide executive survey conducted between Q1 and Q2 of 2025 with senior leaders across industries. It highlights a clear link between well-executed DE&I strategies and measurable economic and organisational outcomes.
Key findings from the white paper include:
- 85 per cent of respondents report that DE&I has had a strong positive impact on industry and regional economic performance.
- 76 per cent observe that DE&I directly contributes to GDP growth and long-term resilience.
- 76 per cent note higher workforce retention when DE&I is embedded into company strategy.
- 53 per cent report increased participation from underrepresented groups in their workforce.
“At MCN, we’ve always known that DE&I is not a trend – it’s essential for successful business,” said Ghassan Harfouche, Group CEO of MCN MENAT and President of McCann Worldgroup – APAC. “With 66 nationalities across our network and 47 per cent of our agency leadership roles held by women, we see every day how inclusion fuels creativity, possibilities, and results.”
The paper was designed to help organisations across the region rethink inclusion as a business imperative.
Harfouche added, “We identified a regional gap: DE&I is still regularly treated as a reputational add-on rather than a driver of business value. This white paper is our response, a data-driven tool designed to help organisations reframe DE+I as infrastructure for growth. With 85 per cent of companies in our study reporting clear economic impact from DE+I, the timing couldn’t be more urgent.”
The research paper also introduces the concept of “Inclusion as Infrastructure” – positioning equity and belonging as foundational systems rather than short-term initiatives. It argues that when inclusion is embedded into hiring, leadership, and workplace culture, organisations outperform peers in engagement, creativity and retention.
Across the region, DE&I is increasingly being institutionalised into policy, regulation, and national development frameworks. Saudi Arabia, through Vision 2030, has nearly doubled female labour force participation from 22.5 per cent in 2006 to 43.2 per cent in 2024, supporting its economic diversification goals.
According to the 2025 Global Gender Gap Index, the UAE leads MENA in gender equality. It mandates 30 per cent female representation in private sector leadership and has more than 23,000 Emirati businesswomen leading ventures valued over $13.6bn.
Programmes including Mowaamah in Saudi Arabia and the UAE’s National Policy for People of Determination integrate individuals with disabilities into mainstream economic activity through certified inclusive workplaces, adaptive technologies, and skills development programmes.
“We’ve invested in systems, from recruitment and leadership development to continuous feedback loops, that make inclusion sustainable,” said Harfouche. “It’s a model we believe can be scaled to drive meaningful progress across our industry and region.”
Beyond internal initiatives, MCN’s purpose-driven approach extends to the work it creates for clients. Harfouche noted that campaigns including Recipe for Change (Arla Foods), Don’t Look Down (Fixby), The Art of Stains (OMO–Unilever), Not for First Dates (McDonald’s), and Read Better (Waterstones UK) are examples of how DE&I values translate into creative excellence that drives measurable impact.
Harfouche added, “We know the one simple truth: people do their best work when they feel seen, respected, and supported. That’s how we aim to create impact, not only in the work we deliver, but in the cultures we build and industries we help move forward.”
Developed in partnership with Fast Company Middle East, the white paper offers a fresh perspective on how DE&I can strengthen economic resilience and fuel creative excellence across the MENAT region.
It calls on organisations to move beyond symbolic representation and embed inclusion as a fundamental business strategy.
