DFZ Council to promote FDI into free zones

Dubai

The DFZ Council discussed initiatives to promote foreign direct investment into emirate’s free zones at its ninth meeting held on Sunday.

Key items on the agenda included easing the business set-up and reducing fees in the free zones, the new e-commerce regulations, the assessment of the effectiveness of measures related to anti-money laundering and combating terrorism financing, as well as Dubai Blink initiative.

The DFZ Council reviewed the updates on an initiative to create a centralised electronic system to streamline registration and licensing procedures that will link all the free zones in Dubai to a data centre under the supervision of the Council, and route orders to the concerned authorities for approval.

In this context, the DFZ Council established a permanent administrative and technical committee to oversee the project and set a timetable for its implementation.

Shaikh Ahmad Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, President of Dubai Civil Aviation and Chairman and Chief Executive of Emirates airline and Group and Chairman of DFZC, said that over the past decades, free zones have been instrumental in increasing Dubai’s GDP and FDI inflows that are experiencing high annual growth despite the prevailing global economic climate.

“Today, we see the emirate’s free zones as more than just economic facilitators. Due to their legislative and investment incentives and through adopting strategic initiatives that shape the future of trade and economy to consolidate Dubai’s status as an ideal business destination, they have evolved into globally competitive models.”

During the meeting, the DFZ Council commended several free zones for lowering their fees in line with the directives of His Highness Shaikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, to reduce the cost of business operations and facilitate investment.

The DFZ Council will work with various entities to enhance the businesses’ experiences and review the scope of the certificates to improve the ease of doing business in the free zones.