ABU DHABI, UAE – Trade between the two countries is on an upswing with volumes this year expected to surpass that of last year, Radha Krishna Panday, Ambassador of Canada to the UAE, told the Emirates News Agency (WAM).
He said that the UAE has created a value-added platform that offers entrepreneurs tremendous access to capital and the ability to integrate technology and skills.
According to the UAE Ministry of Economy, bilateral trade between the Emirates and Canada, worth US$4.1 billion (AED15 bn) in 2022, surpassed the 2021 figure of US$3.4 billion (AED12.7 bn) with a 19 percent increase, signifying “a growing trade relationship,” Panday said.
The ministry’s figures indicated that bilateral trade to the tune of US$1.8 billion (AED6.62 bn) during the first half (H1) of this year (January to June) exceeded the US$1.7 billion (AED 6.3 bn) worth of trade during the same period last year, marking a 5.4 percent increase, “which means we are on track to surpass 2022’s numbers,” the ambassador added.
Trusted partners
“There are a lot of opportunities for us to work closer together. We see each other as strategic partners,” the ambassador said.
Canada is a long-time trusted supplier of quality goods and services, and technology solutions to the UAE, he said.
“We are very well known for the variety and the quality of our agri-food products. We are very active in the areas of green technology and energy transition products. We work very closely with the UAE on food security and regional business development activities,” he added.
Canada provides a whole range of value-added services, technology solutions and products that fit very nicely into the UAE’s ambitions and the Emirates’ role as a solution provider for the region and a trading hub that people come to for long-term stable business and trade relationships, the envoy said.
UAE’s valued-added platform
He appreciated the valued-added platform created by the UAE for businesses.
“An entrepreneur or a company with some value to add, can come here, do things in the UAE, and further up the Gulf and South Asia,” he said.
“We look to sell the value proposition of the UAE, not because we owe it anything, but because we think it is in Canada’s interest to understand the value-added platform that the Emirates has created here,” the envoy said.
He said that many Canadians want to move to the UAE to utilize such opportunities.
“That is a strong pull…I think [the UAE], as a value-added business center with this deep pool of talent, capital and business linkages, is fantastic,” Panday said.
Exciting opportunities
The UAE brings to the table the strong network of political, security, diplomatic and economic development assistance relationships, the envoy said.
Panday said that it creates an exciting opportunity for a country like Canada to advance its interests and support “the UAE project. That is why I think the opportunities are well beyond the ability to quantify them.”
He expressed his appreciation on the UAE appointing Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, former Minister of Economy, as the Special Envoy to Canada.
“I think that there are tremendous value-added opportunities, not just quick headlines but really good valuable things, which will be worthwhile for the residents of both Canada and the UAE,” he added.