Dubai Investment Forum opens

Dubai / WAM

The annual Dubai Investment Forum 2016, organised by the Dubai Investment Development Agency (Dubai FDI), an agency of the Department of Economic
Development, was opened on Tuesday.
Second in an annual series, the forum brought together public and private sector leaders to trace Dubai’s new growth cycle during which it aims to be among the smartest and most sustainable cities in the world. Prominent growth initiatives and new investment opportunities arising in Dubai in light of the Expo 2020 as well as the emirate’s potential in enabling business development and expansion to wider regional markets were in focus at the one-day Forum.
HH Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, attended the forum which was opened under the patronage of H.H. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council.
Sheikh Maktoum, along with Sami Al Qamzi, Director-General of DED, and Fahad Al Gergawi, CEO of Dubai FDI, reviewed the ‘FDI Readiness 2021’ model, a future-driven policy agenda for Dubai.
The model offers an integrated strategic framework for investment-related policy-making and assessing the impact of initiatives and projects in attracting investment, based on global indices and comparative statistics.
The launch of an ‘International sustainable Investment Centre’ was also announced in the presence of Sheikh Maktoum, at the forum. A landmark initiative for the development, support and promotion of investment that can bring positive impact on the economy, society as well as the environment within and beyond Dubai, the centre will play a key role in sustainable investment and sustainable development globally.
The centre will seek to build a regional network for sustainable investment in the Middle East and North Africa, while also launching programmes to reinforce the leadership of Dubai, and the UAE in general, as a regional and global platform for sharing ideas, experiences and best practices. In partnership with the private sector, the centre will also focus on developing individual and institutional capacities to enhance Dubai’s position as an investment destination and global hub for advancing sustainability and attracting FDI into sustainability initiatives.
During the event, a special report on Dubai’s private education sector was launched by Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA). The ‘Capacity to Grow’ report was prepared as part of a KHDA-Dubai FDI partnership and provides education investors and school operators with data and insights on education in Dubai as well as an overview of historical growth in private schooling.
“In recent years, Dubai has been remarkably successful in building partnerships with the private sector thanks to a number of innovative and smart initiatives of our leadership across varied sectors, aimed to enhance productivity,
efficiency, investment opportunities as well as overall economic development, investor confidence and sustainability,” Al Qamzi said in his keynote address.
“Dubai continues to cement its position among the top FDI destinations in the world. FDI inflows to Dubai last year reached AED28.6 billion, and the city ranked sixth globally in terms of FDI attracted, according to the FDI Markets
report of the Financial Times. Dubai also stood fourth globally in the number of new investment projects,” added Al Qamzi.
The first findings of ‘FDI Monitor’ of Dubai FDI showed an increase of 16 per cent in new projects in 2015, to 279 projects from 240 in 2014. Dubai has already attracted new FDI worth AED 17.7 billion in the first half of this year, maintaining its track record in enabling investors to successfully pursue growth and expansion in the UAE and across the region, as well as international markets.
Al Qamzi also lauded the outstanding commitment of Dubai FDI towards providing quality services and consultancy to investors, particularly innovative initiatives designed in response to investor needs and investment trends across global markets,
with the support of world-class companies.