The UAE and Thailand have agreed to start negotiations for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (Cepa) as they seek to boost trade ties.
The first round of negotiations will begin in the Emirates on May 16, state news agency Wam reported.
A Cepa deal between the countries will build on growing bilateral non-oil trade, which increased by 21 per cent annually to $6.1 billion last year.
“Thailand is an increasingly important trade and investment partner for the UAE, and a high-growth economy in the heart of an exciting, rapidly emerging region,” said Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade.
“We have enjoyed strong bilateral trade growth in recent years and believe a comprehensive economic partnership agreement will deliver a wealth of opportunity in sectors such as tourism, food security, IT, logistics and financial services.”
The move comes as the Arab world’s second-largest economy forges ahead to develop closer trade and investment relations with partners around the world.
The UAE is working towards signing 26 Cepas as it seeks to diversify its economy, Minister of Economy Abdulla bin Touq said in March.
The country has already signed Cepas with India, Israel, Indonesia and Turkey, and is close to finalising agreements with Kenya.
In April, it finalised the terms of a similar pact with Cambodia and also recently concluded negotiations for a new trade deal with Georgia.
The UAE also started talks for a Cepa with Costa Rica in March.
The deals are part of the UAE’s strategy to double its foreign trade and the national economy by 2031.
Thailand’s economy is the second largest in South-East Asia and is projected to grow by 3.8 per cent in 2023, driven by a rebound in the country’s tourism sector.
The UAE’s principal exports to Thailand are ethylene polymers, gold, vegetable residues, delivery vehicles and parts, and electric batteries, with iron, steel and cosmetics emerging sectors.
Meanwhile, Thailand’s leading exports include office machinery and parts, motor vehicle parts, tyres and aluminium plating.
The Cepa negotiations with Thailand follow the launch of the first UAE-Thai Business Council in February.
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4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
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Brief scores:
Toss: Northern Warriors, elected to field first
Bengal Tigers 130-1 (10 ov)
Roy 60 not out, Rutherford 47 not out
Northern Warriors 94-7 (10 ov)
Simmons 44; Yamin 4-4
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The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
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