Attracting new investment and trade opportunities from the Chinese market will be the central focus of a new roadshow to be hosted by Dubai Airport Freezone Authority (DAFZA)in the Shenzhen province, China. Held between 17th and 20th of April,the event will aim to showcase to the Chinese community the growing business prospects available in Dubai and the UAE.
The central theme of the roadshow is ‘Gateway to Growth’, which reflects DAFZA’s strategic objective of increasing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from China to Dubai, supporting Dubai Plan 2021 and the UAE’s long-term vision. The roadshow is one of many of DAFZA’s global initiatives which aim to communicate the free zone’s unique offerings in terms of connectivity, infrastructure and strategic location.
China and the Asian market in general will remain a major focus area for DAFZA and the UAE. 17% of the number of companies at DAFZA are from Asia, as reported in the 2017 results, of which China represents a significant portion. Some of the Chinese companies who chose to operate out from DAFZA are Wiko Corporation MEA FZCO, WANHUA CHEMICAL GROUP Co.,LTD (Branch), COSL Middle East FZE, China Southern Airlines Branch, China Eastern Airlines Corporation Limited (Branch), Sinochem Corporation Representative Office (Branch), Petro-King Group Middle East Corporation FZE.
Amna Lootah, Assistant Director General – Finance, Commercial & Customer relations Division Foster of DAFZA Innovation & Future Unit commented: “DAFZA remains committed to attracting foreign investment and international business from the key markets across the globe. China continues to be one of the largest and most important strategic markets for the UAE economy and as such as we have created a number of initiatives to help bolster ties between the two nations. The bilateral trade between China and the UAE reached a total of 170.2 billion dirhams (46.37 billion U.S. dollars) in 2016, which made China the UAE's biggest trade partner for the third consecutive year. In 2017, two-way trade between the two countries crossed $35 billion in the first nine months of the year alone.”
“The roadshow will help educate and motivate Chinese businesses on establishing operations at DAFZA – potentially benefitting from the unique offerings within the free zone. We are excited to strengthen relations with the businesses we meet in Shenzhen and look forward to welcoming them to DAFZA in the near future,” added Amna Lootah.
DAFZA recently announced a new strategic partnership with Liaoning Chamber of Commerce UAE. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will increase collaboration between the two organizations to help expand bilateral trade and create new business and investment opportunities with Liaoning province.The Authority also previously signed an MoU with China (Guangdong) Pilot Free Trade Zone (GDFTZ) – Nansha Area of Guangzhou (Nansha FTZ).
These initiatives show that DAFZA remains committed to engaging with the Chinese market through a series of campaigns in a number of provinces including Shenzhen and Guangzhou.
A senior delegation from DAFZA will lead the roadshow, which will provide Chinese businesses a dedicated display on how they can benefit from the opportunities of DAFZA’s comprehensive services and packages.
