Dubai imports around 59,000 tons of tea annually, which costs more than half a billion dirhams, said Director General of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry Abdul Rahman Ghanim Al-Mutaiwi. He added that most of these imports are naturally re-exported.
Sri Lanka is considered the biggest tea exporter to Dubai. Al-Mutaiwi met with Deputy Plantation Minister of Sri Lanka Navin Dissanayaka, and Consul General of Sri Lanka Bandula Somasiri last Wednesday. During this meeting, they discussed the mutual economic relations.
Regarding the tea trading sector, the Director General stated that out of the 59,000 tons of tea imported by Dubai, 36,000 tons are imported from Sri Lanka, followed by India, Kenya, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, and China. He said that most of these imports which are worth around Dh 537 million ($146 million) are re-exported to Iran, Iraq, Turkey and the Central Asia countries.
The Deputy Sri Lankan minister expressed his country’s intention to consolidating the cooperation relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE), especially in the investment sector, as he called for the establishment of joint venture projects in Sri Lanka, pointing out the incentives available there for investors, including the natural resources, tourism, and the man power. — (menareport.com)
© 2003 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
