The Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC), in partnership with Union Assessment and Quality Accreditation (UAC), has launched what it describes as the Gulf region's first Digital Skills Card, a digitally verifiable system for recording professional skills and qualifications.

The initiative is designed to strengthen the use of blockchain-based workforce credentials across the Gulf Cooperation Council region and the wider Middle East and North Africa, where large expatriate workforces and high rates of cross-border employment make credential portability a recurring practical issue. By providing verifiable records, the system aims to improve trust in professional qualifications while making it easier for employers, regulators and other institutions to validate workers' credentials.

Each Digital Skills Card is linked to a certification issued through personnel conformity programs accredited by QCC and delivered by UAC. A QR code on the card allows employers and regulators to verify the credential through ADI Chain, a regulation-compliant blockchain infrastructure developed by ADI Foundation. The system provides a digital record that can be checked without relying solely on traditional paper-based documentation: stakeholders can scan the QR code associated with a card to confirm whether a professional certification is valid and authentic. The approach aligns with the United Arab Emirates' broader digital government strategy, which has promoted blockchain adoption in public services since the UAE Blockchain Strategy 2021 set a target of migrating a significant share of government transactions to distributed ledger technology.

New system targets cross-border recognition

The launch event brought together government officials, regulators, industry representatives and certified professionals. The ceremony also recognized professionals from different backgrounds who were among the first recipients of the Digital Skills Cards.

Badr Khamis Al Shumaili, executive director of the Conformity and Standards Services Sector at QCC, emphasized that digitalization has evolved beyond simply making administrative processes more efficient. He said it had become an important component of developing connected systems based on reliable and trusted data.

Al Shumaili described the new Digital Skills Card as a practical application of that approach, providing a secure method for verifying professional skills and credentials. He added that the system could increase confidence in accredited competencies among regulators, employers and professionals.

The initiative also places emphasis on making professional credentials more portable. Shahbaz Muhammad Khan, director and chief executive officer of UAC, said the value of accreditation ultimately depends on the skills and achievements demonstrated by professionals through formal assessments.

Khan explained that digitally verified skills could accompany professionals as they moved between institutions and countries, potentially making qualifications easier to recognize across jurisdictions. He also indicated that UAC intends to broaden the Digital Skills Card over time to include additional certifications, qualifications and professional achievements.

The planned expansion could create a broader digital credential framework in which verified professional qualifications remain accessible and recognizable as workers change employers, institutions or countries.

QCC and UAC plan broader adoption

QCC is expected to continue collaborating with government agencies, regulators, employers and industry participants to expand digital credential solutions in Abu Dhabi.

The council plays a central role in the emirate's quality infrastructure, with responsibilities covering standardization, conformity assessment, testing, inspection and accreditation. Its involvement in the Digital Skills Card initiative connects the blockchain-based credential system with established quality and certification processes.

UAC specializes in assessing and accrediting workforce skills, particularly for industrial sectors. Its programs are designed to align with regulatory requirements and labor market needs, providing the assessment foundation for the certifications represented by the new digital cards.

The initiative comes as governments and businesses across the region explore digital systems for professional verification, particularly where workers operate across multiple organizations and jurisdictions. Traditional credentials can require manual checks and verification between institutions, while digitally authenticated records can potentially reduce administrative friction. Internationally, verifiable digital credentials are also the subject of ongoing standardization work, including the World Wide Web Consortium's Verifiable Credentials data model, which underpins similar credentialing initiatives in other jurisdictions.

By combining accredited skills assessments with blockchain-based verification, the Digital Skills Card could give employers and regulators a faster way to establish the authenticity of professional qualifications while supporting greater workforce mobility across borders. What to watch next is whether QCC and UAC secure uptake from regulators and employers outside Abu Dhabi, and whether the planned expansion of the card to additional certifications materializes into a regionally recognized credential framework.

The Abu Dhabi initiative therefore represents an effort to connect established conformity and accreditation systems with digital infrastructure, creating a framework that could be expanded as demand for portable and independently verifiable professional credentials increases across the region.