Dubai Chamber hosts quarterly roundtable discussion with stakeholders
Quarterly meetings enhance communication with business groups and councils
As part of its strategy to reinforce communication with all its stakeholders and to play a strategic role of bridging the gap between the private and public sectors, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry organized the quarterly roundtable discussions with its Business Councils and Business Groups at its premises on Wednesday.
The meetings, which were chaired by HE Eng Hamad Buamim, Director General, Dubai Chamber, reviewed the Chamber’s activities that were geared towards better serving the 34 Business Councils and the 22 Business Groups in the first quarter and what was planned for the quarter ahead. The two gatherings also discussed recent trends in trade relations with the represented countries as well as the business sectors.
“These roundtable discussions are organised to encourage the Chamber’s stakeholders to use this meetings as a platform to network, catch up and compare their progress throughout the said period and to review their future plans and debate any issues or challenges faced by their sectors and the Chamber so as to convey the same to the concerned Government authorities.” Added Buamim
The Director General of the Chamber cited the recent setting up of the Competitiveness Council by the Dubai Government which he said was a welcome step as this will help competitiveness of Dubai businesses and promote the Emirate as an international business hub. This move will put to rest various rumours about Dubai’s business environment as the Chamber, being a
member of the Council, will now play a bigger role in conveying the issues of the business community directly to the Council which will make its recommendations to the Government authorities. This step will further serve the Chamber’s mission of strengthening the relations of the private and public sectors.
Said Buamim, "According to the Certificates of Origin issued by the Chamber in the first quarter of 2009, the volume of trade in Dubai fell by 7%, while the value of trade decreased by 15% but it’s not bad news as compared to other countries that have seen significant reductions in their trade figures in the same period."
"Dubai Chamber witnessed a marked increase in its membership which went up by 5% during the first quarter of this year compared to the same period last year. The Chamber has also notched up a 26% increase in the number of visiting delegations during the current quarter and a 65% increase in the number of businessmen in the delegation which proves Dubai’s popularity as a strategic business destination in the region."
The Director General of Dubai Chamber also highlighted the 80% increase in the mediation cases handled by the Legal Services Department of the Chamber and called upon the business groups and councils to take advantage of the mediation services to resolve trade disputes that may arise between the companies.
Buamim expressed his delight with the roundtable discussions which he saw as a means of identifying and discussing recent trends in trade relations between Dubai, the represented countries and the issues faced by different business sectors. He described the progress of the first phase of the monthly survey of Executive Leadership of the private companies under which important data is being collected and analyzed in a systematic way in cooperation with the business sector.
All the information collected from the survey that covers various business sectors and the challenges they face, especially in the labour market, will enable the Chamber to come up with a uniform recommendation which will be submitted to the concerned Government authorities.
On their part, the representatives of the business councils and groups lauded the efforts of Dubai Chamber in raising their issues with the authorities while also following up in the resolution of the challenges faced by the business community. They further requested the Chamber officials to organize business meetings between the various business sectors, especially in the current economic situation as this increase in open communication will ultimately help the business community overcome their issues jointly.
