ASEAN Consuls General in Dubai Meet with Top Sharjah CEOs

Sheik Fahim al Qassimi Executive Chairman of the Department of Government Relations (in white) flanked by (from left): Consuls General Arzaf Firman of Indonesia, Paul Raymund Cortes of the Philippines, Low Pit Chen of Singapore, Yubazlan Yousef of Malaysia, and Unnop Burunusate of Thailand. The Consuls General of the ASEAN member-countries in Dubai, namely: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand made a joint tour of the neighboring emirate of Sharjah on March 27.

05 April 2018 DUBAI – On behalf of his fellow Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Consuls General, Philippine Consul General in Dubai Paul Raymund P. Cortes highlighted the sustained economic growth in the Southeast Asian region and ASEAN’s successes in economic integration and cooperation.

Sharjah is the third biggest economy among the seven emirates with a GDP of $25 billion (2016). It prides itself in being both the cultural and industrial hub in the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.).

Sheikh Fahim bin Sultan al Qassimi highlighted Sharjah’s reputation as the cultural, education, and innovation capital of the U.A.E. He noted the presence of many universities and tech-related start-ups contribute to reaching its goal of becoming a knowledge-based economy.

The ASEAN group visited the headquarters of three of the most notable organizations in Sharjah, namely: Bee’ah Sharjah Environment, Sharjah Electric and Water Authority (SEWA), and Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, more commonly known as Shurooq.

Bee’ah CEO Khaled Al Huraimel briefed the group of the company’s progress as the U.A.E.’s and indeed the Gulf region’s leading integrated environmental and waste management company. It currently handles the Sharjah municipality’s solid waste management and has achieved 70% recycling and recovery rate.

At SEWA, CEO Dr Rashid Alleem, discussed the company’s leadership and management strategy. He stressed that the company is committed towards sustainable development and serving the community. Last year, SEWA was recognized by the United Nations Inter-Government Panel on Climate Change for drastically reducing Sharjah’s CO2 emissions by retrofitting many industrial plants with solar panels.

Meanwhile, Shurooq CEO Mohammad al Musharrakh provided a briefing on its economic free zones which includes the Sharjah International Airport Free Zone and the Hamriya Port Free Zone. He highlighted the emirate’s strategic location, diversified economy, competitive foreign investment regime and high return on investment as some of the emirate’s advantages over other locations. According to him, Shoruq is focusing in developing the following sectors: travel and leisure, transportation and logistics; health care; education and publication; environment, and light industries.

In line with Shurooq’s drive to promote Sharjah as an investment destination in Asia, Al Musharrakh proposed the holding of a round-table meeting with business councils of concerned ASEAN member-countries in the UAE in October 2018. The ASEAN consuls general meanwhile proposed that Shurooq consider doing a road show in their countries in the first quarter of 2019, which was welcomed by Shurooq. END

The ASEAN Delegation poses with SEWA Chair Dr. Rashid Alleem.

For more information, visit www.dubaipcg.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/PHinDubai/.