In 2020, the forecasted largest age group in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was those between 30 and 34 years, at around *** million. The second-largest age group in the country was between 25 and 29 years, forecasted at around *** million.  Regional context  The UAE is a federation of seven emirates with a land area of around **** thousand square kilometers, and is one of the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Together with other countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, they make up the largest youth population in the world. Among the GCC countries, the UAE had the third-largest share of population aged 15 to 24 years, at **** percent. The forecasted urban population growth rate in the UAE was relatively lower than in the other GCC countries in 2020.  Population development    In 2019, the annual urban population growth in the UAE reached **** percent. Within a time span of 20 years, the number of inhabitants in the country’s most populous city, Dubai, is forecasted to almost double.