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Bulk of licenses issued to building maintenance activities, restaurants import and export, retail of canned and preserved foodstuffs.
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Volume of exports of the Emirate rises from $213 million during H1 2020 to $272 million during H1 2021.
AJMAN: The Department of Economic Development in Ajman (Ajman DED) has issued 2,271 licenses in the first half of 2021, a 117 percent increase over the first half of 2020 in which 1,047 licenses were issued.
The activities that accounted for the largest share of the licenses issued are building maintenance activities, restaurants and snack sales (cafeteria), import and export, tailoring and making of women’s clothing, retail of canned and preserved foodstuffs, hairdressing and shaving for men, interior design and decoration, and retail of ready-made women’s clothing.
Announcing the operational performance results for the first half of 2021, the Ajman DED said in a statement the index of issuing commercial permits also increased by 29 percent. Against 19,116 permits issued during the first half of last year, 24,612 commercial permits were issued during the first half of 2021.
Abdullah Ahmed Al Hamrani, Director-General of the Ajman DED, said the department overcame the negative consequences of the pandemic because of the leadership’s support for the economic sector.
Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser Al Nuaimi, Director of Business Development Division at Ajman DED, said the volume of exports of the Emirate rose from around AED782.7 million ($213 million) during H1 2020 to AED1.022 billion ($272 million) during first half of 2021.
Al Nuaimi said that to encourage and motivate citizens to engage in entrepreneurship, the department launched the SME Development Program in 2020, which attracted 1,322 members and registered an increase of 21 percent during the first half of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020.
The Ajman DED also launched the Reyada Programme for home licenses in early 2021, under which 114 licenses for home entrepreneurship during the first half of this year were issued.
As far as Ajman DED support to entrepreneurs, especially SMEs, is concerned, the value of fee exemptions provided by the department to members of both the SME Development Programme and the Reyada Programme during the first half of 2021 amounted to AED1.03 million.
Also indirect support was provided by reducing the financial burden represented in preparing feasibility studies at the value of AED 234,000, the advisory support worth of AED55,000, the marketing support of AED23,500, as well as training courses and programs where 18 training courses were held to enhance their skills.
Al Hamrani added that it is expected to witness an increase in the volume of investments in the coming period due to recent amendments to the Companies Act, which allows foreign investors 100 percent ownership in nearly 1000 activities.