228% growth in inbound delegations as 335 international delegations visited Dubai Chamber between January and June 2015
4 new business councils formed in H1 2015
Buamim: Our effort to align all Dubai Government directives and initiatives into our own strategies is bearing fruit as is evident from the fast-growing membership
Members' exports and re-exports amounted to AED 151 billion between January and June 2015
33% growth in the number of ATA Carnets issued
5.4% increase in the number of Certificates of Origin issued, compared to H1 2014
Dubai Chamber participated in 36 events in 27 cities around the world
Bankruptcy Law is the latest law to be reviewed by Dubai Chamber
Dubai, UAE: In the first half of 2014, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has registered a substantial growth in its membership base, which the non-profit business facilitator accredits to Dubai's rising profile as a sound business destination and its attractiveness to global investors.
Between January and June, a total of 8,830 new companies joined Dubai Chambe which can be attributed to a record number of 335 international delegation visits to the Chamber. This brought the total number of members to over 177,000. These numbers, according to a recent report on the Chamber's half-year activities, strengthened the organisation's position as one of the largest chambers of commerce in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Also, as part of its global expansion strategy in emerging markets of the world, Dubai Chamber opened its fourth international representative office in the city of Accra in Ghana and is preparing to open another two in Mozambique and Brazil soon, with the aim to open new market opportunities for its members.
H.E. Hamad Buamim, President and CEO, Dubai Chamber, said that when these international delegations come to Dubai, the Chamber highlights the advantages of doing business in Dubai and the attractive investment climate it offers. This is a crucial reason for the 8,800 new members in H1 2015.
"This rising trend in the Emirate's international profile as a leading centre of trade and finance and the global investors' confidence in Dubai's lucrative economic sectors, which are led by trade, logistics, tourism and finance, are behind the foreign companies' desire to set up base in Dubai and expand their global business activities through the Emirate," explained H.E. Buamim.
The President and CEO of Dubai Chamber further added that the Emirate's various economic sectors' excellent performance reflects on the wise vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, who has launched a number of initiatives including UAE Year of Innovation, Dubai World Capital of Islamic Economy, and Smart Government, which clearly show the Emirate's commitment to create a conducive global business environment.
According to H.E. Buamim, the Chamber members' half-yearly exports and re-exports reached AED 151 billion, which reflect the robustness of the Emirate's business activities and the Chamber members' eagerness to expand and explore new markets as the membership has reached 177,000 with the members coming from 189 countries. The rise in the new membership is expected to reach 15,000 by the end of the year, he added.
Steady growth in the export sector
Dubai Chamber's half year data shows that its members' exports and re-exports between January and June 2015 were worth AED 151 billion compared to AED 149 billion during the same period in 2014.
Meanwhile, the monthly total of March 2015 was the highest with AED 28.1 billion with January registering the lowest with a value of AED 22.6 billion.
During the same period, Dubai Chamber issued a total of 470,000 certificates of origin (COOs), compared to 445,000 COOs issued in the first half of 2014, leading to a 5.4% increase. March saw the highest number of COOs issued at 85,000 with January being the slowest month at 69,000.
Visiting delegations and overseas participation
Dubai Chamber's half year figures also show that during this time the organisation received 355 international delegations, comprised of 1,200 delegates, including government officials and businessmen, showing a 228% growth in the number of visiting delegations and a 109% growth in the number of delegates compared to the same period in 2014.
At the same time, Dubai Chamber participated in 36 events around the world, in 27 cities in 24 countries, including the US, UK, France, Italy, Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Czech Republic, Russia, Rwanda and Uganda and others, with the objective of promoting Dubai as an international business hub and a profitable destination for foreign investment.
Studying draft laws
Continuing its efforts to support business growth, Dubai Chamber studied, reviewed and followed up on 21 federal and local legislations and draft laws, the most recent of which being the Bankruptcy Law. Others included, the Draft law concerning Certificates of Origin and its Rules (2013);Ministerial decree on adopting of the application form approved by the Ministry of Labour (2015); Revised draft law concerning Partnership between Public and Private Sectors in the Emirate of Dubai (2015) and the Local Law concerning Government Departments Contracts in the Emirate of Dubai (No. 6) (1977).
Establishment of new business councils
Dubai Chamber established 4 new business councils in H1 2015, which are The Algerian Business Council, The Czech Republic Council, The Oman Business Council and the Tejar Dubai Youth Council. This brings the total number of business councils to 46 and business groups to 27. Dubai Chamber has the highest number of business councils and groups, at 73, in the MENA region.
Excellence in customer service
Dubai Chamber, while working towards moving to smart services, served 182,000 customers registering a growth of 14% in the number of clients served compared to the same period last year, with a minimum waiting time of 15 minutes for 78.5% customers while the processing time took only 6 minutes for 72.7% customers.
125 ATA Carnets issued during H1 2015
Dubai Chamber issued 125 ATA Carnets between January and June 2015, compared to 94 ATA Carnets issued during H1 2014 thus registering a growth rate of 33%. The upwards trend clearly reflects the success of the temporary admission of goods system, which was launched in the UAE in April 2011 and is being promoted in the region by the Chamber. The ATA Carnet is also helping to enhance Dubai's position as a leading international destination for exhibitions and conferences.
