Dubai: UAE President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s choice of France as the destination of his first official overseas trip not only strengthens UAE-France relations, but also falls within the scope of reinforcing cooperation with an important and key country to face global challenges and achieve sustainable development for people.
Some key pointers ahead of the visit:
• UAE and France are strategic partners in a broad spectrum of global issues to help achieve prosperity and stability for people
• Achieving global sustainability and energy security
• Developing biotechnology
• Promoting education and culture
• The people of UAE and France enjoy deep political, economic and cultural ties
• Combating extremism and hate speech
• Achieving sustainable economic development
• Promoting climate change initiatives
• Encouraging innovation and prosperity initiatives for people and humanity
• The two countries shoulder a shared responsibility to respond coordinately to global challenges and work to resolve crises that cause global instability
• They share common interests to ensure the world is stable and prosperous, where convergence, co-existence and tolerance prevail
• UAE-French relations are of strategic dimensions that touch on their partnership that aims to provide a successful model of relations between countries
Sustainability and climate initiatives
• French-UAE initiative on bioenergy and nuclear energy seeks to achieve a green and clean environment
• Cooperation between UAE and French nuclear agencies to ensure clean energy. UAE is the first country in the region to launch net zero carbon initiative
• Cooperation between Masdar and relevant French institutions
• Zayed Sustainability Prize
• Etihad Airways unveils its “Sustainability50 Airbus A350-1000 a special inaugural commercial flight from Abu Dhabi to Paris in March
Economic cooperation
• Trade exchange and France’s economic and investment importance in Europe and the world
• Mutual investments
• UAE is home to 600 French companies offering jobs to 30,000 people
• French community and its contribution to the UAE’s economy and development
Technology highlights
• French technological presence in the UAE
• Cooperation in digital transformation between the two countries
• The two countries are pursuing clean and biotechnology
Education and culture
• French schools in the UAE are the sixth largest French school network in the world with more than 10,000 students
• Sorbonne University and French academic institutions
• UAE joined the International Organisation of Francophone as an observer member, strengthening cooperation between the two countries in culture, education and economic development
• UAE is home to the largest French and Francophone expatriate community in the GCC
• France and the UAE recently confirmed the joint priority of developing the Arabic language through a bilateral agreement with the Arab World Institute promoting the “International Certificate of Proficiency in Arabic” through the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre to assess proficiency in Modern Standard Arabic in the UAE
• France and the UAE recently referred to the common priority of developing Arabic through a bilateral agreement with the Arab World Institute promoting the “International Certificate of Arabic Language Competence”, through the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre to assess proficiency in modern classical Arabic in the UAE
• Louvre Museum
• French President Emmanuel Macron’s visited Expo 2020 Dubai and praised the successful organisation of the huge global event despite the challenges the world is going through because of COVID-19
• On February 18, 2022, a section of the original Eiffel Tower’s staircase was unveiled at a ceremony at Expo 2020 Dubai. The project dedicated to renowned late Emirati poet and explorer Mohammed Saleh Al Gurg
