Expo to strengthen UAE’s role in halal industry

A Halal food summit held in Dubai in September is expected to strengthen the UAE’s position to lead the halal industry in the region.

Organisers said the UAE has the potential to become the hub of Islamic economy and to attract foreign investments.

The UAE ranked among the top three countries - after Malaysia and Bahrain - in the Global Islamic Economy Indicator in many sectors including halal food, media and Islamic finance.

“The Expo is a platform to attract halal foreign direct investment to the UAE," said Raees Ahmed, director of Orange Fairs and Events - the organisers of Halal Expo Dubai.

"We have chosen Dubai for our event because the emirate has achieved great successes in its agenda for developing the Islamic economy with a focused approach and plan for developing each sector of this economy," he said.

More than 4,000 traders from 40 countries are expected to visit the Expo - which is in its ninth year - on September 18 and 19.

Recently Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre announced what it called a "refreshed" five-year growth strategy.

The centre’s initial strategy - since its launch in 2013 - rested on seven sectors: Islamic finance, halal industry, family-friendly tourism, digital infrastructure, Islamic arts, fashion and design, and standards and certification. The new strategy for 2021 consolidates these seven sectors of Islamic Economy into three and uses two-pronged approach.

The first part focusses on developing the Islamic economy by identifying new key performing indicators for monitoring sector growth and measuring their contribution to the national economy.

The second involves Dubai’s status as a global reference for Islamic finance, industry, trading standards and culture, and as a prime destination for halal trade and family tourism.

"We have chosen Dubai for our halal event because Dubai has achieved great successes in its agenda for developing the Islamic economy with a focused approach and plan for developing each sector of this economy," Mr Ahmed said.