25% of the UAE’s international companies are based in the UAE

Media In – Abu Dhabi 18 October 2018 / WAM

/ More than 25% of the top 500 international companies in the UAE are based in the Middle East and North Africa region, reflecting the country’s position as one of the most preferred foreign direct investment countries. The UAE ranked 30th in the world in terms of its attractiveness to foreign direct investment over the past year, achieving a five-step increase in its ranking in 2016, according to the results of the report of foreign direct investment issued by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development “UNCTAD” The UAE has an advanced competitive economy According to the Global Competitiveness Index, it ranked first in the Arab world and 27 in the world. The increase in foreign investment in the UAE reached AED 71 billion during 2016-2017, continuing to maintain its position as an attractive destination for foreign investments in the Gulf region and the Middle East in general. With the flow of foreign direct investment into the country, the cumulative balance of the last two years has risen to 473 billion dirhams, according to UNCTAD, which was based on the Ministry of Economy in its report on the performance of the national economy. According to official studies, several factors contributed to increasing the attractiveness of the state to foreign investment, primarily political and security stability, as well as the strategic location and the availability of advanced infrastructure, legislation and logistics. The list of incentives includes the availability of advanced government services, the most important of which is the activation of smart government and the possibility of foreign ownership of some projects outside the free zones, as well as the free transfer of profits abroad, incentives and other privileges granted by the state especially non-oil sectors. These catalysts helped the UAE acquire about 36% The balance of foreign direct investment received in the Arab world during the past year while it ranked second in the West Asia region.