Bilateral trade between Dubai and Germany reached Dhs24.6 billion in 2020 and will continue to grow given Dubai’s ease of doing business and flexible ecosystem, according to a top official of Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority (DSOA).

Dubai Silicon Oasis also provides numerous facilities to streamline business set-up and operations, attracting hundreds of international technology companies, Dr Mohammed Al Zarooni, Vice Chairman and CEO of DSOA added, while welcoming Ernst Peter Fischer, Ambassador of Germany to the UAE, at DSOA’s headquarter in Dubai.

Dr Al Zarooni reiterated DSOA’s commitment to provide a conducive environment for German and international companies to establish and expand their businesses in this region. He also emphasised DSOA’s commitment to embodying its appointment as a science and technology and knowledge hub - one of the five urban centers under the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan - to support entrepreneurial creativity and empower entrepreneurs to establish their innovative technology concepts.


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For his part, the German Ambassador hailed the conducive environment for entrepreneurs and startups at Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO), a government-owned free zone, which houses regional headquarters for renowned multinational companies from different nationalities among them German companies.

He added that DSO offers a solid technological infrastructure and a conducive environment for entrepreneurs and startups, who make up the essence of the digital economy, new job opportunities, and enhances the flexibility of economic sectors to resume sustainable growth.

During his tour, he was introduced to Dubai Digital Park (DDP), the Dubai Technology Entrepreneur Campus (Dtec), and the new campus of the Rochester Institute of Technology-Dubai (RIT-Dubai), exploring the integrated free zone technology park’s advanced infrastructure. He also examined the advanced amenities at DDP that provide smart services to residents and visitors since the first smart city of its kind, built at an investment of more than Dhs1.5 billion, was inaugurated at the beginning of 2021.

The Ambassador also introduced Anas Aljuaidi and Bernhard Randerath, the co-CEO of the Emirati-German Institute for the Emirati-German Fourth Industrial Revolution. Dr Al Zarooni welcomed the initiative to robust the strategic and economic relationship between the two countries. He was also invited to the upcoming inauguration of the Emirati-German Institute scheduled on 2nd July 2021 in Aachen, Germany.

Having recently completed phase one of its construction, Ambassador Fischer also visited the new state-of-the-art campus of RIT-Dubai, the technology-focused American university in DSO, and toured its innovation labs. Fischer lauded the UAE-German relationship, which keeps growing across disciplines. He iterated that the UAE has the competitive edge to attract German and international direct investments, especially in the sectors of advanced technology and renewable energy. Dubai’s non-oil foreign trade strongly rebounded from the challenges posed by the global economic repercussions of COVID-19 and the suspension of business activity by countries across the world in the first half of last year to record high growth in 2020.

Boosted by its resilience to global headwinds, as well as its rapid economic recovery and revitalised growth in the second half of the year, Dubai’s foreign trade in 2020 touched Dhs1.182 trillion. Total trade volume in 2020 reached 100 million tonnes, driven by a 6% year-on-year volume growth in the second half of the year. Overall value of exports in 2020 grew 8% to Dhs167 billion while imports accounted for Dhs686 billion and re-exports totalled Dhs29 billion.

Innovative solutions: The UAE government has developed innovative and effective solutions to energy and infrastructure challenges, as part of the first batch of the “Nothing Is Impossible Hackathon” model for students of national and international universities.

The Hackathon, organised by the Ministry of Possibilities, aimed at enhancing student participation in designing the new generation of government practices to support the government’s efforts in preparing for the future.

The first batch of the hackathon focused on developing innovative and effective solutions to four main challenges set by the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, including “energy consumption in buildings, traffic congestion, flood mitigation, and the sustainable aviation fuel challenge.” The UAE government honoured the students participating in the Hackathon, in the presence of Suhail Bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Ohood bint Khalfan Al Roumi, Minister of State for Government Development and The Future, Abdulla Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the Prime Minister’s Office at the Ministry of Cabinet Affairs, along with a number of senior officials.

Suhail Al Mazrouei stressed that the ministry supports the active participation of university students in shaping the future of energy, infrastructure, housing and transportation in the UAE, via an ambitious vision that develops tools and mechanisms to ensure the UAE’s preparedness for the next fifty years.

WAM