Dubai South teams up with Ghana to boost economic ties

Jamil Khan, Senior Reporter

Dubai South, the largest single-urban master development focusing on aviation, logistics and real estate signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Ghana Investment Promotion Center (GIPC), the foremost investment attraction and promotion agency under the presidential office of Ghana, to promote all-round economic cooperation, bilateral trade and investment.

The agreement, which was signed at the Abu Dhabi Hall, Business Connect Centre, Expo 2020 Dubai, by Mohsen Ahmad, CEO of Dubai South, Logistics District and Yofi Grant, CEO of GPIC, was also attended by HE Khalifa Al Zaffin - Executive Chairman Dubai Aviation City Corporation.

At a brief launch on the expo grounds in Dubai, some of the high-Level representative and speakers attended the event namely: Honorary Yaw Osafo-Maafo - Senior Presidential Advisor, Office of the President, H.E AlHaji Ahmed Ramadan - Ambassador of the Republic of Ghana to the UAE, Yofi Grant, CEO of Ghana Investment Promotion Centre, and other senior officials.

Through this agreement, the two parties aim to create an attractive environment for SMEs and encourage the exchange of trade missions with all-rounded preparation, including assistance with business programs, facilitating corporate networks and information exchange between the two authorities. It’s worth noting that EZDubai, the e-commerce zone strategically located at the heart of Dubai South Logistics District, represented the UAE in various Africa-UAE business events to promote the Emirates’ latest innovations, technical advancements as well as optimal service solutions leading the region’s e-commerce industry.

Mohsen Ahmad, CEO of Dubai South Logistics District, said: “It gives us immense pleasure to ink a bilateral agreement with GPIC to promote a lucrative environment for SMEs to prosper and strengthen economic ties. Our leadership have chalked an effective, long-term strategic road map for us and it is our time as industry leaders, to lay the foundation for both communities to achieve optimal results. The agreement comes on the heels of the mega event, Expo 2020 Dubai, which seeks to pave the way for resilient global economy and enable robust business connectivity.”

Yofi Grant, CEO of Ghana Investment Promotion Centre (GIPC), also asserted that the Expo presents a wonderful opportunity to outdoor Ghana’s numerous opportunities to investors around the world. He also said: “The country’s participation in the Expo will promote government’s priority sectors, comprising; housing and construction, manufacturing, technology and digital economy, tourism and creative arts, agric and agro-processing, as well as health”. Ghana, has officially become the “Commercial and Trade Hub of Africa, as it hosts the Secretariat of the African Continental Free Trade Area - hailed as the world’s largest free trade bloc. The country ranks among the top in West Africa for ease of doing business, offering investors a conducive business environment bolstered by solid economic fundamentals, dynamic policies, and political stability.”

According to the UNDP, the country has made significant progress in poverty reduction and thus becoming the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to achieve the Millennium Development Goal 1, which is the ambitious target of halving extreme poverty.

Today, Ghana is not only one of the best places for doing business in West Africa, but also the most resilient economy in West Africa according to the EY African Attractiveness index.

Dubai South was launched as a Dubai Government project in 2006, representing an emerging 145 square-kilometre, master-planned city based on the happiness of the individual. The city is identified as Dubai’s flagship urban project and is designed to create 500,000 jobs in an integrated, economic environment that supports all types of businesses and industries.

Meanwhile, Under the umbrella of Digital Dubai, taking place under the theme ‘Digitising life in Dubai,’ Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) has announced its participation in the 41st edition of GITEX Technology Week 2021, the largest technology exhibition in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia that will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 17 - 21 October. Through this pioneering event, the Authority will showcase the innovative technical solutions it has adopted to celebrate Dubai’s cultural and heritage treasures as well as its contemporary innovations that aim to enhance local and global access to the emirate’s cultural landscape and strengthen its global cultural position.

Dubai Culture is also participating in GITEX Future Stars 2021, the event dedicated to entrepreneurs and start-ups, where Saeed Mubarak Kharbash, CEO of the Arts and Literature Sector at Dubai Culture, will highlight the importance of the creative economy as an economic sector that supports cultural tourism and supports the economic sectors of other countries as well as the cultural and creative industries that fall under this sector. He will also shed light on Dubai’s cultural vision, as well as on its thriving creative sector, and on the solutions and benefits that the emirate provides to its creative community. Dubai Culture is looking forward to welcoming all those interested in this field at Stand No. 124 in Zabeel Hall 4.

At its stand No. (15) under the Digital Dubai pavilion located at Sheikh Saeed Halls 2 and 3, Dubai Culture will focus on its most prominent services and smart projects in the culture and arts fields, including the ‘Dubai’s Culture and Heritage’ project on the Google Arts & Culture platform that provides members of the public around the world with rich cultural content supported by information, interactive panoramic images and short films. As part of its strategic roadmap and objective to make culture accessible to all, the Authority will also provide virtual tours of Etihad Museum and Al Shindagha Museum during the event.

Shaima Rashed Al Suwaidi, Director of Marketing & Corporate Communication Department at Dubai Culture, said: “GITEX Technology Week is an ideal opportunity to showcase Dubai’s world-class digital infrastructure and smart services. With our participation in this event, we aim to strengthen the emirate’s leading position in the field of government digital transformation. Through our involvement, we also seek to emphasise our commitment to the Digital Dubai initiative launched by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, that aims to digitalise life in Dubai and ensure the happiness and well-being of community members through the use of digital technologies.”