Settling trade disputes and supporting business
In light of the rising importance of settling commercial disputes amicably in the Emirate, Dubai Chamber received a total of 399 arbitration and mediation cases in the first half of the year. The organisation's initiative Dubai International Arbitration Centre (DIAC), received 98 arbitration cases in comparison to the 90 cases received during the same period last year, while Dubai Chamber's Legal Services department received 301 mediation cases, out of which 60 were settled with a total value of AED 4.4 million during the same period.
Innovation strategy launched
In the first half of the year, Dubai Chamber launched its Innovation Strategy consisting of an innovation index to measure innovation and an innovation lab for the production of creative ideas to promote competitiveness in the business community. The Chamber plans to invest AED 100 million during the next three years in innovative projects and initiatives such as the Dubai Innovation Index and the Dubai Chamber Innovation Lab as well as smart applications that enhance customer experience while strengthening Dubai's position as one of the leading global business destinations.
This investment is part of Dubai Chamber's strategy to invest AED 500 million over the next three years to serve the business community and to enhance its global competitiveness. The Dubai Innovation Index (DII) will help identify the driving factors of innovation to encourage companies to adopt effective approaches to innovation, enabling them to measure the results on the basis of business development in particular and Dubai economy in general.
As a composite benchmark of innovation in the Emirate, DII is a qualitative and quantitative indicator of the performance of the economy. While most innovation indices in the world measure innovation at a macro level, the DII measures innovation in the private sector, and gauges its impact on the overall innovation levels in the city.
The index measures innovation in eight key sectors which are retail and wholesale; industry; real estate; tourism; transport and logistics; medical care; financial services; and education and will highlight the rate of innovation in each sector, and how it affects innovation in general in Dubai.
Meanwhile, the Dubai Chamber Innovation Lab has been set up to stimulate creative ideas and original initiatives which will have a positive effect on the economy and is based on two stages. The first stage features a process of receiving and compiling innovative ideas internally from employees, and externally from costumers and the business community. This phase also includes the development of skills training for Dubai Chamber employees in the field of creativity and innovation, and providing incentives to owners of innovative ideas.
The second stage aims to achieve 'Pioneers of Innovation' status through digital platform and research centre activities to transform ideas into concepts. It will then move towards the implementation phase and management of project ideas.
Promoting Dubai
The Dubai Association Centre (DAC), which marked its first anniversary in March announced the granting of 13 licences for the establishment of global professional associations in the Emirate of Dubai while 52 applications are under review for licences and 10 applications are under approval for issuance of licence.
Launched last year in collaboration with the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC), the Centre's aim is to establish a platform in Dubai for international professional and business associations to meet, exchange knowledge, network and cater to the region and beyond from the Emirate.
Eighth cycle of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Award
After seven successful cycles of honouring exceptional institutional performance in the UAE, the Dubai Chamber organised the high profile Award Ceremony of the eighth cycle of the Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Award which honoured GCC companies for the first time while celebrating their success in leading the way to establish new business excellence standards in the region. It also announced the launch of the Innovation Award jointly with the UAE Ministry of Economy.
Meanwhile, Dubai Chamber's Tejar Dubai initiative, an entrepreneurship development programme that aims to help young Emiratis turn their business ideas into realities, launched its sixth commercial project in May taking the number to 10 projects launched thus far and also set up the Tejar Dubai Youth Council which brought under its umbrella a distinguished membership of Emirati entrepreneurs. It also signed two MoUs with Emirates NBD to finance business ventures of up to AED 3 million and with and Emirates Islamic bank offering financial support of up to AED 5 million.
11 Years of successfully leading CSR in the region
Dubai Chamber's Centre for Responsible Business continued to plays its important role in instilling a culture of responsible business in the UAE by launching various CSR, corporate governance and sustainability projects and organised 19 events to assist members of the business community to apply responsible business practices that enhance their performance and competitiveness. The Centre also awarded CSR labels to 11 new companies in the first half of the year.
Human Development Award
Dubai Chamber succeeded in adding more excellence awards to its long list of achievements by winning the Dubai Human Development Award - Government Sector, organised by the Dubai Department of Economic Development which reflects the Chamber's commitment to provide a stimulating work environment for its employees and Dubai's business community at large.
Promoting smart trade
As part of its efforts to promote e-commerce amongst the Gulf Chambers, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Makkah Chamber of Commerce and Industry to support, facilitate and join its new e-commerce initiative, (www.dubaichamber.com/alibaba) launched by Dubai Chamber in collaboration with the Alibaba Group, China's leading global e-portal in line with the directives of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to transform Dubai into one of the smartest cities of the world.
Established in 1965, Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry is celebrating its milestone anniversary of 50 years empowering vision in Dubai's business community. A non-profit public entity, Dubai Chamber supports Dubai's vision as a global player by empowering businesses, providing innovative value added services and access to influential networks. Its mission is to represent, support and protect the interests of the business community in Dubai by creating a favourable business environment, supporting the development of business, and by promoting Dubai as an international business hub. For more information visit: www.dubaichamber.com
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Ruba Abdel Halim
Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry
PR &Corporate Communications Department
Tel: +971 4 2028450
Email: ruba.halim@dubaichamber.com
© Press Release 2015
