Abu Dhabi Finance Week to kick off with energy transition investment in focus

Abu Dhabi Finance Week will kick off on Monday at The Abu Dhabi Global Market with "investing in the transition era" in focus as countries continue to boost investments in cutting emissions and achieving net zero targets in the coming decades.

Senior officials including Abdulla Bin Touq, Minister of Economy, and Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Minister of State for Food Security, as well as executives from the business world will address the four-day event.

Global financial industry leaders will assemble to "delve into the opportunities and challenges presented by the economic, technological and sustainability shifts impacting the global economic landscape", organisers said.

It comes ahead of the Cop28 climate summit that begins in Dubai this week, where climate financing will take centre-stage.

It is also taking place against the backdrop of the global economy facing challenges due to high inflation and tightening monetary policy as well as geopolitical issues caused by the Ukraine war and conflict in the Middle East.

On the first day, Mr Bin Touq will share his plans for the economic policies of the UAE and key components for future growth as the Arab world’s second-largest economy continues to grow on the back of its economic diversification agenda.

The UAE economy is expected to grow 3.4 per cent this year with oil gross domestic product growth projected at 0.7 per cent and non-oil GDP at 4.5 per cent, backed by a strong performance in tourism, property, construction, transport, manufacturing and a surge in capital expenditure, according to the World Bank.

The UAE economy expanded by 3.7 per cent annually in the first half of the year, driven by strong non-oil sector growth, Mr Bin Touq said last month.

Speakers on the first day include Jamie Dimon, chairman and chief executive of JP Morgan Chase, Waleed Al Muhairi, deputy group chief executive of Mubadala Investment Company, Ray Dalio, founder of the US-based investment management firm Bridge Water Associates, and Sajid Javid, former UK chancellor of the exchequer.

More than 10,000 global financial leaders are expected to attend the event, organisers said last week.

Abu Dhabi investment and holding company ADQ will also discuss its activities in the last five years. The conglomerate has interests spanning energy, utilities, food and agriculture, health care, pharma, mobility and logistics.

The first Abu Dhabi Finance Week, held last year, attracted more than 8,000 people.

This year's will feature about 30 different events, including the Abu Dhabi Economic Forum, Asset Abu Dhabi, FinTech Abu Dhabi and the Global Financial Regulators Summit.

There will also be a breakout sustainable finance conversation, the Race Sustainability Summit, which will delve into topics such as green finance, the transition to net zero, bridging the trillion dollar climate-financing gap and the rising role of youth in sustainability.