As part of implementing the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to provide all the necessary services and facilities through Dubai’s various ports of entry for trade movement, including facilitating the entry of commercial wooden ships, His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai Council for Border Crossing Points Security, approved the return of the entry of commercial wooden ships to Dubai Creek, which contributes to promoting the growth of commercial traffic in the emirate and facilitating local trading and market activity, as well as enabling wooden dhows coming from outside the country to have direct access to local markets, including through Deira Wharfage and Al Hamriyah Port.
His Highness referred to the role of the Dubai Council for Border Crossing Points Security in implementing the strategic plan of the emirate of Dubai with regard to border crossing security, and improving the performance of government agencies concerned with supervising border crossings to reach the highest levels, and ensuring their competitiveness at the regional and international levels, in addition to its strengthened efforts to achieve the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and keep pace with Dubai’s growth and development.
His Highness Sheikh Mansoor bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum highlighted the importance of Dubai Creek as a key artery for trade and tourism in the emirate, given its impact in facilitating trade movement for local markets. His Highness praised the steady growth witnessed by the trade movement in Dubai through sea ports, which calls for more efforts to provide all services for commercial dhows that contribute to enhancing the economic growth of the emirate, and consolidating Dubai’s distinguished position on the world map in trade and economy, in line with its continuous endeavour to maintain its attractiveness as a multi-choice economic destination, based on its long history in trade and its advanced technical capabilities.
His Highness expressed his appreciation for the efforts of the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation’s Marine Agency for Wooden Dhows to ensure the streamlined movement of wooden dhows to and from Dubai. He referred to the flexibility of procedures provided by the agency, which was set up by the PCFC in 2020 to regulate the activity of the traditional vessels in the emirate’s waters that resulted in the number of commercial wooden dhows entering the emirate increasing from 2,200 in the first quarter of 2021 to more than 2,500 in the same period in 2022, leading to an 8% growth in trade in this sector. This growth rate coincides with the strong performance of economic activities in Dubai during the first quarter of this year.
The Chairman of the Dubai Council for Border Crossing Points Security stressed that this remarkable growth is proof that trade through wooden dhows has played a major role in the development of Dubai and the government will continue to provide all the support necessary to enable this sector to add value to the emirate’s commercial growth.
His Highness further said that Dubai will continue to provide services to commercial dhows to enable them to contribute further to the economic growth of the emirate, which in turn will consolidate Dubai's position as a global trading and economic hub. He said the Dubai Government continues to enhance its services for traders and investors to ensure they have a smooth experience. The government has developed a compelling package of facilities and initiatives designed to enhance Dubai's position as one of the world’s most preferred destinations for merchants, he added.
A Vital Sector
His Excellency Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman of the Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation, said the Marine Agency for Wooden Dhows is keen to consolidate the emirate’s position in the global maritime sector by developing new initiatives that will promote the movement of commercial wooden dhows going to and from the emirate, based on the best navigational and customs practices, and adopting initiatives that would advance the sector, ensuring the best experiences to enhance the development of trade traffic for dhows coming to the city by expanding the range of options available to merchants and investors in Dubai via dhows that sail to it from all over the world.
“In line with the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, we continue to strengthen our efforts to develop commercial traffic, infrastructure in ports and marinas, utilities and other services related to this sector. We believe these initiatives are vital to provide a distinctive experience for investors and achieve our vision of reinforcing Dubai's position as a leading maritime hub and a prominent global centre for trade,” he added.
News Source: Dubai Media Office
