A right royal enterprise

Prince Andrew was in the UAE this week banging the drum for UK businesses at the Arab Health Exhibition. As the UK's Special Representative for International Trade and Investment, it provided an excellent opportunity for Gulf News to garner his views on the UAE's development as an international trading hub.

A regular visitor to the UAE, Prince Andrew is no stranger to the rapidly changing dynamics wrought by the nation's furious explosion of enterprise development, and his views show he is clearly on the case where maintaining strong commercial links with the UAE are concerned.

As a trade representative from a well-established leading economy, what advice and caution would you impart to a young, rapidly growing economy such as Dubai and the UAE?

I visit the UAE regularly, and take a keen interest in the tremendous achievements of the country's leaders. I am struck each time by the visible signs of growth.

Opportunities in Dubai may be the best known, but opportunities in Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates are increasingly exciting.

I am also aware of the efforts to ensure that the infrastructure keeps pace with developments, but this takes time.

Over the last 20 years the UK has gone through a major process of deregulation and privatisation to help us compete globally, especially in the battle to attract high quality foreign investment. We have also seen a lot of British companies grow into genuine global players.

These are areas where the UK stands ready to offer the benefit of our experience. But I should emphasise that there is also much that the UK can also learn from what is happening here.

The UK has strong business ties and trade with the region, what message are you bringing to UAE business leaders on this trip?

I am visiting the UAE to visit and support British businesses participating in the Arab Health Exhibition with a delegation from the UK.

We have over 80 companies taking part, and I see events like these as one of the best ways for British business to get access to a very wide market.

I will also bring a message of desire to increase trading links with the UAE in general as the UK has a great deal to offer and I am impressed by the exciting developments in both Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates.

One of my key messages to business leaders here is that British businesses offer quality and excellence. We have done much together in the past but there is so much more we can do together in the future.

What does the UK trade community see as the main issues in dealing with the GCC and Middle East business community?

I should start by saying that more and more British businesses are interested in expanding in this region and the UAE's position as a high quality regional hub is allowing an increasing number of them to use it as the jumping off point from which to enter the markets of the GCC and, indeed, the wider Middle East.

For example, the British Embassy in Dubai, with the British Business Group here, hosted a very successful event recently, which enabled British companies based in the UAE to meet with the UK's commercial officers of UK Trade and Investment from around the region to explore the potential in other markets.

There is no doubt that operating internationally brings its own set of challenges but some of the main concerns centre on the different legal systems and employment laws combined with concerns about intellectual property rights and regional stability, which can be daunting, especially for small businesses.

And unfortunately not all regional markets are yet as open and welcoming as the UAE.

What can other nations learn from the way UK business is conducted overseas?

Over the last few years, since I began my portfolio as the United Kingdom's Special Representative for International Trade and Investment, I have been struck by the energy and enthusiasm of UK companies, who are amongst the most entrepreneurial and successful in the world.

I also know that many British businesses are respected internationally for quality, expertise, honesty and loyalty. But this doesn't mean we should rest on our laurels. In today's global economy the need for businesses to compete internationally has become critical to their long-term success. And in the open market of the UAE that competition is getting tougher all the time.

What do you think of Dubai's pace of development and its recent multi-billion pound global shopping spree, buying up huge foreign businesses?

Every time I come to Dubai it has a changed skyline and something new has risen from the desert; it is the UAE's most obvious sign of the scope of development that has been going on for the last 20 years, and now Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates are showing signs of increasing development and growth.

It is hard not to be impressed by such developments. As far as a global shopping spree, we live in a global economy and therefore there is nothing to prevent the buying and selling of international businesses.

I also believe that by investing in the global economy we contribute to global prosperity and stability, which benefits us all.

Britain, in addition to being one of the world's top international trading nations, is a global leader in attracting inward investment. London was recently voted as the best city in Europe to locate a business for the 16th year running.

The UAE has long been a strong and valued investor in the UK. I hope to see this investment continue and expand to the mutual benefit of our two nations.