Jafza CEO Salma Hareb Welcomes "Strategic Decision" by Honda

Dubai, November 27, 2006,

Salma Hareb, CEO of Jafza and Economic Zones World, today welcomed the opening of Honda Motor Co. Ltd.'s new Middle East office in Jebel Ali Free Zone (South).

Following the official opening of the new office facility in Jebel Ali, Salma Hareb toured the place accompanied by Shigeru Takagi, Managing Director, Honda Motor Co. Ltd., Europe, Middle East and Africa and Asim Al Abbasi, Chief Financial Officer, Jafza.

Salma Hareb said: "The developments in and around Jebel Ali  Free Zone, particularly the upcoming Jebel Ali Airport, one of the largest in the world, will further strengthen Jafza's logistics capability.  A major road between the Jebel Ali Airport and the Jebel Ali Port will facilitate the movement of goods from aircraft to ships and vice versa in less than twenty minutes.

"Honda's strategic decision to choose Jebel Ali Free Zone as the base for its entire Middle East operation speaks volumes of the trust and confidence it places in Jafza, and we will certainly live up to the expectations.

"Like Jafza, Honda is a trusted name that stands for unmatched service quality and customer satisfaction, and the Jebel Ali Free Zone is proud to be home to Honda's new office." Honda Gulf FZE started its operations in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in 1995.

Takagi said: "Our new office will facilitate operations in GCC countries where the demand for Honda products has rapidly grown in recent years.

"With the expansion of the Middle East office we want to improve quality of service and help our distributors organize more customer-focused programs and bring joy to customers, which Honda has always considered as core corporate mission.

"Jafza has been extremely cooperative with Honda in building this facility. Without their support and cooperation we would have taken much more time to achieve this dream."

-Ends-

About Jafza
Leveraging Dubai's strategic geographical location as a leading global trade and transshipment centre, the Jebel Ali Free Zone is one of the largest free zones in the world. Built around the largest man-made harbour, the Jebel Ali Port, Jafza provides investors with all the assistance they require to set up and operate in an environment free of red tape, duties and transit delays.

Jafza is the first free zone in the world to earn an ISO 9001:2000 certification. Today more than 5,500 businesses from over 100 countries, including around 140 Fortune Global 500 companies, do business at Jafza.

Web site: http://www.jafza.ae

For more information, please contact:
Yasir Saeed Zubairi
Media Executive
World-View Communications
P.O.Box: 17000,
Dubai,
UAE
Tel: +971 4 8818808
Fax: +971 4 8817722
Mobile: +971 50 3603570
Email: yasir.zubairi@wvc.ae

© Press Release 2006