RAK on firm plan to shape future, foster growth and innovation, says Sheikh Ahmed

The Economic Development Department of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK DED) recorded a jump of five per cent in number of valid licences in the first half of 2022.

by

Sandhya D'Mello

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Published: Sat 17 Sep 2022, 10:57 PM

Last updated: Sat 17 Sep 2022, 10:58 PM

Ras Al Khaimah has seen how Dubai has grown into one of the most promising emirates and has now taken all initiatives to become the next sought after destination both for business and tourism in UAE, Sheikh Ahmed bin Faisal Al Qassimi, member of ruling family of Ras Al Khaimah, told Khaleej Times in an exclusive interview.

As a founder of Al Qassimi Group of Companies and Investments, Al Qassimi is currently growing his businesses in different sectors with investors wishing to launch their businesses in the UAE, GCC and globally.


“We are primarily focusing on health care, sports, tourism and technology. And all these projects are multimillion dollar projects which has significant importance in terms of planning and execution. We would also be focusing on the agriculture sector as food security has become an important aspect for all countries,” said Al Qassimi.

“RAK is all set to become the next destination in the global map both as a business hub and as a tourism spot, we would be aligning all our group activities into line with the vision of UAE which has already drawn down the road map for the next fifty years.”


Al Qassimi is currently gearing up for busy 2023 and currently catering to some solid projects which have taken off. “We are working on setting up the World’s biggest Film city in RAK which would be the only, one-stop solution for the needs of the global film fraternity. This Film city will have representations from over 190 countries who will be portraying their culture and art. We are already in discussions with various global players and would be concluding on the design by end of 2022. we expect the project to commence work by H2 2023,” said Al Qassimi.

“Pharma-city is another state of the art project that is being planned in the beautiful emirate of Ras Al Khaima. It is an exclusive city that would be developed only for Pharmaceutical companies wherein they can set up their manufacturing facilities, warehousing, logistics, labour camps, staff quarters, malls, recreation facilities and other related infrastructure to cater to the pharma community in large,” added Al Qassimi.

In order to boost up RAK as a tourism destination, Al Qassimi’s Private Office is planning to set up a wild life sanctuary which will have all the activities that you normally have in a sanctuary in Africa or other continents across the world. And as UAE is geographically well placed, people to reach here from across the world would be much easier. This is planned to start of by H2 2023.

Al Qassimi is also focused on sports and healthcare in 2023 and is working on ambitious project of setting up a sports academy in RAK that will support sports like football, cricket, golf, basketball, swimming, tennis, athletics and skating to name a few. Also an Ayurveda resort which is of a start category is also in the plan.

In addition to mega projects Al Qassimi will also be focusing on supporting SME’s and startups by handholding them in their journey. “We will have team who will review the startups and those with unique ideas will be supported by us to ensure their dreams are fulfilled,” he said.

The pace of innovation in UAE is ever evolving and the emirate has firm plans to shape its own future to foster growth and innovation. And the businesses in UAE are helping to shape the future, pointed out Al Qassimi.

In under 50 years, UAE has undertaken a remarkable transformation into one of the world’s most dynamic economies through a pragmatic approach to growth that is future-proofed and resilient. The RAK government’s business-forward outlook and forward thinking approach will not only open up business opportunities, but also make RAK a better place to live.

The UAE today is a global hub for business and the future economy, and a magnet for the world’s brightest minds, who come here to launch initiatives, explore the challenges of the future and convert them into opportunities for sustainable development. RAK government is also poised to become an emirate of excellence in foreseeing the future.

The Economic Development Department of Ras Al Khaimah (RAK DED) recorded a jump of five per cent in number of valid licences in the first half of 2022. The department's report highlighted the fact that professional licences accounted for 49 per cent of total numbering 8,986, followed by commercial licences, which accounted for 48 percent at 8,8829, then by industrial licences.

The department issued 873 new licences in the first half of 2022 valued at Dh145 million. The total number of renewed licences in the first half of 2022 was 6,947, compared to 6,606 during the same period in 2021, a rise of 5.2 percent while the number of cancelled licences decreased by 11.3 percent to 469, compared to 529 in the first half of 2021. — sandhya@khaleejtimes.com


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