UAE witnesses dramatic rise in women's involvement in the business sector

December 23, ?2002

Dubai -keralamonitor.com The UAE is currently witnessing a dramatic rise in women at the workplace and in business according to recently released official figures. Statistics show that there were 3,223 businesswomen engaged in commercial activity in 2002 in Dubai, a five-fold increase in the last decade, and 1,325 in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain, which constitutes a four-fold increase. Official statistics also show that 6.7 per cent of the total members registered at DCCI in 2002 were women.

The long-felt need for a more aggressive and systematic approach for empowering women in all spheres of economic, social and political life has begun to show positive results following fresh initiatives to take concrete steps to energize women to transcend their traditional image and move towards activities that will project them as decision makers and leaders.

The total invested capital in businesses run by women is estimated to be around Dhs 12.4 billion, with the bulk of capital invested in Trade and maintenance, Financial brokerage, Real estate and Rental, Manufacturing & industries, Restaurants & hotels and Building and construction.

The figures for women professionals in the UAE business sector cut across all nationalities. Statistics show that 55 per cent of businesswomen in Dubai are UAE nationals, followed by Indians, Lebanese, Egyptians, Moroccans and Ethiopians. Of these, around 40.5 per cent are owners, 48.1 per cent partners and 11.45 per cent managing partners. Activity-wise, around 48 per cent are engaged in trade, 42 per cent in vocational activities, 9.6 per cent in professional services and 0.3 per cent in industrial businesses.

The recently concluded conference on National Strategy for the Advancement of Women in the UAE, has also provided a great impetus to women's empowerment programs under the patronage of Her Highness Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, wife of the President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and Chairperson of the UAE General Women's Union, with the support of the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The strategy provides a tangible blueprint for practical steps to bring women into the national mainstream and the decision-making process across different areas of activity while continuing to play their role of raising families in the traditional manner. One of the key clauses of the strategy is the recommendation to form businesswomen's councils attached to the chambers of commerce and industry across the UAE.

?The UAE is certainly taking the lead in laying a definitive framework to bring more women in the spotlight as achievers and doers. Educational incentives are supported by guidance and placement, as well as capital to build own businesses,? says Hussain Al Mahmoudi, Manager External Affairs, Shell Markets (Middle East). Shell is strongly committed to the empowerment of women, especially the UAE women, and the most effective manifestation of this commitment is the recently announced Emirates Business women Award, which seeks to reward women with exceptional business acumen and managerial excellence. Our support for the award matches our larger global vision which envisages that 20 per cent of the senior executive positions in Shell will be held by women by 2008.?

The Emirates Businesswomen Award, a pioneering initiative launched by Dubai Quality Group in association with Shell, is a major development that is expected to give a fresh impetus to women's emergence as businesswomen and corporate achievers by creating role models to inspire others. The award has also gained significant credibility because of the active role played by the Professional Women's Sub Group at Dubai Quality Group to create business and professional awareness among the women in the UAE. Since its establishment almost two years ago, the Professional Women's Sub-Group has been working towards setting up a crisis center for women, initiating career advisory meetings and sharing best practices. DQG's support for the Emirates Businesswomen Award is in accordance with the objectives of the women's sub group to create awareness on entrepreneur-ship for women.

The award, to be given away in March 2003, aspires to be the most sought after recognition for businesswomen, as the promoters have devised elaborate criteria to judge the entries. The entries will be judged on the basis of visionary leadership, future goals, professional achievements, career achievements and community contribution. The Emirates Businesswomen Award will be given away in four categories, open to business owners as well as professionals. The main categories are locally based Smaller nterprises with less than 25 employees and Larger Enterprises employing more than 25 persons. In each category there are two sub-categories: Business Owners/Investors and Professionals. The award is open to local women as well as expatriates. The deadline for submitting entries is January 30, 2003.The UAE Businesswomen Award comes at a time when the UAE has sent the right signals to the world that women in the UAE are ready to take the leap towards a more constructive and visible contribution to society and the economy in the 3rd millennium. The achievements of the women are creditable because women entrepreneurs have to wrestle with problems like difficulty in obtaining required capital, social factors, fear of taking risks, absence of support and technical advice and lack of personal business contacts.

The Emirates Businesswomen Award has been instituted by Dubai Quality Group and Royal Dutch Shell to honor women who have made a significant contribution to the business development in the UAE. Launched under the patronage of HH Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Department of Civil Aviation and Chairman of Emirates Airline, the award seeks to recognize the success achieved by women residents in the UAE in the world of business either as businesswomen or a professional, with the objective of creating role models that will spur other women to scale new heights. The Emirates Businesswomen Award is open to UAE nationals as well as expatriates holding UAE residence visas. Stringent parameters have been laid down to judge the entries. The last date for submitting entries is January 30, 2003 with the winners to be announced in March 2003. (keralamonitor.com)

DUBAI AIR SHOW TO FEATURE DEFENSE CONFERENCE

December 23, 2002

Dubai 2003, the international aerospace exhibition being held in Dubai, United Arab Emirates next December, will feature a specialist defense conference in the event's programme. Entitled 'The Evolving Defense Environment,' the conference is being organised by the leading international weekly publication Defense News in co-operation with Fairs and Exhibitions (F&E), organisers of the Dubai air show.

"We will produce a customized defense conference closely associated, aligned and in co-operation with Dubai 2003," said David B. Smith, Vice President, Marketing & Business Development, Defense News Media Group. "The content of the conference will be pitched at a high strategic level and will focus exclusively on defense issues."
The one-day conference, at Le Meridien, Dubai will be held on December 6, 2003, a day prior to the opening of the five-day Dubai air show. "The conference will feature panels of experts offering brief presentations on individual topic areas, with a strong element of interaction between the panelists and the audience in question and answer sessions," explained Smith.

Defense News will also produce a post-conference Executive Summary of the conference, which will be distributed the day after the conference to all Dubai air show visitors. "In particular, 500 of the executive summaries will be distributed to members of the VIP military delegations who are invited to the show by the Department of Civil Aviation, Government of Dubai and the UAE Armed Forces," explained Clive Richardson, CEO, F&E. "The Dubai air show delegations programme is one of the most envied in the world and a key selling point for the event."

Defense News also plans to promote the conference online via its web-site www.DefenseNews.com while F&E will feature it on the Dubai air show website www.dubaiairshow.org "The conference is a substantial boost to the Dubai air show programme. The defence sector is a vital core element of the exhibition, and this new conference will perfectly complement the latest products and services on display in the exhibition halls and on the static aircraft display," said Richardson.

To date, exhibitors from 17 countries have registered for Dubai 2003, which will be held at the purpose-built Airport Expo Dubai. Some 13 national and industry groups have signalled their intention to mount pavilions at the show, including, for the first time, aerospace groups from the Ukraine and Switzerland. Dubai 2003, the eighth international aerospace exhibition in the series, is being organised by Fairs and Exhibitions in conjunction with the Department of Civil Aviation, Government of Dubai and in collaboration with the UAE Armed Forces. (keralamonitor.com)