Mohammed Mahtabur Rahman, chairman and managing director of Al Haramain Group of Companies, chairman of NRB Bank Ltd (Bangladesh) and president of Bangladesh Business Council in Dubai, has been named as the first non-resident Bangladeshi to have been awarded permanent residency in the UAE.
The gold card has been issued as part of the UAE government’s initiative to reward distinguished investors, highly-skilled professionals, scientists and entrepreneurs.
The recognition comes as Al Haramain Group celebrates 38 years of its presence in the UAE.
Rahman’s group owns Al Haramain Perfumes, one of the largest fragrance manufacturers in the Middle East region, Al Haramain Tea Co Ltd and Al Haramain Hospital Pvt Ltd.
“The Gold Visa is an honour for me and my country Bangladesh. This will encourage us to investment more in to the UAE economy and help the UAE economy expand more. We are grateful to the leadership and people of the UAE for allowing us great economic opportunity and honour,” he said in a statement.
He becomes the first of 6,800 investors with total investments exceeding AED100 billion ($27 billion) to receive the gold card under a scheme announced last month by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Prime Minister, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
Al Haramain Group, which has diversified business interests in perfumes, tea, banking, education, healthcare and hospitality sectors, currently owns more than 20 business establishments across the GCC, Bangladesh, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, United States and other countries with more than 100 branches directly employing more than 1,000 employees. Rahman is also chairman of NRB Bank Ltd.
Hailing from Sylhet, Bangladesh, Rahman was born in 1958 and after completing his education, he joined his family business in Saudi Arabia and later shifted business base to the UAE in the early 1980s.
The UAE’s new permanent visa is intended to generate foreign investment and attract top engineers, scientists, and star students.
It is the first such scheme in the Gulf, where foreigners are generally only given limited duration residence permits under the “kafala” sponsorship system.
Foreigners account for 90 percent of the population of around nine million in the UAE, the Arab world’s second-largest economy which has seen rapid development in recent years.
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