Inayat-ur-Rahman

The UAE is marching ahead and has entered a historic new era of economic expansion and prosperity. The country has left no stone unturned to ensure that Expo 2020 is an outstanding event on the global stage, and unlocks massive economic potential.

The expo theme, ‘Connecting Minds, Creating the Future’, embodies the regional and global interests in coming together, exchanging knowledge, creating opportunities and shaping a sustainable future.

Not many countries can boast of the combination of a stable macroeconomic environment, robust product market and modern infrastructure, to the extent that the UAE can. The World Economic Forum, after elevating UAE competitiveness rank by two places in its latest report, called the nation’s financial system “well-developed”, and made a few recommendations that could help propel Emirates into one of the most competitive countries in the world.

 The cumulative effect of regulatory reforms, several innovative government initiatives and a changing geopolitical landscape in the past year has placed the UAE in a unique position, strongly indicative of good times to come.

This was stated by Sangeetha B,  Deputy CEO of Al Fajer Facilities Management, during an exclusive interview with Gulf Today.

Sangeetha lauded the UAE government’s efforts in the past year, which facilitated favourable market conditions and safeguarded the interests of all stakeholders. “The UAE government has entered into MoUs with several nations in 2019, strengthening existing bilateral ties and signing new deals for trade and economic cooperation.”

“The Emirates has scaled remarkable heights this year. Industry-wide optimism was at an all-time high and a clearer consensus on challenges and opportunities emerged, enabling us to take appropriate action and make informed decisions. The real estate sector, in particular, experienced greater stability than in some recent years, as prices bottomed out and market moved towards equilibrium.”

Sangeetha’s assessment is substantiated by Dubai’s significant reorganization in policies, regulations and procedures, in 2018-19, which are aimed at greater transparency and higher quality of life. Governing bodies such as the Dubai Land Department (DLD), Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) and Real Estate Regulatory Agency (RERA) have been assigned new roles and responsibilities, to ensure the highest standards in propriety and secure end-to-end processes, in the buying and selling of real estate.

“Technology has been a key differentiator in 2019. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) have announced themselves in the built environment. Brick-and-mortar businesses are forced to reckon with the growing traction of e-commerce platforms. Conventional construction practices are becoming obsolete with the advent of 3D printing, and most importantly, blockchain technology has redefined ways of doing business, by bringing revolutionary concepts like cryptocurrencies and crowdfunding to the fore. As a facilities management (FM) service provider, I have first-hand knowledge of how much this segment has transformed in a short span.”

It can be remembered that policy-makers, after taking cognizance of end user expectations, directed regulatory bodies to adopt a customer-centric approach to real estate regulation. This move paved the way for RERA to increase its involvement in the facilities management of jointly owned properties, which, in the words of Sangeetha, “is a welcome development.”

“The increased involvement of RERA brings a considerable degree of transparency, accountability and security to facilities management segment, which can translate to better investor confidence, value generation and occupant retention”, said Sangeetha. “We are gearing up for a sustainable future, using technology as an enabler and, as His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai said in his ‘Letter of the New Season’, we have to align businesses with national economic goals. Adhering to the highest global standards will be a crucial part of this effort. For instance, Al Fajer FM was awarded an ISO 41001:2018 certification, the World’s First International Facilities Management System (FMS) in September 2019. This is an accreditation that is issued on the basis of an audit evidenced process that ensures international best practices are being followed across all functional departments”, she added.

Against this backdrop, the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy — aimed at energy diversification and power generation from renewable sources by 2050 — and the partnership between World Economic Forum and Dubai Cares, which aims to skill 15 million people by 2021, are of great consequence. Also, World Economic Forum indicated in its competitiveness report that the upcoming Expo 2020 will have a significant bearing on the short, medium and long-term economic growth of the UAE.