Economic Development Director Says Dubai Needs To Reform Its Business Laws

Lorys Charambolous, Tax-news.com, Cyprus

15 March 2001

Mohammed Ali Alabbar, director general of the Dubai Department of Economic Development, has spoken out on the need for reforms in banking, investment laws, property and ownership rights in the region. He said that monopolies, protectionist policies and agency laws are things of the past.

Speaking to delegates at a three-day conference taking place this week on Trade, Treasury and Cash Management in the Middle East, Alabbar stated: 'Liberalisation, privatisation and transparency, coupled with a strong emphasis on human resources development through education programmes for the younger generation — this is the way forward.'

On a positive note for Dubai, Alabbar said the country is making significant progress in this direction. But the Middle East in general, despite recent efforts taken by Saudi Arabia to encourage liberalisation and foreign investment, is falling a long way behind these goals.

Alabbar praised Dubai's efforts to welcome future challenges by promoting the knowledge economy, information technology and human resources development. He said: 'Dubai Internet City might be termed just a property project by outsiders, but it is a start, and the nucleus for future IT-based business and e-commerce development.'

Continuing his address, entitled Optimum Financing Strategies in the Middle East, Alabbar remarked that the Middle East seems to be disintegrating as opposed to integrating with the global economy. He explained: 'In the 1980s the region had a 10 per cent share of global exports; today it is a mere 2.5 per cent. Imports have fallen from 5.4 per cent to 2.5. And while the formation of blocs has boosted intra-regional trade in Asean, the EU and elsewhere, here it has shrunk from 11.5 per cent in 1998 to 8.5 in 1999.'

Alabbar commented on the nature of 'family-dominated' businesses which forces them to protect their own interests and acknowledged that liberalisation would pose as a threat to some of these companies but he asked: 'Should we protect three or four companies and hold the whole economy to ransom?'

'We need a policy revolution, an independent, clear legal system to protect the rights of investors, apart from privatisation reforms, with governments gradually decreasing dominance in their economies,' concluded Alabbar.

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