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Diversification a key pillar for the success of UAE economy

Diversification will continue to be a key pillar for the UAE in the coming years, said Marwan bin Jassim Al Sarkal, chief executive officer of the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq).
Speaking on the second day of the Sharjah FDI Forum 2016, Al Sarkal said that Sharjah is very unique when it comes to recognising opportunities. "It is one of the emirates that has identified diversification early on as a key pillar for success. When we look at the next step for Sharjah in attracting foreign investment, we have identified several sectors that will be very important, when it comes to diversification in the future," he said.
Al Sarkal noted that Sharjah has always been known for its manufacturing sector, and that the emirate contributes almost 13 per cent of the UAE's manufacturing industry. "The time has come for us to shift the focus away from manufacturing. We recently did a study to identify the sectors that investors needed to focus on and found that the tourism sector is suffering from a huge gap in demand and supply. As a result of this, we will be increasingly focusing on tourism, whether it be eco-tourism, archeological tourism, or simply attracting visitors with the various festivals that we offer," he revealed.
Other sectors that Shurooq will be focusing on are the healthcare, transportation, and environment sectors.
"Our focus is on offering specialised medical care and services that are not offered in other medical zones. Yet another sector that we are focusing on is the transportation sector. Transportation will play an increasingly important role in the coming years, as Sharjah has three seaports. We will explore opportunities that will allow Sharjah to play a bigger role in becoming the gateway to the Middle East," Al Sarkal said.
He added: "The last sector that we will be focusing on is the environment sector. Sharjah today has the biggest waste segregation plant in the Middle East, and we also have a facility that recycles waste into energy. However, there are still many opportunities for us to do more in this sector, including improving energy efficiency and food waste management. There are lots of opportunities and Shurooq is here to help and support investors in exploring them."
Dr Nasser Saidi, president of Nasser Saidi & Associates, and member of the Regional Advisory Group for the Mena region, IMF, also made interesting observations on key areas of diversification and innovation, which are underway in the UAE.
"A remarkable achievement has been the announcement of the UAE space programme, which is working to launch a drone to planet Mars. We need to create a space centre here dedicated to conduction the UAE's economic activities of the future," he said.
Saidi put forth several recommendations worth looking into for future diversification of the UAE economy, and suggested significant reforms that would drive these efforts. He noted that the global shift toward renewable energy raises a significant opportunity for the UAE to become the first global financing hub for clean energy. He suggested developing a knowledge-based economy, aggressive digital innovations, the use of nanotechnology, financial technology or fintech, and introducing a rigorous STEM curriculum for the nation's youth at the primary levels itself.
"A green card programme, like the one in Saudi Arabia is deliberating to launch, must be considered by the UAE. Our economies should definitely be investing more on R&D programmes, putting into place incubators and accelerators. The UAE should develop to establish itself as the intellectual property hub of the Arab world, because in many ways it already is. We need to liberalise our telecom and insurance sectors, make them more conducive to future FDIs. Modern insolvency laws must be chalked out to assist businesspersons to restructure their businesses, and pension and social security programmes started," he said.
- rohma@khaleejtimes.com