The emirate of Ras Al Khaimah has attracted more than $1 billion (Dh3.67bn) in foreign direct investment in the two years to December 2006, officials said yesterday, but warned that it is not sufficient to compete on cost advantages alone.
"It is not enough to compete solely on price," said Dr Izzat Dajani, Chief Executive of the emirate's Investment and Development Office (IDO), on the concluding day of the 2007 Ras Al Khaimah Conference.
"In Ras Al Khaimah, quality remains a primary consideration in every sphere of activity. We are committed to maintaining a reasonable cost base and improving our living and lifestyle offerings.
"We are listening hard and have learned a great deal from the points raised in the last two days," Dajani said. "Our next step will be to produce a working document encompassing all the issues that have been raised here." In the past two years, the emirate has attracted more than 140 industries ranging from small glass bottle and truck and bus manufacturing plants to commodity and polystyrene factories.
The two-day conference focused on the emirate's infrastructure offerings, with sessions dedicated to ports, logistics and free zones. It also had discussions on real estate, manufacturing, energy and petrochemicals.
Dr Khater Massad, CEO of RAK Ceramics, said businesses operating in the emirate have thrived because of Ras Al Khaimah's infrastructure and logistics capacity, its energy, labour and real estate supply, tax-friendly status and the RAK government's probusiness and pro-investment outlook.
RAK Ceramics is the single largest ceramic manufacturing entity in the world. It produces more than 100 million square metres of ceramic tile and three million pieces of sanitaryware annually, which it sells globally in 128 countries.
The company has achieved a return on investment 200 times its initial capital, Massad added.
Other RAK manufacturers reported more than 30 per cent cost reduction in comparison with other plants located outside the emirate.
"What Ras Al Khaimah offers is a lower cost base plus the same good infrastructure as the rest of the UAE, and a government that is fast to act and committed to getting things done," said Riad Bsaibes, Chief Operating Officer of Amana Contracting and Steel Buildings.
© Emirates Today 2007
