Dubai Customs organized its 4th Consultative Council Meeting 2020 through video conferencing in an optimistic atmosphere for the quick recovery Dubai has made from the coronavirus pandemic. HE Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs, senior management members and business group representatives, attended the meeting.
In his welcoming note, Musabih said the indications of a quick recovery from the pandemic and expected growth in 2021 are strong and positive.
Moody's Investors Service ("Moody's") has assigned a Aa2 senior rating to the UAE. It is the strongest rating in the region, and will raise investments and attract more businesses into the country.
United Arab Emirates’ (UAE) non-oil gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 2.9% in 202, which is a very good growth compared to other greater countries.
“With Cabinet Resolution No. 16 of 2020 being issued recently, companies are eligible for full 100% foreign ownership in the UAE. This is good news to different businesses and it means that different industries will grow including trade, tourism and e-commerce. We have already seen very positive recovery signs from the Gitex Technology Week, which Dubai successfully organized this month, with the participation of 200 companies from 60 countries. Internationally, the World Trade Organization expected a 7.2% growth in trade sector worldwide in 2021” said Musabih.
Despite the spread of the pandemic, Dubai Customs made outstanding performance by completing 11.2m transactions in the first 9 months this year, out of which 99.3% were done through smart channels, with 97% of them receiving automatic approvals in 2 minutes.
The Government Department dealt with 13.7m pieces of luggage in the first nine months. It has been named the ‘Best PMO in the World 2020’ at the PMO Global Awards organised by the PMO Global Alliance, the leading global community of project management professionals. The award recognises the consistent international standards and exceptional project management practices maintained by Dubai Customs. It also actively participated in Gitex Technology Week with 12 innovative projects and initiatives that facilitate trade and protect the society.
On the sidelines of the meeting, Dubai Customs and Dnata signed an agreement to boost cooperation in facilitating the clients’ procedures and transactions. Abdullah Busnad, Executive Director of Customs Inspection Division at Dubai Customs and Kevin Ennis, Vice President- Cargo Business Development, dnata signed the agreement.
Busnad commended the coherent and strong cooperation between Dubai Customs and dnata, which aims to boost efficiency of customs procedures to facilitate trade.
On his part, Patrick Murray, Head of dnata’s e-commerce platform- Calogi, said the advanced cargo information agreement between dnata and Dubai Customs is the first of its kind in the world. Advanced information allows customers to book appointments prior to shipment arrival and plan their resources based on guaranteed delivery and acceptance time.
Nadia Abdul Aziz, President-National Association of Freight and Logistics-NAFL, delivered a presentation on the importance of shipping and the logistics sectors in developing Dubai’s economy. She pointed out that 14% of Dubai’s GDP is generated from freight and logistics, and external trade constitutes 30%.
She said the covid-19 crisis has influenced the international logistic activity worldwide, but thanks to its advanced technological infrastructure and diverse economy, the UAE has managed to contain and mitigate these effects.
Representing the Indian Business and Professional Council, Sahitya K. Chaturvedi talked about the concurrent challenges the retail, small and large enterprises are facing. He said in the UAE, there are 400kSME establishments, which contribute over 60%of the non-oil economy and provide 86%of the private workforce.
They make up 73%of the UAE’s trading sector, 16%of the services sector, and 11%of the manufacturing sector. They contribute around 30%of UAE’s GDP.
The Dubai Customs Consultative Council Meetings are preceded by sessions as part of the Round Table initiative, which aim to shed more light on the developments in international trade and associated sectors, and the challenges that face the global supply chain. These sessions involve experts from the trade sector and business group representatives who meet to come up with recommendations and suggestions to be raised to the Consultative Council.
At the end of the meeting, Edris Behzad, Director of Client Happiness Department, thanked the business groups for their cooperation and fruitful partnership with Dubai Customs. He said the Consultative Council meetings enhance means of cooperation and coordination between Dubai Customs and its strategic partners, especially in difficult times