The economy of the Emirate of Dubai is one of the most competitive economies with an overall competitiveness ranking of (17) against (61) economies worldwide, according to the ‘Dubai in World Competitiveness Report 2005’, published jointly by the Dubai Department of Economic Development (DED) and the Switzerland-based International Institute for Management Development (IMD).
The announcement was made at a press conference held at the Dubai Department of Economic Development and attended by Dr. Hischam El Agamy, Director of Corporate Development, IMD, Mr. Ali Ibrahim, Deputy Director General for Executive Affairs, and Mr. Khalid Al Kassim, Deputy Director General for Planning and Development.
IMD is the leading independent organization responsible for producing the annual World Competitiveness Yearbook and has analysed Dubai’s competitiveness against (51) national and (9) regional economies.
The report rates Dubai’s competitiveness with regard to four main factors including Economic Performance, Government Efficiency, Business Efficiency and Infrastructure. Dubai’s Economic Performance and Government Efficiency are among the world's best with the two criteria being accorded 6th and 9th ranks respectively.
“Dubai’s high competitiveness ranking, endorsed by an international institution against some of the major global economies, clearly reinforces the message that the Government of Dubai is focusing on implementing business friendly initiatives to offer value-added services to investors,” said Mr. Ali Ibrahim, Deputy Director General for Executive Affairs, DED. “This report will go a long way towards highlighting the positive trends in Dubai’s economic environment and ensure that Dubai becomes the destination of choice for international investors and multinational corporations,” he added.
Dubai’s Business Efficiency has been ranked at (21) based on a number of internal issues for private sector businesses operating in Dubai. These include lack of ready availability of skilled labour, finance and international best practices in auditing and accounting.
Ranking for Dubai’s basic infrastructure is relatively strong at (16) although the Emirate’s overall ranking for infrastructure spanning various forms of infrastructure has been classified at 32. The IMD’s definition of infrastructure extends beyond basic infrastructure to educational, technological, health and environmental and scientific infrastructure.
The report provides an unparalleled collection of economic and other data pertaining to Dubai with a total of (314) indicators being included.
The report ranks Dubai as one of the top ten competitive economies in several sub-factor ranking. These include the 5th place in the criteria of Ease of Doing Business, employment (2nd place), Fiscal Policy (1st place), Public Finance (9th place), Labour Market (8th place), Adaptability of Government Policy to change in the economy (3rd place). In the Management of Public Finances, Dubai has been ranked in 4th place and is expected to improve over the next two years. Dubai has also been ranked in 5th place for Government Decisions thereby indicating that the decisions are effectively implemented.
“The aim of the report is to build an understanding of Dubai's competitiveness with regard to the four main criteria and reveal the comparative advantage companies gain from operating in Dubai. The report measures the variables that comprise the business environment of Dubai and compares it to (61) economies worldwide,” said Khalid Al Kassim, Deputy Director General for Planning and Development, DED. “It also paves the way for Dubai’s future development plan as it identifies areas of improvement and provides guidance on how to improve the competitiveness of the Emirate,” he added.
Key recommendations include creating more value-added activities, developing a layer of competitive small and medium size enterprises with good competencies and technology, developing a first class infrastructure that will also be cost effective and the creation of an advanced technological infrastructure.
The advancement of an education and science culture that will constitute the foundation of a knowledge society in Dubai is one of the most important recommendations in the report. In addition, it also emphasizes the promotion of the Emiratisation policy, to encourage the development of more young national professionals and enable them to take part in the management of the economy, especially the private sector.
The DED commenced the study in June 2005 with an Executive Opinion Survey for 200 CEOs of private sector organizations based in Dubai. The IMD studied and analysed Dubai’s economy, based on more than 300 criteria grouped into the four competitiveness factors. The data for the analysis was collected from international and regional organizations and private institutes while the qualitative survey data was drawn from the Executive Opinion Survey.
The report of this study includes a description of the competitive performance of Dubai in addition to policy options available to Dubai based on the theory of competitiveness of nations. The final report also includes regional rankings especially comparisons to Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas.
The results of the report will be announced to representatives of various economic sectors through four dedicated workshops, which focus on issues related to the specific sectors. These include the Trade and Services sector, the free zone areas, financial services sector and the Government sector.
The workshop for the Government sector will be held on June 7 under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum President of the Dubai Department of Civil Aviation, Chairman of Emirates Group and Head of the Economic Strategy Committee for the Government of Dubai and will witness the participation of several government departments.
The other three workshops will focus on the trade and services sector, the free zone areas and the financial sector. The workshop for ‘Trade and Industry’ is due to be held on June 4 in cooperation with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, while the second workshop on ‘Free Zone Areas’ will be held on June 5 in cooperation with the Dubai Technology, Electronic Commerce and Media Free Zone, Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai Airport Free Zone and Dubai Customs. The workshop dedicated to the ‘Financial Sector’ will be held on June 6 in cooperation with Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Dubai Financial Market (DFM). This workshop is also personally supported by Mr. Sulaiman Al Mazroui,
The Department of Economic Development (DED) was established in March 1992, with the objective to organise, regulate and boost trade and industry within the Emirate of Dubai. The DED has moulded its mission of building a futuristic establishment, in accordance with the vision of the Government of Dubai and in the light of globalisation and the requirements of a digital economy. One of its key functions is to encourage local and foreign investments in commercial and industrial projects, and create the appropriate environment for investors.
The DED’s other functions comprise a wide range of regulatory activities including the preparation and maintenance of a commercial register and the supervision of all organisations. The DED is responsible for regulating the affairs of commercial agents and brokers and commercial advertising offices, in addition to overseeing and controlling the insurance industry in the Emirate. Examining the participation of the government in the private sector and representing the government in companies where it has a stake, also comes under the purview of the DED.
