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Covid-19: UAE on robust recovery 
after Dh395 billion lifeline

Abu Dhabi - According to the UAE Central Bank, the country would achieve a GDP of 3.6 per cent by the end of 2021.

The UAE government has spent a total of Dh395 billion for economic support and initiatives since the start of the pandemic — all to ensure the country’s robust recovery.

Humaid Al Muhairi, official spokesperson of the Ministry of Economy, on Tuesday turned the spotlight on how the UAE’s remarkable resilience cushioned the impact of the Covid-19 crisis.

According to the UAE Central Bank, the country would achieve a GDP of 3.6 per cent by the end of 2021, Al Muhairi highlighted at the weekly Covid-19 briefing on Tuesday.

The Internal Monetary Fund is also expecting the country to register an economic growth of 3.1 per cent in 2021 and 2.6 per cent next year. Al Muhairi said the revenues in the vital sectors have been growing quarter by quarter too.

“The government revenues coming from economic activities have increased by 115 per cent in the last quarter of 2020, compared to the third quarter of the same year. The revenues continued to increase in the first quarter of 2021 by 13 per cent, compared to the fourth quarter of 2020. Also, the number of newly registered companies in the country in 2020 increased by 4 per cent compared to 2019,” he added.

“This year is considered to be the beginning of recovery. We call on everyone to take the vaccine. Countries with a better framework will be able to have a better response,” Al Muhairi said.

He underlined that according to Switzerland’s International Institute for Management Development, the UAE ranked first in the region and ninth in the world as the most competitive nation. It is also first in the Arab region in the Covid Economic Recovery Index Ranking issued by the Horizon Research Group.

To ensure business continuity, in August 2020, the UAE Cabinet approved the launch of 33 initiatives to support the economic sectors.

Al Muhairi said the implementation plan was divided into three stages. “The first seeks to provide immediate support for business sectors and the economy, while the second phase was to launch complementary support for industries to enable a rapid economic recovery. Finally, providing integrated support to vital sectors opens up a sustainable and flexible development path for the economy.”

“Till now, we have completed 80 per cent of the first stage, more than 25 per cent of the second, and we are continuing to implement the plan to reach 100 per cent by the end of 2021,” he added.

Many sectors achieved growth last year compared with 2019, mainly: agriculture and fishing (6.9 per cent), health and social support (6.7 per cent), IT and communications (4.3 per cent), education (2.8 per cent) and social security (1.7 per cent).

Al Muhairi added that work permits issued in the first quarter of 2021 had reached pre-Covid days. “We have more than 540,624 new work permits. More than one million were registered in 2020,” he said.

Additionally, Emirates Development Bank (EDB) will provide Dh30 billion financial support to vital sectors and fund 13,500 new companies by 2025. “UAE creates strategic balance to ensure a safe return to normalcy and have growth in different sectors.”

ashwani@khaleejtimes.com