For Enhancing Better Corporate Governance in the UAE
Hawkamah Institute for Corporate Governance (Hawkamah), a subsidiary of the Dubai International Financial Centre Authority, yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI), aiming to have both organizations work towards developing and advocating a sound corporate governance framework across the UAE, Middle East and North Africa.
The MoU was signed by His Excellency Abdul Rahman Ghanem Al Mutaiwee, Director General of the DCCI, and Dr. Naser Al Saidi, Executive Director of Hawkamah. The signing ceremony was also attended by ?Atiq Juma Nasib, Director of Business Development Department in the DCCI, Sultan Lootah, Acting Director of Business Promotion Department in the DCCI, Alex Zalami, Director of Dubai Ethics Resource Center, as well as Rashid Bu Shabib, Program Manager at Hawkamah.
Al Mutaiwee said that the DCCI, which was established for over 40 years, plays a significant role in supporting business activities, proposing legislation that organizes and regulates the economic sectors and providing input in developing the institutional role of the government departments and linking with international organizations.
The DCCI actively co-operates with government establishments and professional organizations within the UAE so that it remains at the heart of best practice in business and can provide its members with the most valuable resources. Along with the DCCI's strength and influence within the business community, the latest collaboration with Hawkamah represents a significant step in actively promoting and improving good corporate governance practices in the UAE, GCC countries and North Africa region.
"Our collaboration with Hawkamah was an obvious and natural step for us. The priority of the DCCI is to support initiatives and reforms that benefit the private and the public sector in the UAE. Developing the framework for corporate governance and advocating its importance among members makes a perfect sense. If business in the UAE is to reach its full potential, corporate governance must be taken seriously," said Al Mutaiwee.
The mutual objectives of Hawkamah and the DCCI lie in the importance to improve the corporate governance practices of private and public sector entities; develop national legal and regulatory frameworks with respect to corporate governance; cooperate on developing corporate governance within institutions through training; and finally, establish an Institute of Directors and promote the creation of Centralized Credit Registries and a Companies House. The goal is to improve integrity, transparency and efficiency thereby encouraging greater investment in private and public institutions.
Dr. Nasser Al Saidi, Executive Director of Hawkamah, said "The DCCI has had significant input in the development and framework of the private and public sector policy we see in the UAE today. Our partnership with the DCCI and the Dubai Ethics Resource Centre is a very important and significant step for the UAE business community, and firmly puts corporate governance on the agenda. It is a clear commitment of Dubai's and the UAE's business community to best international practice in corporate governance and ensuring market integrity and transparency".
The future areas of cooperation as per the MoU signed between the DCCI and Hawkamah include conducting corporate governance assessments, surveys and improvement plans by promoting the development of a good legal, regulatory and institutional corporate governance structure in the UAE. It also includes building capacity for, and raising awareness of, good corporate governance in UAE, by encouraging the public and private sectors to establish national corporate governance task forces who will raise awareness of corporate governance, in addition to undertaking board director outreach and development programs.
The DCCI has developed its own project and set up the Dubai Ethics Resource Center (DERC) which copes with the objectives of Hawkamah. This Center aimed at fostering corporate integrity and promoting Dubai as the regional gateway to international business by providing a suitable environment with high levels of transparency, disclosure and accountability.
The DERC collaborates with the public sector and semi-government organizations to promote good public governance through a variety of customer-driven programs focusing on ethics and integrity. Based on its fundamental values involving dedication, innovation and solidarity, the DERC looks to raise the region's ethical standards and awareness of corporate responsibility and governance, thus highlighting the synergies with Hawkamah's initiatives.
Hawkamah is an autonomous, regional entity whose mission is to assist countries and companies in the Middle East and North Africa to develop sound and globally well-integrated corporate governance frameworks and practices.
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© Press Release 2006
