UAE listed companies must have at least one female board member - regulator

Listed companies in the United Arab Emirates must have at least one woman on their board of directors, the Securities and Commodities Authority said.

The move, an amendment of a previous decision by the authority's board, is "in the context of keenness to empower Emirati women and encourage them to play a greater role in the boards of directors of listed companies," the SCA said in a statement on Sunday.

Women sit on the boards of 28 of the 110 listed companies in the UAE, but only make up 3.5% of all board positions, according to Aurora50, a UAE-based social enterprise working towards increasing female representation on boards.