ATA Carnet set to enhance business in the region

• Text size
•  
•  

Dubai Chamber of Commerce and IndustryDubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry, with more than 100,000 members, continues its robust growth. It recorded about 8,000 new registrations this year despite the global downturn. The Chamber's Director-General Hamad Buamim attributes this to the attractiveness of Dubai as a world-class business destination.

The chamber, among its other efforts for the betterment of business community in the emirate, is making efforts to speed up the implementation of ATA Carnet, an international customs document, which will help enhance business atmosphere in this region, said Buamim. "With Dubai aiming to host the 2020 Olympics, adopting the system would take it a step further towards realising the goal," he told Emirates Business. Buamim said the measures taken by the government have not only enhanced the emirate's business environment but also injected stability into the market.

The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and IndustryDubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been making efforts to speed up implementation of ATA Carnet system. What are its benefits?
We believe ATA Carnet will work perfectly for a city such as Dubai where export is a main driver of the economy.

The value of goods that entered across countries under the ATA Carnet exceeded $20 billion (Dh73.4bn) last year.

The UAE economy, and particularly that of Dubai, is well-connected with global economies. Our open-market policies support coupled with other efforts will help increase the competitiveness of Dubai and the UAE.

As Dubai aims to host the 2020 Olympics, adopting the ATA Carnet system would take it a step further towards realising its goal.

Do you think the government has taken enough measures to encourage industry in the UAE during such as slowdown?
The government has been taking a lot of initiatives and introducing measures, which in turn are benefiting industries.

There have been reports on Abu Dhabi seeing more business due to scrapping of the minimum capital requirement.

The Dubai Government also reduced licensing fee, which has helped industries.

We still have a long way to go and hope for more government initiatives. Reducing cost of finance has helped everybody. In fact, the government has done quite well. We believe the initiatives helped the market stabilise. We hope 2010 will be a prosperous year compared to the current challenging times.

Easy availability of liquidity is one of the main problems business enterprises have been facing for almost a year. Do you think it is still an issue? If yes, by when do you expect the situation to improve?
Liquidity is still an issue for all industries, and sectors related to construction are particularly hit. Banks have their own restrictions. We believe 2010 will be better than 2009.

Which are the main sectors that witnessed new entrants?
Trading has been a major sector that saw entry of new companies.

What do you attribute the entry of new companies to?
New entrants prefer Dubai because it is an attractive place to do business.

Now that we hear news of performance from various quarters, by when do you expect economic recovery?
We estimate 2010 will be a recovery year. It won't be like 2008, but will be better than 2009. Challenges will continue to be there.

What type of challenges do you see?
Cost is one issue. It is much competitive than earlier. Visa and employee costs are still considerable for companies.

Apart from liquidity, debt collection is another issue that need to be dealt with.

What are the challenges faced by the commercial real estate?
These days, real estate prices are very competitive and we do not think they will pose any hindrance to growth. The positive economic scenario we are expecting in 2010 will have a favourable impact on the real estate sector.

ProfileE: Hamad Buamim Director-General, Dubai Chamber of Commerce and IndustryDubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Hamad Mubarak Buamim was appointed Director of the DCCI in November 2006. Buamim worked as Secretary-General of Dubai Economic Council and Commercial Director at HSBC.

He was a lecturer at the Economy and Business College of UAE University. Buamim was also a Senior System Engineer at the Planning

and Development Department of Dewa. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Emirates Bank, Vice-Chairman of the Dubai Export Development Corporation and a member of the Business Advising Council of Dubai University.

By Shveta Pathak

© Emirates Business 24/7 2009