Dubai Chamber Director General assures foreign investors of a sound business atmosphere
Thankfully, our region is one of the few places in the world where growth is expected to continue based on the Government’s support of the major infrastructure projects, says HE Eng Hamad Buamim at Big 5 networking lunch
Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry hosted an exclusive networking luncheon in honour of three business groups representing the fastest growing sector in the UAE, which included the Construction Business Group, the Building Materials Business Group , and Dubai Property Society Business Group, at the Monarch Hotel on Tuesday.
The networking event, which coincides with the Big 5 exhibition, was chaired by HE Hisham Al Shirawi, 1st Vice Chairman and HE Eng Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber, and was also attended by DMG, the organizers of the exhibition, along with a number of international delegations from Brazil, Chile, Finland, Queensland and many more.
HE Eng Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber, said that this networking lunch event provides key players within these sectors with the ideal platform to meet not only local companies but also an impressive contingency of international companies interested in forging new contacts and pursuing serious business opportunities.
“The strength and growth in Dubai is best showcased in sectors represented here today. These sectors play a strategic role in the country’s economic graph. According to the UAE Ministry of Economy, the biggest contributor to the UAE’s GDP is the fast emerging real estate sector. During 2007, real estate contributed 8% to the country's GDP, with an investment of Dh25.8 billion,” said Buamim adding, “Additionally, about 23.1 billion (16% of total investment) has been put forward for establishment of developed infrastructure, including airport expansions, internal and external road networks, bridge and tunnel construction and communications.”
Recent studies revealed that the size of fixed investments in 2007 has grown to Dh144.5 billion, as against Dh121 billion in 2006. The investment percentage to domestic product has touched 20.7% in 2007. Although the real estate and manufacturing sectors, jointly, contributed 35% of the total investments in the country during 2007, industries such as medicine, petrochemical, building materials, and food continued to surge.
Added Buamim, “The numbers speak for themselves and these are a reflection of the vision of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. A vision to forge Dubai as a truly Global City, with a broad diversified economic base as the foundation of its success.
According to the Director General of Dubai Chamber, sectors such as Construction, Building Materials and Real Estate play a key role in this vision of ‘Nation Building’. They are integral to creating an attractive business environment while encouraging large scale investments. Particularly, the construction sector is poised for a significant growth in the coming years. By 2010, more than $100 billion will be invested including $20 billion for Burj Dubai, $3.4 billion for Dubai Metro system and $17 billion for the Lagoons etc.
Dubai’s upcoming projects include The Palms, Dubai Business Bay, Bawadi, Dubai Waterfront, Dubai World Central and many others that will add renewed excitement to the already impressive skyline of Dubai. A skyline that is increasingly becoming an emblem of Dubai’s strength and is parallel to the growth of the Big 5 Exhibition.
Buamim while praising the role of the groups also assured the gathering of the sound investment atmosphere of Dubai, “The impressive economic growth figures and our past successes cannot lead us to overlook the threat of the global financial cloud approaching the region. While, thankfully, our region is one of the few places in the world where growth is expected to continue based on the Government’s support of the major infrastructure projects. The country has predicted a 6% growth for next year and that is a big assurance for the world to come over and do business in the Emirates,” said Buamim.
Mr Ahmed Etman, representative from the Construction Group, Mr Mahendra Patel from the Building Materials Group and Mr Adel Lootah from the Dubai Property Society group gave presentations on the progress of their respective sectors at the networking event.
