DUBAI: The new-forged Middle East Consultancy Association (MECA) — a professional body for cleaning and facilities management providers — has called for stronger regulation and standardisation of the sectors in the UAE.
The association aims to promote best practice in the sectors, which have a combined market worth Dh80 billion, said Ahmad M. Al Ayan, Chairman and CEO of MECA, in an interview with Gulf News. It benchmarks standards against those developed by the US-based International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA).
MECA estimates the sectors will grow to a value of Dh300 billion by 2020, a rise in value of 275 per cent.
“As the UAE and the region continues to grow, local and regional suppliers, manufacturers, service providers, cleaners, governmental bodies and others within the industry are not primed to grow with it,” Al Ayan said. “This is where MECA plays a prominent role in helping to provide a platform for the industry to thrive.”
Business Development Manager Tarek Bekdache said the association intended to focus on establishing itself in the UAE at first, then expand its presence into the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, followed by the Middle East and North Africa.
Abdul Gaffar Ansari, the association’s Chief Strategy Officer and COO, said regulations implementing best practice were particularly important in schools and hospitals.
