The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been seeking to increase the pace of the local industrial sector.
It aims at making this sector play a pivotal role in bolstering the national economy, by restructuring the public-private sectors’ relationship.
It targets developing the regulatory aspects and relevant policies to enable the sustainable growth of the UAE’s industrial sector.
Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Dr. Sultan al-Jaber said the country’s leadership considers the development of the industrial sector a priority during the next phase.
“We have a formidable opportunity ahead to realize the ambitions of our leadership, play a pivotal role in the future of our national economy, and achieve the three national priorities set forth,” Jaber explained noting that these include empowering national industrial development, ensuring in-country value, and raising the competitiveness of UAE’s industries.
Jaber’s remarks were made during his first meeting with members of the newly-established Industrial Coordination Council (ICC).
He stressed the need to boost cooperation between the Ministry, the ICC, and the private sector, directly and continuously, according to a new and innovative approach, in order to achieve common goals, mainly enhancing the in-country value by supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and creating sustainable job opportunities.
“A key enabler for success is cooperation and effective partnership between the public and private sectors to prepare modern, advanced and stimulating legislative and regulatory frameworks capable of addressing the current situation and flexible enough to cause change and achieve high growth rates that come in line with the aspirations of the wise leadership.”
“We must leverage the fundamental building blocks that are already in place, including our world-class logistics infrastructure, unique energy assets, and a leading position in technological innovation and AI education to drive our economy into the fourth industrial age,” Jaber added.
Minister of State for Advanced Technology Sara al-Amiri, for her part, said it is essential to align efforts to adopt 4IR technologies – including the Internet of Things, real-time data analytics, and robotics - to enable and support current industries.
“Our objective must be to drive efficiencies, economies, and evolutions in their production and fabrication processes, and to position the UAE as a driver of change and development for the industry.”
As part of those efforts, she added: “we will establish new industrial clusters that both utilize and develop advanced technologies - supporting home-grown enterprises and attracting investors and investment.”
The Ministry will work with its partners in public and private sectors to concentrate research and development efforts and output on the technological needs of the industrial sector for the benefit of today and tomorrow’s economies, Amiri noted.
The ICC is tasked with helping develop a national strategy to boost the UAE’s industrial sector, setting key performance indicators, proposing policies and initiatives to boost cooperation, and liaising with relevant government entities as well as the private sector.
