Abu Dhabi and Japan boost investment ties with cooperation in advanced sectors

The Abu Dhabi-Japan Economic Council held a forum on Friday that saw a number of deals in advanced sectors such as AI and smart cities signed at the Tokyo event.

“Our strategy is clear – we are building an investment landscape that is as resilient as it is forward-looking, as globally integrated as it is locally rooted,” Shihab Alfaheem, the UAE's ambassador to Japan, said at the forum.

“By aligning our strengths, we will unlock new opportunities for growth and establish a framework for sustainable prosperity that benefits our nations and the wider global community.”

Abu Dhabi and Japan are set to benefit from co-operation in "leading edge" sectors, including advanced services, hydrogen and artificial intelligence, Jasem Al Awadhi, director general of economic affairs at the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, told The National.

"These are all areas that we are more than happy to work together with our Japanese counterparts on ... we've been championing free and equitable trade between countries, but we also appreciate letting things grow organically," he said.

Abu Dhabi and Japan have had strategic long-term relations – the UAE supplies about 40 per cent of the Asian nation's energy requirements – and the ties present opportunities to boost co-operation in other key areas, said Arvind Ramamurthy, chief market development officer of Abu Dhabi's ADGM.

"We believe that there's an opportunity here to look at other sectors ... whether it's semiconductors, AI, health care, technology and financial services – and then build deeper, stronger relationships between the two nations," he told The National.

Meanwhile, Adio also announced that it is expanding the operations of its unit in San Francisco to support the global growth of Abu Dhabi’s economic clusters, particularly for health technology, the Abu Dhabi Media Office said on Thursday.

At the centre of the plan is Abu Dhabi’s Health, Endurance, Longevity and Medicine cluster (Helm), a collaboration between Adio, the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development and the Department of Health.

Helm, announced at last month's Abu Dhabi Global Health Week, is projected to contribute about $25.6 billion to Abu Dhabi's economy, attract $11.5 billion in investments and unlock 30,000 new jobs by 2045.

Adio's expansion in San Francisco – the home of Silicon Valley and a hotbed of the latest technologies and venture capital – will help it tap into the global multi-trillion dollar healthcare market and further position Abu Dhabi on the global innovation and regulatory stage, especially for health care and other key sectors, the Media Office said.

“By expanding our operations in San Francisco, we’re not only opening new doors to Abu Dhabi’s business ecosystem, we’re building two-way bridges for capital, innovation and impact across multiple innovation-driven sectors,” said Ahmed Al Zaabi, chairman of Added.

The event comes after the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Japan External Trade Organisation on Thursday signed an initial agreement to deepen business relations and create new opportunities for collaboration, during another the Abu Dhabi-Japan Business Connect Forum in the Japanese capital.

The engagements between Abu Dhabi and Japan are also positioned to boost negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between the UAE and Japan, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

Abu Dhabi has been focusing on diversifying its economy away from hydrocarbons, with non-oil trade growth a key part of the plan.

The UAE and Japan have continued to boost collaboration, with bilateral trade growing at a compound annual growth rate of 11.9 per cent during the past five years.

The Emirates' investments in Japan have more than doubled over the past five years, while it has attracted more than 80 per cent of Japanese investments in the Middle East, Mr Al Zaabi said.

Meanwhile, bilateral trade between the UAE and US totalled $34.4 billion in 2024, data from the UAE embassy in Washington shows.

The US exported more than $26.9 billion of goods and services to the UAE last year, which is an 8.5 per cent annually increase from 2023.