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SHARJAH / WAM
Under the theme ” Finance and investment for an Innovative Economy”, the Euromoney Emirates Conference kicked off Monday in Sharjah, with more than 350 leading thinkers and financial analysts reviewing issues of relevance to financing, financial legislation and fiscal policies.
Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Sultan bin Mohamad bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah, the conference brings together a strong lineup of speakers from across industry sectors to define how the UAE can accelerate its journey towards becoming the region’s standout innovation economy.
Over insightful two days of interactive panel discussions, in-depth interviews, and syndicate sessions, economic models and policy shifts needed to sustain investment growth and encourage innovation across industries are highlighted. The objective is to enable financial institutions and small and medium-sized businesses, SMEs, to better adapt to latest and more secure technologies in an innovative economy.
Delivering the inaugural speech on behalf of Obaid bin Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Younis Haji Al Khouri, the Under-Secretary of Ministry of Finance, said that “the past two decades have witnessed multi-faceted technological developments that have enabled the private sector to outshine the public sector which has lagged behind in a number of countries due to its failure to keep abreast of the jumbo leaps taking place at the state-of-the-art technology level across the world, ultimately resulting in the disappearance of a number of industry giants like Ford which has been has been overtaken in market value by an embryonic company like Tesla.”
“The state of the art-technology could cause millions of jobs to vanish in different parts of the world, specially in the finance industry where there could be no place in the near future for roles now traditionally played by banks and
financial brokers,” he added.
“Aware of the new realities, the United Arab Emirates has introduced robust legislation in order to reinforce its
business climate and ensure an investment-friendly environment conducive to maintaining its competitive edge,” he added.
The Euromoney Emirates Conference in its own right is an indication of the UAE’s importance in the region and its status as a major player on the global economic stage, said Marwan Bin Jassim Al Sarkal, CEO, Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, Shurooq.
“The topics up for debate and the top level discussions raised by the conference are completely relevant to Sharjah’s ongoing development,” he noted.
“We, in collaboration with Euromoney Conferences, have rolled out a comprehensive programme which focusses on the most pressing issues in today’s global economy. That not only provides a platform for essential debates on the future trends of fiscal policy, but it also reinforces Sharjah’s ability and credibility as a regional economic driver and facilitator.
“The delegates and the speakers will see the phenomenal progress and development attained by Sharjah’s economy and its adoption of modern technologies in order to strengthen the business environment. We will highlight our incentives and advantages to promote the emirate as a leading destination for secure investments.”
“We are addressing innovative economies, the changing role of Free Zones, and the role of finance in research, technology, the environment, healthcare and logistics. We also explore the future of SMEs and entrepreneurship, the backbone of the Sharjah economy, and our place on the regional and global economic stage,” he added.