The UAE on Tuesday set out plans to more than double the value of its Islamic banks and increase exports of halal products around the world.
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, said the UAE Strategy for Islamic Finance and the Halal Industry was approved during the latest meeting of the UAE Cabinet, which he chaired.
Sheikh Mohammed said the country's goal was to increase the assets of the country's Islamic banks from Dh986 billion to Dh2.56 trillion within six years and to raise Islamic sukuk issuances – Sharia-compliant bonds – in the Emirates to more than Dh660 billion by 2031.
Sheikh Mohammed said a committee would be established, headed by the governor of the UAE Central Bank, to execute the plan as part of a wider effort to diversify and expand the country's economy.
Championing tourism
The growth of the UAE's tourism sector was also on the agenda at the ministerial gathering, held at Qasr Al Watan in Abu Dhabi.
Sheikh Mohammed said the tourism, travel and hospitality industry generated more than 800,000 jobs in 2023 and was expected to have contributed more than Dh236 billion to the national economy in 2024.
He said the UAE aims to raise this figure to Dh450 billion by 2031.
Biosecurity strategy
The Dubai Ruler said ministers approved plans to update the UAE's national biosecurity framework to improve prevention and response and bolster research and innovation.
The Cabinet was also briefed on the latest development's in the UAE's small and medium-sized enterprise business sector.
The Emirates ranked first globally for the fourth consecutive year in the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor 2024-2025 report, and 18th worldwide on the list of the top 100 emerging ecosystems for start-ups for 2024. The Cabinet heard SME licences in circulation had risen by 160 per cent.
Sheikh Mohammed said the UAE was committed to supporting and expanding this sector and to provide the best environment for launching and supporting small and emerging companies, which he cited as a cornerstone of the economy.
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Email sent to Uber team from chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi
From: Dara
To: Team@
Date: March 25, 2019 at 11:45pm PT
Subj: Accelerating in the Middle East
Five years ago, Uber launched in the Middle East. It was the start of an incredible journey, with millions of riders and drivers finding new ways to move and work in a dynamic region that’s become so important to Uber. Now Pakistan is one of our fastest-growing markets in the world, women are driving with Uber across Saudi Arabia, and we chose Cairo to launch our first Uber Bus product late last year.
Today we are taking the next step in this journey—well, it’s more like a leap, and a big one: in a few minutes, we’ll announce that we’ve agreed to acquire Careem. Importantly, we intend to operate Careem independently, under the leadership of co-founder and current CEO Mudassir Sheikha. I’ve gotten to know both co-founders, Mudassir and Magnus Olsson, and what they have built is truly extraordinary. They are first-class entrepreneurs who share our platform vision and, like us, have launched a wide range of products—from digital payments to food delivery—to serve consumers.
I expect many of you will ask how we arrived at this structure, meaning allowing Careem to maintain an independent brand and operate separately. After careful consideration, we decided that this framework has the advantage of letting us build new products and try new ideas across not one, but two, strong brands, with strong operators within each. Over time, by integrating parts of our networks, we can operate more efficiently, achieve even lower wait times, expand new products like high-capacity vehicles and payments, and quicken the already remarkable pace of innovation in the region.
This acquisition is subject to regulatory approval in various countries, which we don’t expect before Q1 2020. Until then, nothing changes. And since both companies will continue to largely operate separately after the acquisition, very little will change in either teams’ day-to-day operations post-close. Today’s news is a testament to the incredible business our team has worked so hard to build.
It’s a great day for the Middle East, for the region’s thriving tech sector, for Careem, and for Uber.
Uber on,
Dara