Dubai International Chamber inaugurates 3 new offices

Dubai International Chamber, one of the three chambers operating under Dubai Chambers, on Monday announced the opening of three new international representative offices in Egypt, Israel and Turkey.

In a statement, the chamber said new offices will be based in Cairo, Tel Aviv and Istanbul, respectively.

The Cairo office was officially inaugurated on Monday at a special ceremony in the presence of Mariam Khalifa Al Kaabi, UAE Ambassador to Egypt; Omar Khan, executive director, International Offices at Dubai International Chamber; and a number of high-profile Emirati and Egyptian business leaders.

The formal inauguration of the representative office in Tel Aviv will take place in the Israeli capital on Tuesday (December 13) while the Istanbul office will follow on Wednesday (December 14).

The new openings support Dubai Chambers’ strategic goals to attract international business and investment to Dubai and to drive global expansion of its members. They are in line with the ‘Dubai Global’ initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Executive Council to establish 50 representative offices for Dubai in five continents by 2030.

Dubai Global aims to attract foreign MNCs, SMEs, investors, and international talent to Dubai by showcasing the emirate’s competitive advantages, sharing investment intelligence, and engaging with overseas stakeholders. Supported by strategic public and private sector partners, Dubai Global accelerates efforts to boost Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade from Dh1.4 trillion to Dh2 trillion by 2026, as part of the emirate’s five-year foreign trade plan.

“We are delighted to announce the addition of three new bases in Egypt, Israel and Turkey to our global network of international representation offices. Dubai Chambers continues to lead the Dubai business community’s efforts to strengthen avenues of trade and economic cooperation between the UAE and regional markets, and our new offices in Egypt, Israel and Turkey will help expand Dubai companies’ access to the growing markets while attracting inward investment from these countries into Dubai,” Hassan Al Hashemi, vice-president International Relations, Dubai Chambers, said.

The new openings bring the number of Dubai International Chamber’s representative offices around the world to 15. The chamber already has representative offices across Africa, Latin America, Eurasia, India, and China.

International offices have a dual mission of supporting and guiding Dubai companies through every stage of their international expansion journey, from market intelligence and business introductions to company set-up, and create new mechanisms to attract FDI from key markets of strategic importance to Dubai, promoting the emirate as a preferred business hub and gateway to access emerging markets.

“Through global network development, business engagement events and facilitation of public-private sector partnerships, we provide our member companies with unparalleled opportunities to navigate the diverse investment opportunities in the region. The economic potential in Egypt, Israel and Turkey is impressive and we’ll continue to drive bilateral trade between the UAE and the three countries to boost collaboration in new and existing commercial sectors as well as unlock the endless opportunities of Dubai’s highly diverse business environment for Egyptian, Israeli, and Turkish businesses,” Al Hashemi added.

Egypt

With trade between UAE and Egypt reaching $7.5 billion in 2021, Dubai International Chamber’s new office in Cairo will strengthen the commercial relationship between the two countries, boosting investment ties in key sectors including trade manufacturing, agribusiness, IT and maritime

The Cairo office will offer Dubai businesses market intelligence, route-to-market strategies, and operational set-up expertise, maximising business opportunities in Egypt. Similarly, Egyptian MNCs and SMEs will stand to gain market and operational expertise as well as access to trustworthy partners in Dubai.

Egypt was Dubai's second trading partner on the African continent in 2021 and last year ranked 20th globally on the list of Dubai's trading partners. The number of Egyptian companies registered as members of the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and operating in the emirate amounts to more than 14,700 companies, which represents a growth of 103 per cent compared to 2016 numbers, which reflects Dubai's importance and reputation for Egyptian businessmen and entrepreneurs. In addition, Egypt is one of the largest startup hubs on the African continent, and accounts for 14% of all startups in Africa, according to an OECD report.

Israel

Israel is a market of strategic importance to Dubai. Since the UAE and Israel signed the historic Abraham Accords in 2020, the bilateral trade between the two countries dramatically increased reaching $1.19 billion in 2021.

The Tel Aviv office further strengthens the trade relationship between UAE and Israel, unlocking opportunities particularly in the areas of electronics, water security, clean energy, space, retail, culture, machinery, vehicles, chemicals, and food.

The Tel Aviv office will empower Dubai businesses to explore expansion opportunities across Israel, connecting them with trusted stakeholders and potential partners to help them access new markets, scale their operations, and secure cross-border partnerships.

It will also support Israeli investors looking for business opportunities in Dubai and enable Israeli MNCs and SMEs leverage the emirate’s strategic location, connectivity and privileged geographical access to expand into the MENASA region.

Turkey

Non-oil trade between Dubai and Turkey reached $12.8 billion in 2021, making Turkey the 7th largest trading partner to the emirate. The UAE is Turkey’s largest trade partner in the Gulf, and with the anticipated CEPA free trade agreement between the two countries, bilateral trade is expected to double to $27.4 billion.

Through the new office, Dubai International Chambers aims to strengthen an already robust commercial relationship between the UAE and Turkey, capitalising on new trade and investment opportunities in key sectors such as automotive, agriculture, textile, logistics and chemicals.

The Istanbul office will create new channels for communication and economic cooperation between UAE and Turkish businesses, working with Turkish partners to co-organise networking events, business seminars and business matching initiatives.

It will also focus its efforts on building strong relationships with key public and private sector stakeholders, supporting Dubai companies to expand into Turkey as well as assist Turkish companies enter the Dubai market and expand internationally through the emirate.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com

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