The UAE Minister of Economy Sultan Al Mansouri, said the UAE is a strategic hub for foreign investments and the national economy has proven its strength over the past 38 years and is very well positioned on the world economic map. He was addressing a special meeting with more than 50 key Spanish investors and entrepreneurs at the head quarters of the Confederation of Employers and Industries in Madrid in the presence of Jose Maria Lacasa, Secretary General of the Confederation.
Mr Al Mansouri said that the first meeting of the UAE-Spanish Joint Economic Committee is a milestone development in the UAE-Spain bilateral trade relations. “We have agreed on strategic areas of cooperation in major fields such as heavy industries, small and medium businesses, clean energy, and the need to adopt an open skies policy. We are looking forward to share our experience with Spanish businesses especially in the field of investments, as they already have huge experience in investing in the Latin American countries,” he added.
Mr Al Mansouri said: “The United Arab Emirates believes in the importance of collaboration and cooperation, and the joint economic committee with Spain is a key pillar in driving forward our partnership base.”
Mr Al Mansouri added that the UAE offers investors the convenience of 100 per cent ownership in its free zones, superior infrastructure, access to qualified manpower, and a commitment to international intellectual property rights and antipiracy laws. “Our geographical proximity to some of the world’s largest populations, makes the UAE a promising market to reach out to a wider audience of over 300 million people in the Middle East region alone”.
Al Mansouri invited Spanish investors and companies to be part of the success story of the UAE economy. “There are many opportunities in almost all major sectors of our economy including industry, renewable energy, tourism, financial services, Islamic banking, retail, health, education, transportation, telecommunication, technology and more. These are sectors where Spain has proved its leadership, and through our partnerships we look forward to sharing the synergies. The UAE investments in Spain have exceeded 3 billion Euros in the last two years and we are looking forward to see the same level of enthusiasm and support from Spanish investors”.
The trade exchange between the UAE and Spain reached 1 billion euros in 2009. “We are interested in further enhancing this, especially as we consider Spain a strategic partner and a gateway to the Latin American economy through joint ventures and partnerships.”
Jose Maria Lacasa, Secretary General of the Confederation, has praised the results of the first meeting of the joint committee and considered the UAE as one of the strategic partners for Spain. “Many Spanish investors are planning to invest in different economic sectors in the UAE in the near future and are confident that the UAE has a strong economy, flexible policies and political stability, which contribute to creating an attractive environment for Spanish businesses. The UAE has also proven its professionalism and strength in passing over the most critical part of the crisis and the Spanish companies were not much affected by it.”
