The Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), in partnership with the Ministry of Economy (MoE), organised a workshop for private sector companies pertaining to the India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), which aims to further enhance economic cooperation, and access to markets and mutual investment opportunities.

UAE-India CEPA, signed earlier this year, will pave the way to increase non-oil bilateral trade volume to $100 billion in the coming 5 years. The agreement is part of the UAE’s plan to sign comprehensive economic partnership agreements (CEPAs) with major global trade partners. MoE plans to sign eight (8) agreements with UAE strategic partners to increase bilateral trade by Dhs40 billion annually.

The UAE-India CEPA covers 11 service sectors and over 100 sub-sectors to stimulate flows between the two markets by eliminating custom tariffs on nearly 80 per cent of goods.

By end of 2021, non-oil trade between the UAE and India rose by 66 per cent to Dhs170 billion, making India the second largest trade partner of the UAE, accounting for 9 per cent of the country’s total non-oil trade. India is the top market for non-oil UAE exports accounting for 13.8 per cent of the country’s total exports, and 8.1 per cent of UAE re-export volumes. India is the third largest destination for UAE re-export trade. Indian exports represent 7.4 per cent of the UAE imports, placing India as second largest in this regard.

ADDED’s workshop was attended by Rashed Abdulkarim Al Blooshi, Under-Secretary of ADDED; Sameh Al Qubaisi, Director-General of Economic Affairs at ADDED; Abdulla Alshamsi, Assistant Under-Secretary, Industry Growth at MoE; and several senior officials from MoE and ADDED and representatives of the private sector.

Al Blooshi urged private sector companies to benefit from opportunities provided by UAE-India CEPA. “India is amongst the top trade partners of Abu Dhabi and UAE and is one of the largest markets bearing growth opportunities for different sectors. UAE- India CEPA will enhance bilateral trade and open new markets to Abu Dhabi based private sector companies,” he said.

“Abu Dhabi continues to strengthen its position as a regional and global hub for trade, business, and investment. We launched various initiatives to facilitate trade and ensure ease of doing business by reducing costs and requirements, simplifying procedures, and enabling seamless integration of government services,” Al Blooshi added.

The workshop, addressed by foreign trade experts and business leaders, discussed main targeted areas of the agreement, including goods, services, rules of origin/preferential certificate of origin, and safeguard measures.

Dr Ali Husain Makki, Executive Director of Logistics & Trade Facilitation Sector at ADDED, said. “UAE- India CEPA is a game changer and will increase bilateral trade. Abu Dhabi’s infrastructure and trade platforms are capable of meeting the expected increase in trade volumes. Trade facilitation solutions, including the Advanced Trade and Logistics Platform (ATLP), have simplified procedures, reduced time and cost, and will lead to increased trade volumes. New policies for e-commerce have also attracted new companies, committed investments of Dhs3.7 billion and over 3,000 new jobs.” “We urge the private sector to take advantage of the ‘Abu Dhabi Export Gateway’, the information platform that provides marketing opportunities for more than 100 national products spanning 60 markets around the world,” he added.

Separately, The Indian government has recently begun a series of outreach programmes to make local businessmen aware of the opportunities offered by the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) it had signed with the UAE.

The CEPA was signed in New Delhi on 18th February and was witnessed by His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during their virtual summit on that day.

The first in a series of countrywide outreach programmes was held in Hyderabad this week, organised by the Government of Telangana state, jointly with the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The Union Minister for Tourism and Culture, G. Kishan Reddy, was the chief guest at the programme. Reddy is Member of the Lower House of Parliament, the Lok Sabha, elected from Telangana state.

He said Telangana accounted for three percent of the overall merchandise exports of India. The CEPA offered a chance to increase the state’s export potential to the UAE and other countries for which the UAE is a business gateway. He urged his home state to improve its logistics facilities to take full advantage of the CEPA.

WAM