Operation 300bn, the 10-year industrial strategy which aims to make the industrial sector the main driver of UAE’s economy by 2031, has highlighted the value the country places on its industrial and manufacturing sector.
Under the strategy which was launched in March by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the industrial sector would contribute AED300 billion (nearly $81.7 billion) to the country’s GDP.
In a wide-reaching interview with Arabian Business, managing director of Dubai Industrial City Saud Abu Al-Shawareb discussed the developments in Dubai’s industrial sector and its competiveness in the export markets.
Abu Al-Shawareb also addressed the role food manufactures play not only in food security but also in achieving Operation 300bn’s targets.
Operation 300bn aims to double the contribution of the industrial sector to the UAE’s economy by 2031. How feasible do you think this goal is and what should be done to achieve it?
Dubai Industrial City has more than 250 operational factories and we’re proud to say that we really contribute heavily to the GDP and the revenue of the country.
We have the infrastructure to host more international factories and have more local factories to expand with us. We also have the readiness to attract foreign direct investments to Dubai Industrial City that will tap into the Operation 300bn initiative.
There are a lot of industrial developers in the UAE and each developer will have their plans to achieve the ultimate goal of Operation 300bn.
Year by year we will try our best, as Dubai Industrial City, to increase the number of factories that are built on innovation, sustainability and efficiency with high-end products.
Saud Abu Al-Shawareb, managing director of Dubai Industrial City and a steering member of the Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030
What role do food manufactures play in Operation 300bn and how is Dubai Industrial City helping this sub-sector grow?
Today, food security is a very important and it’s complementing Operation 300bn.
We have noticed a good demand in food manufacturing facilities that are expanding within Dubai Industrial City, one of which is Al Barakah Dates and the other is Asmak, the region’s biggest fish processing factory worth over AED200 million.
Also, there are vertical farming facilities already operational within Dubai with plans to expand, meaning that Dubai and the UAE have the resources and the infrastructure to accommodate such businesses.
From Dubai Industrial City’s perspective, we have 23.5 million square feet of industrial land purely dedicated for food and beverage (out of 550 million square feet total.)
Currently, we have 60 factories operating within the City’s Food and Beverage zone and we have another 12 factories that are under the construction phase and will start production between this year and early the next.
We also have a few deals that are in the final stage and will see new F&B facilities hopefully breaking ground during this year.
Are Dubai’s industrialists competitive in the export markets and what can be done to support them?
The UAE is no longer an importing country only as we have also become an exporting country. One of the reports generated by the government indicated that AED167 billion was generated last year from exports.
Jebel Ali port and Al Maktoum airport are playing a vital role to support our industrial manufacturers in Dubai to export their products internationally.
I think being a safe country really helped the industrial sector to continue – despite a very minor disruption during the pandemic, Jebel Ali port didn’t stop its operations nor did the airport. This built trust and encouraged industrial manufacturers to invest more and to expand within the UAE.
Today the product label of Made in UAE is considered a high standard one that can tick most of the requirements of European and US markets. Examples of successful exports include Al Barakah Dates which exports dates and related products to 79 countries.
In Dubai and the UAE, we have amazing products and stories that reached everywhere around the world because of our safe business environment, ease of doing business and the solid infrastructure where you can set up your factory here and cover two thirds of the world’s population within an eight-hour flight.
Sustainable development is among Operation 300bn’s targets. How do the industrialists within Dubai Industrial City comply with sustainability initiatives?
We’re proud of our business partners who, during their design stage, are considering zero wastage outcome for their process lines by recycling water and solid wastes and considering renewable energy in terms of using solar panels and thermal power.
They are also using innovative production lines to not only be sustainable in terms of supporting the environment but also in terms of reducing raw material wastage, increasing the high quality of the product and reducing the finished goods wastage.
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