Dry fruits, spices, apparel, toys: Dubai’s wooden dhows still key to meeting the needs of residents

Wooden dhows have played a critical role in Dubai’s trade for centuries. And they still make a decent contribution to imports and exports of goods to and from the neighbouring and regional countries.

Local traders used dhows to travel the world and bring all kinds of goods, food, and other necessary items.

These dhows are still involved in the import and export of dry fruits, various packaged food items, varieties of spices, rice, apparel, toys, raw material, tyres, TVs, air-conditioners, and electronic items among others that meet the needs of the UAE residents and people of the neighbouring countries.

For centuries, dhows have been the trading lifeline that has linked countries around the Gulf to East Africa. Until the 1960s, sails were more common than engines.

As the technology advanced, so did the dhows. The modern dhows use diesel, are made of fibreglass, and equipped with vessel-tracking systems.

Established in July 2020, the Marine Agency has been tasked to collect fees, wages and expenses due to the concerned government authorities from dhow owners or operators and pay them on their behalf. The agency also monitors seafarers’ work as dhows are docked at the ports and harbours until they depart.

The agency has also streamlined the procedures which reduced the time taken to complete the procedures of one ship from 40 days previously to about 3-5 days only, said Mahmood Amin Khoory, CEO of the Marine Agency for Wooden Dhows. “We have opened up new berths to accommodate the increasing trade demand,” he said.

Khoory revealed that dhows transport various merchandise and goods mainly from Iran, Yemen, Somalia and other neighbouring countries.

During the first six months of 2023, as many as 5,768 dhows entered Dubai bringing in 200,000 metric tonnes (MT) of commodities and exporting 520,761 MT of goods via Dubai Creek and Marfa, according to the agency.

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He said merchants can now handle goods inside and outside ships easily. All the necessary facilities are provided to coordinate sailing operations and the tasks of wooden ships and sailors 72 hours before the arrival of ships as the Marine Agency will book their berths to get ready for export or import their goods.

“Dubai is a key destination for dhow ships from several Mena region countries. Each year, the number of wooden dhows entering Dubai has increased carrying various types of merchandise and goods,” he told Khaleej Times in an interview.

He added that many ports still prefer traditional dhows because modern big ships cannot enter the ports.

• UAE
• Dubai