UAE's Industry Development Council recommends new initiatives to support investors

The UAE's Industry Development Council, which supports the growth of the country's industrial sector for investors, recommended new initiatives, including the launch of a unified platform for industrial data, in its second meeting held on Tuesday.

During the meeting — led by Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and chairman of the Industry Development Council — members reviewed recommendations made at the first meeting and discussed the progress in enacting them, the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology said in a statement on Tuesday.

They also discussed the recommendation to launch a unified platform for industrial data and conduct an integrated national census project for the industrial sector that would cover all the emirates and their free zones and provide key data for industrial facilities in the country.

Each emirate showcased incentives aimed at stimulating the industrial sector, supporting the growth of national industries and enhancing their competitiveness, as well as discussing ways to streamline the business environment and reduce fees for industrial investors, the statement said.

“We are working on fast-tracking mechanisms for empowerment, integration and partnership among the public and private sectors to support national projects,” Dr Al Jaber said.

“This is in alignment of our goals of creating an attractive business environment for local and international investors in the industrial sector and positioning the UAE as a global destination for pioneering future industries.”

The UAE is boosting the local industrial sector as part of plans to diversify its economy.

The Emirates launched the Operation 300bn strategy last year to increase the industrial sector's contribution to the country's gross domestic product to Dh300 billion ($81.6bn) from Dh133bn in 2021.

It also aims to support 13,500 industrial companies over the next decade.

A new brand identity campaign, Make it in the Emirates, is also being rolled out as part of the strategy. Emirates Development Bank has been given the task of providing debt and equity funding to support companies operating in the sector.

The Industrial Development Council has been set up as a platform for co-operation, co-ordination and integration among relevant authorities in the UAE’s industrial sector on the federal and local levels as well as with the private sector.

“The Industrial Development Council teams have set clear strategic aims at the national level, which will be confirmed in the next few weeks, as part of the government's goals to intensify efforts and fast-track opportunities and investment projects in the industrial sector to boost the national economy,” Dr Al Jaber said.

The body is enacting initiatives as well as proposing and drafting policies, laws, legislations and strategies that aim to “attract foreign direct investment, advance quality infrastructure and enhance consumer confidence across local, regional and international markets in products manufactured in the UAE”, he added.

During the meeting on Tuesday, the council also reviewed the policy of valuing waste and limiting its export since factories can reuse waste products, such as iron and aluminium, through recycling, which will save materials, reduce costs and improve sustainability, the statement said.

“The council’s teams and their ambitious programmes will contribute enormously to enhancing the role the industrial sector plays within the national economy,” said Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade and vice president of the Industry Development Council.

“They also target improving the capacity and competitiveness of products manufactured in the UAE across local markets, increasing export capabilities in foreign markets, and establishing a stimulating work system for setting up and developing SMEs.”

The Industry Development Council also discussed preparations for the Make in the Emirates Forum that will take place on June 21-22. It is being hosted by the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology and its strategic partners, including Adnoc and the Department of Economic Development in Abu Dhabi.

The forum will showcase investment projects as well as witness the signing of several agreements between investors and Emirati and international industrial companies, the statement said.