Dubai Customs Shines on World Quality Day: A Global Spectacle of Excellence and Growth
H.E. Ahmed Mahboob Musabih Highlights UAE's Top Global Rankings, Elite Awards, and 10% Growth in Customs Transactions
Dubai Customs, in its commitment to advancing towards continuous excellence and bolstering quality to enhance the competitiveness of the UAE, organized the World Quality Day Forum with the theme "Achieving Competitiveness." The event, attended by prominent figures including H.E. Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, Director General of Dubai Customs, CEO of Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, aimed to underscore the nation's dedication to elevating business and service quality.
During his forum address, Ahmed Mahboob Musabih emphasized the UAE's dedication to refining government services, aligning with global competitiveness standards. The UAE was able to achieve significant leaps in the competitiveness reports for the year 2023, topping the countries of the world in 186 global indicators. It also advanced to the first position among Arab countries in 508 indicators of global competitiveness reports, supported by the progress made by the state in the quality of government services, along with the achievement of digital transformation at the government level. This enabled the UAE to rank first among Arab countries and eighth globally in the Smart Services Index.
Musabih reiterated the UAE's commitment to an open world economy, as outlined in the economic principles document by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai. Dubai Customs aligns with these principles, continually supporting quality and competitiveness indicators by enhancing commercial and customs services. The department's pursuit of excellence aims to solidify its position as a leading global customs administration, fostering legitimate trade while ensuring societal protection and sustainable economic development.
The Director General disclosed that Dubai Customs' focus on quality has earned it the Elite Award in the Dubai Government Excellence Program, coupled with consistent attainment of ISO certificates across various domains. This commitment to quality has amplified the government department's capacity to process customs transactions, resulting in a 10% growth in the first half of 2023.
The improvement in the quality of customs services has increased the efficiency of Dubai Customs in processing customs transactions. In the first half of 2023, the number of customs transactions completed by the department reached approximately 14 million, showing a growth of 10% compared to the first half of the previous year. This highlights the effective contribution of Dubai Customs in enhancing the competitiveness of the UAE in foreign trade. The non-oil foreign trade of the country in the first half of 2023 achieved an unprecedented figure, surpassing AED 1.239 trillion with a growth of 14.4% compared to the first half of 2022. This reinforces commitment to steadily progress towards achieving the goals of Dubai Economic Agenda D33 by working to double the total value of Dubai's foreign trade to reach AED 25.6 trillion.
Khuloud Al Falasi, a Senior Quality Assurance Officer at the Strategy and Corporate Excellence Department, emphasized the significance of World Quality Day in raising awareness about the importance of quality for organizations globally. Dubai Customs remains dedicated to enhancing work quality by continuously educating employees on the latest international quality applications, staying abreast of advancements in information technology and artificial intelligence.
Al Falasi highlighted that the World Quality Day Forum contributes to employee development, aligning with the UAE's goals for comprehensive and sustainable development. The forum featured the presentation of the ISO 56002 Innovation Management System certificate to Ahmed Mahboob Musabih, along with information sessions on financial control, business continuity, and corporate governance.
Additionally, the forum recognized and honored various customs departments responsible for quality systems, including customer happiness, corporate communication, human resources, customs training center, administrative affairs, strategic and institutional excellence, information technology management, and the customs complaints committee.