Two leading Ras Al Khaimah organisations are hosting a key business forum with an eye on increasing investments in the emirate.

The second edition of the annual Global Arab Business Meeting (GABM) will be hosted by the Ras Al Khaimah Investment Authority (Rakia) and the Ras Al Khaimah Department of Economic Development. The event takes place on October 9 and 10 at Acacia Hotel in Ras Al Khaimah and is organised by Horasis, an independent international organisation which works for a sustainable future.

Attending the GABM will be Sheikha Lubna Bint Khalid Al Qasimi, UAE Minister of Foreign Trade; Mohammed Abu-Hammour, Minister of Finance of Jordan; Makhdoom Amin Faheem, Senior Minister of Commerce, Pakistan; and Shri Kamal Nath, Union Minister of Urban Development, India. Prominent private sector personalities from different countries will also be present.

“With some 300 leading personalities from business and government expected at the event, the second GABM is regarded as the foremost gathering of top decision-makers from the Arab region and the rest of the world, offering an opportunity to meet, explore business prospects and discuss visions for a sustainable future,” an RAK Government statement said.

“The event also serves as a unique platform to highlight the exciting opportunities that have emerged in Ras Al Khaimah as a lucrative investment destination,” the statement added.

Last year, Rakia achieved a 27 per cent increase in the number of licences compared to 2009 and expects to surpass this number by the end of this year. The licences were issued to consulting and service companies, trading businesses, commercial companies, industrial firms and media businesses.

“GABM is designed to further enhance the influx of investors in the emirate by providing a dedicated platform that showcases Ras Al Khaimah’s strategic advantages as an investment haven before an audience of global business and government leaders,” the statement said.

Alex Thomas, general manager for marketing and promotions, Rakia, said the GABM had quickly established itself as a premier gathering of the most influential business personalities in the Mena region and from the rest of the world. He described it as a very timely initiative, complementing the growing influx of international investments towards the Arab world and capitalising on the region’s huge market potential and strategic location.

“The Global Arab Business Meeting is in line with Rakia’s continuing efforts to identify new ways to drive the economic growth of the region, particularly here in Ras Al Khaimah, by creating dedicated platforms that cultivate interaction and cooperation between Arab and international business leaders,” Thomas said.

Creating awareness
Dr Djamel Bellout, director for planning and studies administration, Ras Al Khaimah Department of Economic Development, commented: “Ras Al Khaimah has emerged as one of the most attractive and lucrative investment destinations in the world and high-profile events such as the Global Arab Business Meeting will certainly help us create greater awareness about the exciting opportunities in the emirate. It has been the thrust of the Ras Al Khaimah Department of Economic Development to host and support such initiatives that encourage more investment and development activities across the emirate. We are therefore pleased to work with Rakia in organising this event and we hope to collaborate in similar projects that support the economic growth agenda of Ras Al Khaimah.”

Dr Frank-Jurgen Richter, chairman, Horasis, said the GABM was a key platform that would help define the growth agenda of leading Arab businesses and put a spotlight on new possibilities and exciting opportunities now available across the Arab world.

The RAK Free Zone Business Park. The emirate has attracted targe investments in recent years

A ‘successful partnership’
“The event reaffirms the successful partnership of Horasis and Ras Al Khaimah as we jointly explore new ways to build a more prosperous future for the emirate and the rest of the Arab world. The enthusiastic support that the second GABM has gathered from global business and political leaders strongly indicates that the Mena region is fast emerging as a premier business destination,” he added.

The GABM will announce the 2011 Arab Business Leaders of the Year, celebrating outstanding entrepreneurs who have been building and leading successful global firms of Arab origin.

The organisers have also scheduled various activities to showcase the key business, leisure, tourism and lifestyle amenities of Ras Al Khaimah, in addition to various social and networking activities incorporated  in the two-day gathering.

Since its establishment in 2005, Rakia has become one of the pillars of the emirate’s economic progress, attracting investors from all over the world through its free zone and non-free zone facilities.