UAE FDI inflow touched $19bn says Lubna

Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the UAE has reached $19 billion (Dh69.7bn) and the huge inflow reflects the confidence the world has in the country’s economy, Minister of Economy Sheikha Lubna bint Khalid Al Qasimi said yesterday.

While the UAE is an oil exporting country, she said, it has succeeded in reinvesting its oil revenue with a focus on education and building its human resources to acquire technological capabilities and strong infrastructure, telecommunications and services sectors.

In recent years, the government has taken steps to diversify the economy – growing non-oil sectors by more than 65 per cent.

Sheikha Lubna credited the thoughtful strategy to the leadership of the President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Government reforms have also giving more freedom and authority to ministers, minimised bureaucracy and increased co-ordination between federal and local departments in each of the seven emirates. All of these steps, she said, appealed to investors. (Wam)