HE Ahmed Butti Ahmed, the Executive Chairman of Ports, Customs and Free Zone and Director General of Dubai Customs, had discussions with a Brazilian trade delegation regarding the cooperation ties between Dubai and the Federative Republic of Brazil and the future opportunities to boost these ties.
Mr Butti received at his office the Brazilian trade delegation, which was accompanied by the Brazilian Ambassador accredited to the UAE, H.E Jose de Mendonca Lima Neto. The delegation included Mr. Wilson Dockorn Junior, Head of the Trade Promotion Office in Dubai, Mr Sidney Alves Costa, General Manager of Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX-Brazil Middle East), Ms Karen Fernandes Jones, Intelligence Economist in Brazilian and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX-Brazil Middle East), and a number of company representatives and officials from various economic and trade specialities.At the beginning of the meeting, Mr Butti welcomed members of the delegation and commended the aspects of the economic, trade and investment cooperation linking Dubai and the Federative Republic of Brazil, which is Dubai’s primary business partner in Latin America. He indicated that the overall trade between Dubai and Brazil amounted to AED 6 billion between January-October 2012, representing 37% of Dubai trade with Latin American countries which reached AED 16.3 billion in the same period of time.
Director General of Dubai Customs said that having direct flights between Dubai and Brazil and the economic and trade openness between the two countries can strengthen ties between them. He affirmed Dubai Customs’ commitment to deliver exceptional and high quality services to traders and various business sectors that can simplify and accelerate clearance procedures at its customs entry points and iron out obstacles facing business sectors, aiming at enhancing Dubai’s position as an attractive platform for foreign investments in all fields and nurturing its trade and economic relationships with world countries.
Mr Butti praised the Brazilian product, stating that it has a good chance to have a strong presence in the UAE market and adjacent markets, particularly, since Dubai is considered a vital regional hub for trade movement between the east and the west. He added that the local market includes international brands in every speciality in view of the wide diversity of consumers’ needs. Mr Butti listened to the feedback and suggestions of Brazilian companies officials regarding work development and stepping up services level in an effort to boosting trade ties between the two countries and eliminating barriers that encounter businesses.
On the other side, the Brazilian Ambassador expressed his gratitude for this meeting which allowed Brazilian companies to learn more about the services and facilitations offered by Dubai Customs to various business sectors and councils. He stressed on his country’s keenness to develop economic and trade relationships with the UAE, as they are very interested in its market in view of having direct flights between the two countries that carry both passengers and goods.
There are many Brazilian companies operating in the UAE in various fields, such as construction, food and fashion. There are 207 Brazilian trademarks registered in the country. The Middle East Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) has established two offices in Dubai to support Brazilian businesses in the region.
Over the past years, hundreds of Brazilian companies took part in UAE trade conferences, such as The Big 5, Index, the Hotel Show, Gulfood Exhibition, Automechanika, and others.