Coinciding with the ceremony, UNIDO and Republic of Guinea announce an agreement to assist development of the country's industrial and manufacturing economy

Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Sept. 1, 2015

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) today held a Global Announcement Ceremony for the biennial Global Manufacturing & Industrialisation Summit (GMIS) series in Al Ain, the second largest city in Abu Dhabi emirate.

The announcement launches a year-long global campaign in the run up to the first Summit, which will take place in Abu Dhabi in September 2016, starting with an international roadshow to build public, social, corporate and government support for GMIS. Upcoming destinations include the U.S., the UK, Germany and China.

GMIS is an initiative by the UAE's Ministry of Economy and UNIDO in collaboration with the World Economic Forum's Global Agenda Council on the Future of Manufacturing.

"GMIS is designed to be more than just a summit," explained His Excellency Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori, the UAE's Minister of Economy. "This is about creating a global movement to help drive 21st century manufacturing and industrial transformation to create sustainable economies and inclusive societies worldwide. This is a long term process for which the inaugural Summit is the beginning, not the end."

GMIS will be a longstanding platform of debate, interaction and learning with a global outcome. It is aimed at fostering the development of global standards for manufacturing and industrial innovation by bringing together representatives from governments, industries, civil society, students and academia to agree on a cross-national and cross-sector global manufacturing framework based on mutually agreed and beneficial standards.

Pressing global issues to be examined include: the relationship between low and high value added manufacturing activities; social and employment issues surrounding manufacturing and related urbanisation; the skill needs by manufacturing firms and how can they be catered for; the impact of incentives on manufacturing investment; leveraging technology for innovation; how to integrate better SMEs into global value chains; and how manufacturing and environmental concerns can be aligned.

During the event, which was held at the Strata Manufacturing facility owned by Mubadala, an Abu Dhabi investment and development company, Minister Al Mansoori, in partnership with the Director General of UNIDO, LI Yong, gave a detailed update on the objectives and progress of GMIS to the guest of honour, Professor Alpha Condé, President of Guinea and over 200 public and private sector delegates including regional CEOs from some of the world's most influential global corporations.

"UAE's experience with manufacturing and industrialisation, which Strata exemplifies, can be a model for both industrialised and developing economies," said HE Al Mansoori. "Strata is an illustration of developing our economy, moving away from a dominant industry, offering major benefits to our people. It is also welcomed by its major clients as a significant contributor to their global and regional development strategies. By disseminating successful experiences worldwide, we believe GMIS will accelerate development of similar initiatives across the world. We have a long way to go, but this is what is so exciting. By winning global support and demonstrating the inherent benefits for governments, corporates, and civil society, GMIS can enhance global manufacturing and make industrial innovation a global reality and force for a better tomorrow."

Also during the Global Announcement Ceremony of GMIS, UNIDO entered into an agreement with the Republic of Guinea to assist the development of the country's industrial and manufacturing economy.  Under the agreement, UNIDO will provide policy advice to the African nation and support it with research and studies to develop its manufacturing and industrial sector in a way that creates substantial job opportunities whilst preserving the local environment.

"Signing this agreement with a sovereign state can help promote knowledge and best practices whilst taking an inclusive and sustainable approach in line with the UN goals for sustainable development," said LI Yong. "We look forward to working with all our partners, both public and private, to help Guinea develop a viable roadmap for a more diverse economy, with inclusive and sustainable industrialization at the heart of positive change"

President Condé said the Guinea agreement builds upon the UAE's success in establishing policies for industrial innovation and diversification.

"Guinea's economy must become balanced so that we are not at the mercy of commodity pricing - as is the case with any country which is overly reliant on commodity exploitation.

The solution is diversification. We must diversify into new industrial options, so that our GDP can grow not just because of increased commodity prices or enhanced production, but because it has developed new value propositions that are adjacent or separate to existing economic drivers," said the President.

"We are working collaboratively with international partners to help develop and diversify our economy and are particularly interested in GMIS, for its potential to bring all possible international partners to the table. We hope that GMIS will act as a process that will help drive economic development around the world.

"Developing economies have to have the courage to move away from what they know and grasp the opportunity to develop something new. By being in this aerospace factory today I can say that the UAE has been rewarded for its courage," he added.

Delegates were then offered a tour of both the 'Made in UAE' pavilion and the state-of-the-art aerospace facility.

-Ends-

For further information, contact:
Kimberly Lobo
kimberly.lobo@ketchum-raad.com
052 667 5984

Sweta Sewa
sweta.sewa@ketchum-raad.com
055 275 1846

© Press Release 2015