DUBAI: Dubai Industrial City celebrated its 20th anniversary as the Middle East’s leading manufacturing and logistics hub demonstrating the collaborative power of the public and private sectors.

One of TECOM Group PJSC’s 10 vibrant business districts, Dubai Industrial City was unveiled in November 2004 to foster economic diversification and industrial innovation in Dubai and beyond.

Commemorating two decades of collective success, Dubai Industrial City hosted a gala dinner at Jumeirah Emirates Towers attended by senior officials including Alia Abdul Rahim Al Harmoudi, Assistant Under-Secretary for the Sustainable Communities Sector at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), Ahmed Al Naqbi, CEO of Emirates Development Bank (EDB), Abdulla Belhoul, CEO of TECOM Group PJSC, and Saud Abu Alshawareb, Executive Vice President of Industrial at TECOM Group, to chart a roadmap for the industry’s future growth.

For more than 20 years, Dubai Industrial City has nurtured a thriving ecosystem of globally renowned manufacturing giants, with its ecosystem expanding by 11.5% in the year to end-September 2024 to exceed 1,100 local, regional, and international businesses, including Unilever, A P Moeller Maersk, Patchi, and Al Barakah Dates. The district’s workforce now exceeds 17,000 professionals, a year-on-year increase of 13% during the first nine months of this year, with its number of operational factories rising 16% during the same period to more than 350.

“Dubai Industrial City was founded on a strategic vision to cement the UAE’s and Dubai’s position as a global manufacturing powerhouse, and over the past 20 years, we have delivered on that promise,” said Saud Abu Alshawareb, Executive Vice President of Industrial at TECOM Group on behalf of Dubai Industrial City. “Our thriving ecosystem serves as a single-window gateway for global growth and sustainable development to nurture industrial excellence that elevates the ‘Made in UAE’ brandmark on the world stage.

“Dubai Industrial City’s legacy is embodied by the success of more than 1,100 local, regional, and international customers and over 350 operational factories that, from our district, are directly contributing to a more resilient manufacturing sector. We will continue to nurture advancements in the industrial sector and prime it for long-term growth in line with the vision of Operation 300bn, Make it in the Emirates, and Dubai Economic Agenda ‘D33’.”

Reaffirming its commitment to nurturing industry excellence for long-term sustainable development, Dubai Industrial City announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with global technology company Siemens.

The MoU will facilitate cooperation between the district and Siemens in areas including Industrial Technology Transformation Index (ITTI) Assessments. Dubai Industrial City’s customers will receive insights on digitalisation, sustainability, and operational efficiencies through ITTI Assessments conducted under the UAE’s Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology (MoIAT) as part of the MoU.

The partnership will also provide Dubai Industrial City’s community access to Siemens’ Green Lean Digital Factory Roadmaps and Greenfield Digital Factory Planning services to enhance the competitiveness of factories within the district and gear them for enhanced sustainability. Siemens will also support Dubai Industrial City in areas including training and capacity building, as well as sustainability enhancement support, reaffirming the district’s commitment to advance Dubai’s and the UAE’s manufacturing sectors.

Dubai Industrial City is growing as it attracts an increasing number of global manufacturers, with 13.9 million sq.ft. of industrial land added this year alone. Over the past two years, Dubai Industrial City has attracted over AED2 billion in private sector investment, and recently signed a Musataha agreement each for MD Pharma Factory’s AED130 million pharmaceutical facility and OZON Pharmaceuticals’ AED293 million manufacturing hub at the district. Silver Line Gate Group also broke ground on an AED 200 million integrated facility at Dubai Industrial City this October.

Strategically located close to global trade routes including Jebel Ali Port, Al Maktoum International Airport, the Dubai Industrial City Etihad Rail freight terminal, and critical national and regional road systems, Dubai Industrial City offers end-to-end connectivity to ensure seamless operations for a diverse range of customers. The district offers six sector-specific zones – dedicated to manufacturers of base metals; machinery; minerals; food and beverage; transport; and chemicals – that are designed for efficiency, helping to minimise waste and promote a circular economy.

As Dubai remains the global leader for attracting greenfield foreign direct investments (FDI) and the newly launched National Investment Strategy 2031 seeks to triple the UAE’s cumulative FDI balance to AED2.2 trillion by 2031, sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, and storage will remain a promising avenue for economic growth. In the second quarter of this year alone, Dubai’s manufacturing sector was valued at AED 10.6 billion, contributing 9.1% of Dubai’s GDP worth AED 116 billion during the period. The transport and storage sector, valued at AED 15.85 billion, comprised 13.6% of the city’s GDP.