Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE; Scottish Gaelic: Iomairt na Gàidhealtachd 's nan Eilean) is the development agency for the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government with the role to "help build a prosperous, sustainable and inclusive economy across the Highlands and Islands, attracting more people to live, work, study, invest and visit there.

In 1991 HIDB was replaced by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, which also took over responsibilities from the Training Agency to form HIE.

The new organisation aimed to be more decentralised, with decision making and budget control being devolved to a network of 10 Local Enterprise Companies, each with their own CEO.

[11] The HIDB originally covered the area defined as crofting counties: Shetland, Orkney, Caithness, Sutherland, Ross-shire, Inverness-shire and Argyll.

HIE also helped to create learning infrastructure and assisted UHI Millennium Institute in becoming the University of the Highlands and Islands.