With its diversified economy, (non-oil sectors contribute around 95 per cent of GDP) healthy growth rate (around 15 per cent) business friendly environment, excellent infrastructure, communications and numerous free zones, Dubai is a magnet for foreign investment, with British companies leading the inbound investment pack. Even traditional British culinary stalwarts such as The Ivy and the Wolseley restaurants are setting up shop; the question every company must ask is, can we afford to forgo a presence in Dubai?
The MEA does not believe so. Widely recognised as the UK's foremost private sector organisation for promoting trade and good relations with MENA, Turkey and Iran, the MEA is an independent and non-profit making association founded in 1961, representing some 400 large and small companies from all business and industry sectors in the region. The Patron of the Association is HRH The Duke of York, UK Special Representative for International Trade and Investment. Its strong support of Business Councils and excellent relationships with the UK Government and Arab Governments are widely recognised. Membership is strong and progressive, and turnover has doubled in the last three years. This is a reflection of the energy that the MEA has put into developing relationships with the MENA region.
The MEA takes more businesses to the MENA region than any other organisation. In the last twelve months the Association has led ten missions to the region. It continues to break new ground, taking three missions to Northern Iraq in the last couple of years. Another new initiative is the launch of the MEA Women in Business Network which is evolving in cooperation with Women in Business International. Its in-house programme of events, including VIP and Ambassadors lunches, is popular, with over 50 events held a year. With successful conferences on Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and Tunisia attended by high level business delegations from the country concerned, the strength of the business network is proving to be a useful resource for international business development.
The MEA is becoming increasingly sector focused - the financial services sector and the education and skills sector are priorities. The 'City and the GCC Countries Conference', now in its third year, is recognised as the premier event for promoting financial cooperation between the City of London and the GCC countries. This year's event, organised in cooperation with the City of London Corporation, attracted an unprecedented level of support from across the GCC region, lead sponsors being Bahrain Economic Development Board, Qatar Financial Services Authority, Emirates National Bank of Dubai and Boubiyan Bank (Kuwait).
Aside from assisting in business expansion, the important focus on the education and skills sector reflects the urgency of the need to bridge the skills gap in the region, and the UAE has featured strongly in the MEA's initiatives. With itpartner, Compass Rose, the Association is working on the pioneering MENA Learning & Leadership Programme (MLLP), a highly innovative programme bringing together the key pillars of private sector, government, civil society and academia to develop and deliver sustainable solutions to learning and development in MENA. The programme was launched in 2007 in the UAE and has generated a huge amount of interest. The 25- strong education and training mission to the UAE in March 2008 was successful, benefiting from the personal involvement of His Excellency Sheikh Nahayan bin Mabarak Al Nahayan, Minister of Education and Scientific Research. With support from such influential figures within the MENA region and beyond, MEA aims to bridge the gap between east and west in terms of both business and education.