Dubai: Dubai’s Emirates airline and Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) will jointly support new and existing businesses registered or licensed in the free zone. Under the agreement, the parties will explore opportunities to offer several travel-related incentives for SMEs and larger businesses, including potential enrolment in the airline’s business rewards programme.
"Dubai’s vibrant business environment continues to gain momentum in attracting new companies and foreign firms, start-ups, and talented entrepreneurs across a wide range of industries," said Adnan Kazim, Emirates' Chief Commercial Officer. "Emirates has been a long-standing supporter of a number of initiatives targeted to support SMEs and innovative start-ups in our home base the UAE, and today’s signing with JAFZA reinforces our commitment to help stimulate diverse economic activity in Dubai by providing companies with a range of highly competitive travel incentives so they can scale up their businesses both regionally and globally."
Ahmad Al Haddad, Chief Operating Officer, Parks and Zones, DP World UAE said: "Today, SMEs make up nearly 95 per cent of all companies, employing 42 per cent of the workforce and contributing around 40 per cent to Dubai's GDP. Our partnership with Emirates focuses on boosting growth with new travel offerings to attract global investors and venture capitalists who can utilise the vast opportunities available here. We are committed to our role as the economic driver for Dubai, building on our 33.4 per cent contribution to the emirate's GDP."
Emirates’ Business Rewards allows organizations to earn points on all business-related travel, and includes over 20,000 SMEs. It offers fringe benefits such as simplified enrolment, easier earning and redemptions, and greater flexibility on retaining.
JAFZA, UAE’s largest free zone area and operated by DP World, hosts more than 8,700 companies. The company recently began the construction of a new logistics hub, which will ‘attract new players seeking to establish themselves in the market’.
