ABU DHABI: The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), in cooperation with the Emirates Development Bank (EDB), the Abu Dhabi Export Office (ADEX), and Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), organised the ‘CEOs Forum for Exporting Manufacturers’ to discuss issues and solutions to increase manufacturers’ exports.

ADDED reaffirmed its support of manufacturing sector to drive its efforts to boost the Emirate’s non-oil exports from AED73.5 billion in 2021 to AED178.8bn by 2031 through providing a conducive ecosystem to achieve this 143 percent increase.

Improving Abu Dhabi’s trade with global markets in the industrial sector is a key objective of the Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy (ADIS). The strategy aims to strengthen the Emirate’s position as the region’s most competitive industrial hub by investing AED10 billion across six transformational programmes to more than double the size of Abu Dhabi’s manufacturing sector from AED83.5 billion in 2021 to AED172 billion by 2031. To this end, ADDED is rolling out initiatives to increase access to financing, enhance ease of doing business, and attract foreign direct investment.

The Industrial CEO Forum was attended by Rashed Abdulkarim Al Blooshi, Under-Secretary of ADDED, Sameh Al Qubaisi, Director-General of Economic Affairs at ADDED, Ahmed Mohammed Al-Naqbi, CEO of EDB, Khalil Al Mansoori, Acting Director-General of ADEX, and Massimo Falcioni, CEO of ECI, CEOs and senior executives of 54 manufacturers, accounted for 62.8 percent of Abu Dhabi industrial exports in 2021.

Rashed Abdulkarim Al Blooshi, Under-Secretary of ADDED, said, “This forum is part of our efforts to achieve the ambitious goals of Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy by working closely with manufacturers, contributing positively to increasing non-oil exports.

"Despite challenges in global economy, Abu Dhabi non-oil trade during the first half of 2002 grew 12 percent to AED124 billion, and exports rose 26 percent to AED49.5 billion. Also, the industrial sector performance was impressive, 136 new industrial licences had been issued, and our total number of active in-production factories now stands at 866. While these facts paint a bright picture of our economy, we need to work more closely with major players in manufacturing sector and ensure they are well- supported to thrive and play a greater role in achieving strategic objectives."

To increase bilateral trade and establish itself as a “gateway to the world”, UAE has signed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) with India, Indonesia, Israel, and plans to sign eight more agreements with strategic partners in the near future to increase bilateral trade by AED 40 billion annually.

CEPAs will further enhance economic cooperation between the UAE and strategic partners, widen access to markets, and enhance mutual investment opportunities as these agreements stimulate flows and eliminate custom tariffs and other trade and investment barriers.

ADDED’s continuous, open dialogue with business leaders led it to launch initiatives that meet businesses’ expectations in facilitating trade and ensuring ease of doing business by reducing costs and requirements, simplifying procedures, and enabling seamless integration of government services.

As part of ADDED’s efforts to deliver against Abu Dhabi Industrial Strategy, it is focusing on improving the financial ecosystem by increasing access to financing and providing manufacturers with best-in-class infrastructure, platforms, and trade facilitation solutions to reduce time and cost of their exports. In addition, ADDED has launched many initiatives to reduce production cost and open new markets, and new ones are in the pipeline.

The Industrial CEO Forum was addressed by senior executives of EDB, ADEX, and ECI to showcase their financial and trade facilitation solutions.


Amjad Saleh