A UAE delegation led by Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Dr Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber has concluded a two-day visit to Türkiye that took place from July 13-14 aimed at enhancing cooperation and exploring new areas for future collaboration.
Dr Al Jaber met with Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa Varank. The visit included meetings with senior government and private sectors officials as well as a UAE-Türkiye Investment Workshop.
Delegates discussed collaboration across the gas, energy infrastructure, renewable energy, healthcare, biotech, agri-tech, defense, logistics, digital communication, e-commerce and financial services sectors.
Dr Al Jaber said that the visit is in line with the leadership’s vision and is one of many that will explore the exciting investment opportunities for growth in both nations across a range of sectors.
He said that the two countries share a clear vision for sustainable economic growth and continue to expand their relations; as highlighted by the visit of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Türkiye at the end of 2021, and the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to the UAE in February.
Both the visits resulted in UAE agreeing to invest millions of dollars in Türkiye, in addition to MoUs to boost cooperation across different fields that contribute to enhancing sustainable economic development.
Dr Al Jaber said, “In line with the UAE’s Projects of the 50 which include many national strategic projects, we encourage businesses and institutions from both countries to take advantage of this partnership along with the opportunities and incentives offered.”
He said, “Doing so will develop relations in various fields, including energy, industry and trade which will contribute to achieving greater sustainable economic growth.”
The minister invited Turkish companies to invest in the UAE’s industrial sector and benefit from opportunities in petrochemicals, metals, pharma, medical equipment, electrical machinery, F&B, agri-tech, defense and space.
Recently, the UAE held the Make it in the Emirates Forum, where leading national companies unveiled a set of industrial investment opportunities worth AED110 billion, comprising 300 products across 11 sectors.
“The UAE is a leader in the energy sector, both conventional and clean, petrochemicals, metals, defense, pharma, and F&B. Cooperation with Türkiye in the energy, industry and advanced technology sectors, among others, indicates a strong commitment to increase joint investments,” Dr Al Jaber said.
“Our companies see opportunities in developing gas resources, energy infrastructure, renewable energy, healthcare, biotech, agri-tech, defense, logistics, digital communications, and financial services. While we are keen to expand our investments in Türkiye, we also want to drive mutually beneficial partnerships for industrial investment in the UAE,” he added.
UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi said, “The continued development of UAE-Türkiye relations is a direct result of our leadership’s directives to strengthen global strategic partnerships.”
He said, “Our efforts led to our recent Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPA) with several countries to enhance trade and economic cooperation and expand investments.”
He said, “Our CEPA with Türkiye will bring unique opportunities to enhance bilateral trade and investments, in line with all the UAE’s trade agreements.”
Dr. Al Zeyoudi said, “This visit will help to stimulate joint investments with Türkiye, support our common interests. It is in line with both countries’ efforts to boost collaboration, double the volume of non-oil trade, incentivize mutual investments and advance economic relations.”
He said, “Our economic partnership with Türkiye is deeply rooted. Non-oil trade between the two countries amounted to about AED50.4 billion in 2021, achieving a growth of 54 percent compared to 2020, and an increase of 86 percent compared to 2019.”
He added, “Türkiye accounts for over three percent of the UAE’s non-oil foreign trade and is our seventh largest trading partner. UAE investments in Türkiye amounted to almost AED18.3 billion by the end 2020, while the value of Turkish investments in the UAE amounted to AED1.1 billion at the end of 2019.”
Dr. Al Zeyoudi said, “The UAE announced a US$10 billion investment fund in Türkiye and the signing of 72 cooperation agreements, highlighting this relationship’s positive trajectory.”
Minister of State for Public Education and Advanced Technology Sarah bint Yousif Al Amiri said, “Based on the directives of the UAE leadership, relations with Türkiye are flourishing across various sectors. Thanks to the leadership in both countries, we are witnessing a transformation of projects in vital sectors including in advanced technology and space.”
She said, “In the UAE, we are focused on innovation, the adoption of advanced technology and future proofing as key enablers for economic growth in general and especially in the industrial sector.”
Al Amiri said, “The signing of the MoU between the UAE Space Agency and the Turkish Space Agency that includes space research and technology and joint studies on suborbital flights and satellite systems, lies at the heart of the UAE’s efforts to build bridges for space exploration.”
She said, “For us in the UAE international cooperation is key to achieving space aspirations as it provides a mechanism to increase the impact and outcomes of science through knowledge sharing, building R&D capacities and supporting the deployment of advanced technology in industry.”
Al Amiri said, “Ultimately, we believe these partnerships will provide mutual economic and social positive impact. Our joint efforts will help to expand the region’s contribution to humanity’s broader space exploration. I would like to take this opportunity to wish Türkiye every success in its lunar mission next year.”
The UAE delegation outlined investment opportunities in their country’s industrial value chain with a focus on priority sectors that leverage the use of advanced technologies.
The host country representatives gave a detailed explanation of the advantages of investing in the country through the Invest in Türkiye initiative.