Jebel Ali Free Zone ( Jafza ), the flagship Free Zone of Dubai and trade and logistics hub for the wider Middle East region, has seen an increase of 17 % in the number of new companies in 2014 compared with the preceding year. 679 new companies joined the free zone in the year which includes world’s top multinationals including SMC Pneumatics, Sinoma Technology, XingXing pipes, Weiss – rohling, Lecker Food, Novartis among others from across the world.
The Free Zone has also posted an impressive 10 % surge in its revenues for the year ended 31 December 2014. The operating profit of the company rose by more than 13% to AED 1.18 billion during the year.
HE Salma Hareb, CEO of Jafza and Economic Zones World, said: “Jafza’s impressive growth in 2014 can be attributed to its focus on attracting quality investments into the Free Zone in key sectors, prudent use of resources and achieving greater operational efficiency for itself and also for Jafza based companies by introducing new innovative products and initiatives.”
“By attracting a significant number of large multinationals and prominent SME’s Jafza has once again cemented its position as the trade and logistics hub for the wider Middle East region that spans from West Asia to Indian subcontinent, Africa and the CIS. Jafza’s remarkable success in attracting quality foreign direct investment has also proved the efficacy of Jafza’s customer centric thinking and its commitment to providing customers seamless operating environment in order to enable them to achieve their strategic goals as efficiently as possible. Jafza continues to play the role of a dynamic growth catalyzer and an efficient driver of economic development of the country and the region,” she added.
Jafza has contributed more than 20% to Dubai’s GDP (2013). The Free Zone sustained more than 200,000 jobs in Dubai in 2014. The Free Zone companies account for almost half of Dubai’s total non-oil exports and a quarter of the Emirates’ total non-oil trade. In 2014 Jafza companies are estimated to have generated trade worth AED 370 billion. Jafza accounts for more than 75% of the total trade generated by all the free zones together in Dubai.
Asia Pacific continued to dominate the Jafza ‘s new investor profile in 2014. 29 percent of the new companies came from Asia Pacific. Americas and Europe together accounted for 27 percent of the new investors in Jafza . In terms of individual countries 14% of the new companies came from India, 6% from China and 8% from the US and UK together.
Jafza continued to focus on promoting huge business opportunities that Dubai and the rapidly growing economies in the wider Middle East region offer to global investors interested in these hugely attractive markets.
Jafza conducted roadshows and business seminars in more than 14 countries across the world including India, China, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan in Asia Pacific; Germany, France, UK and Turkey in Europe; Canada, Brazil and Argentina in Americas, Australia and New Zealand in Australasia. Jafza based companies were invited to join these roadshows and seminars to explore opportunities in these prospective markets.
Jafza has signed four MoUs with various business development and financial institutions in Brazil, Japan and Germany according to which these institutions will highlight huge opportunities in the UAE and the wider Middle East region and Jafza ‘s status as the trade and logistics hub for the entire region while showcasing the Free Zone’s key offerings that enables Jafza based companies to serve all regional markets with unmatched efficiency.
Jafza remarkable growth over the years is attributed to its highly customer-focused approach. All its products, services and initiatives aim at creating the best possible eco-system which would support and enable customers achieve continued growth.
