Aiding progress

There is no denying the importanceof bilateral ties between the UAE and South Africa. Having reached as highas Dh6 billion in 2008, these strong tiesare based on the trading of major products, says Yacoob Abba Omar, South African Ambassador to the UAE. "These include machinery and mechanical appliances, base metals and articles of base metals, products of the chemical or allied industries, vegetable products and mineral products."

From the UAE to South Africa, the majority of imports are in the petrochemicals sector.

The ambassador highlights the importanceof the relationship between the two countries. "The UAE is one of the top 25 export destinations by value for South Africa, ranking 24th in 2009. This ranking is higher than countries such as Canada, Brazil, Singapore, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, etc. As such, it is considered to be an important trading partnerto South Africa.

"In addition, South Africa recognises the strategic location of the UAE as a trans-shipment hub with access to the Menasa region, thus our efforts are concentrated on strengthening our trade relations with the UAE.

"Many South African trading companies also choose the UAE as their regional office when accessing business in the Gulf region — there are about 160 South African entities registered in the UAE — thus we have a relatively strong South African business community in the country, in comparison to the rest of the GCC."

Touching all spheres

It's not just products that are being imported and exported between the two countries, as the UAE proves to be a popular destination for South African expats to further their careers.

"The number is in the tens of thousands," says the ambassador. "South Africans are involved in various activities in the UAE, such as the construction sector, encompassing architectural, engineering and construction companies, the retail sector, the ICT sector, media and advertising, petrochemicals, financial services, security services, industrial, equine, general trading, logistics etc."

These businesses are thriving in the capital, says the Ambassador. "We have found that there has been movement of expatriates to Abu Dhabi from Dubai. As such, there has been a need to develop a Business Council in Abu Dhabi to serve the increasing needs of the South African community both on a social and business level.

"The Business Council in Abu Dhabi recently had its first AGM and we were delighted with the support from the South African community for this initiative. The Business Council in Dubai has been active for five years now."

As well as the obvious business opportunities, there are plenty of other reasons why South Africans are drawn to the UAE, says the ambassador. "South Africans are adventurousin nature and most like to work abroad for a few years to gain international experience, before returning to South Africa. The UAE, being a multicultural, fairly liberal environment, is very attractive to South Africans who are used to living among diverse cultures and enjoy the opportunities available to them."

Exciting holiday option

For these reasons, the UAE is also an enticing holiday destination. "For the period between January to September 2009, the number of South African visitors to the UAE was recorded as being above 80,000. The figure would certainly be higher if one is to considerSouth Africans with dual citizenship.

"Meanwhile, official figures show that a total of 1,671 Emiratis have visited SA between January and November 2009. The number would obviously be far higher if one is to take into consideration other nationalities who are residents in the UAE. For evidence you have to simply look at how full the five flights a day Emirates operates, and the daily flight runby Etihad Airways, are."

The strong bilateral ties look set to strengthen in future years, with education providing a strong backbone to a secured relationship for years to come. "We have a number of Emiratis and students from the UAE residing and studying at various South African institutions of higher learning. South Africa has become a popular destination for international students. Since the birth of democracy in 1994, South Africa has attracted a growing number of international students from across Africa and around the world — more than 60,000 in 2007 or 8 per cent of the country's 746,000 higher education students."

Excellence in education

The ambassador suggests proof of the excellence offered by a South African education is the UAE's South African population. "I would like to invite you to have a look at the calibre of South Africans who are working in the UAE, most of whom are graduates from the South African universities. They are engineers, health professionals, teachers, etc.

"As a multicultural country, we do cater to religious requirements of students from the Mena region as well. South Africa has a sizeable number of Muslim communities throughout the country. Students can visit www.studysa.co.za for more information on studying in SA. They would also be able to access websites of the country's 23 universities."

Aiding progress

I have been in the UAE since July 2008, coming from Muscat, Oman, where my wife, two daughters and I spent almost five wonderful years as South Africa's first Ambassador to the Sultanate.

Coming from South Africa we love the outdoor life. My family and I have enjoyed visiting places such as Fujairah and Al Ain. I am particularly enamoured by the rich cultural offerings here. We have visited the Islamic Museum in Sharjah on several occasions, taking our visitors there whenever we can.

As a family we try to get to as many of the concerts and exhibitions as we can. We are enthusiastic about the various world music performances, especially Womad. We also enjoy the beautiful parks and other natural attractions.

Fortunately the UAE is not all malls and high-rises. We are very pleased with the efforts the UAE authorities have put in to promote and preserve their natural heritage. I hope Bu Tinah gets recognised as one of the wonders of the modern world, alongside Table Mountain of course. In this context we must salute the wise leadership of the late Shaikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

I also enjoy the many top-quality conferences organised here and in Dubai. I especially enjoy the Festival of Thinkers organised by the Ministry of Higher Education, the seminars and conferences of the ECSSR. All this makes for an exciting cultural, natural and intellectual life. I also enjoy the wide variety of cuisines on offer; from Lebanese to Vietnamese, Ethiopian to German, and — of course — South African.

I am currently taking up golf, which I am really enjoying, thanks to the patience of my instructor and friends. The irony is that in Johannesburg I live near a golf course just a five-minute walk away, but I had to come to the desert to learn it!

I love reading fiction; I am currently going through some works by Latin American and Arabic writers. When I have a quiet moment I enjoy doing cryptic crosswords and Sudoku.

I originally hail from Durban, while my wife is from Cape Town. We met and have a home in Johannesburg. Because everyone knows Cape Town so well, we spend a lot of time highlighting other interesting places in our country people could visit before or after their sojourn to the Fairest Cape.