KHALEEJ TIMES, Saturday, Jan 01, 2022 | Jumada Al-Uola 26, 1443
Businesses in UAE gear up to welcome innovative 2022
Emirates:
Businesses in the UAE are all set for welcoming 2022, equipped to strive
forward as new trends unfold. Thankfully, the robust digital adoption in the
nation has ensured that the work will continue and remain uninterrupted. The new
4 1/2-day work week — Monday to Friday — starting from January 2022 will help
the businesses to align with global markets and will help boost productivity.
The tech-enabled industries will have to gear up as demand will only accelerate
from key sectors, making it more competitive for existing players. Some of the
sectors that will continue to evolve in 2022 are eCommerce, qcommerce, edtech,
healtech, fintech, proptech, entertainment, cryptocurrency just to name a few.
The UAE is looked upon as a global role model to handle pandemic in 2020 and
2021 with business sentiment soaring to peak and industries applauding the
visionary policies and strategies to not only combat pandemic impact but also
ensure that the economy remains competitive enough to boost businesses.
Some of the milestones of 2021, include approval of the Dh290 billion federal
budget for five years until 2026 and launch of the industrial strategy
“Operation 300bn” to empower and expand the industrial sector. Further, the
launch of ‘Projects of the 50’ will establish a new phase of internal and
external growth of the state in various economic sectors which should make the
Central Bank of the UAE (CBUAE) target of overall real gross domestic product
(GDP) of 4.2 per cent in 2022 against 2.1 per cent in 2021 achievable. The
mega-event Expo2020 Dubai has been a game-changer and catalysed business
opportunities for the UAE and participating nations.
Bharat Bhatia, chairman, and CEO of Conares, said: “The challenges that we faced
in the past are simply opportunities to learn, so we can build towards a better
future. The economy is getting back to pre-pandemic levels and there is greater
opportunity for growth in the construction sector in the UAE. Despite the many
ups and downs, we have a lot to look forward to in 2022 as we move forward with
hope in our hearts and a smile on our faces.”
Sustainability will continue to dominate in 2022 as businesses will strive to
build sustainable growth making resilience a strong code of conduct for
individuals and businesses. Businesses will have to brace for constant changes
and continue to innovate to remain afloat as the evolving trends give rise to
new opportunities too.
Healthcare
Dr Azad Moopen, founder chairman and managing director, Aster DM Healthcare,
said: “As per The World Health Organisation, almost half of the world lacks
access to essential health services and over 100 million are pushed into poverty
due to out-of-pocket health expenses. This stark reality was brought to the
forefront during the pandemic very strongly with public healthcare systems
across the world collapsing to manage and cater to increasing demands. More than
ever the need to make quality healthcare affordable and accessible on time has
been felt strongly.”
While it is important to increase healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP by
the developing countries, the key to the penetration is digitisation. This will
make at least primary healthcare available even in the remotest corners of the
world through the ubiquitous mobile phones.
Dr Moopen added: “As we step into 2022, with renewed vigour to deliver our
caring mission with a global vision to serve the world with quality healthcare
that is affordable and accessible, we at Aster DM Healthcare remain at the
forefront of adopting digital technology. We hope this will help us to enable
access to millions to our services in a cost-effective way. As a blessing in
disguise, Covid-19 has played the role of a catalyst in pushing the sector to
innovate and come up with need-of-the-hour solutions.”
Sustainability
Sustainability will be foregrounded in all facets of life in the UAE in 2022. If
anything, the pandemic was a supply-chain lesson, which reinforced the need to
pursue sustainability on all fronts, particularly in food and water.
Chandra Dake, executive chairman and group CEO of Dake Group, said: “In the new
year, as the great reset pans out, we will witness greater activity around
Agtech, low-input farming, and decarbonisation in the agriculture sector. I’m
glad to be entering the new year with so much to look forward to. All credit
goes to leaders, whose proactive measures, crisis response, and science-based
targets made today’s upbeat sentiment possible. I speak for all residents and
business persons in the UAE when I say that we are grateful for the rulers’
ceaseless work in handling the pandemic. I wish everyone in the UAE a happy new
year, and sincerely hope that personal sustainability features in their
resolutions as it does in mine.”
Similarly, Dr Mostafa Al Guezeri, managing director, Hitachi Energy, said: “Our
goal in 2022 is to advance the world’s energy system to be more sustainable,
flexible, and secure. As the pioneering technology leader, we collaborate with
customers and partners to enable a sustainable energy future for generations to
come. Since the pandemic prompted changes in the energy market through supply
line disruptions and inflationary trends, we intend to differentiate that in
this competitive sector with burgeoning growth in areas such as electric
transportation, renewable energy, and smart infrastructure.
E-commerce
Dubai has ranked as the fastest-growing e-commerce market in the Middle East and
North Africa thanks to a very advanced technological infrastructure and the
growing number of tech-savvy consumers. Dubai Customs expects e-commerce sales
to rise 23 per cent to $27 billion (Dh100 billion), in 2022.
Real estate
The year 2022 will see greater market-driven developments, increased proptech
adoption, and retrofitting activities, informs Sanjeevv Bhatia, chairman of SB
Group and CEO of Netix Global BV.
“The UAE’s 4.5-day workweek will come into effect on January 1, 2022. So, we are
about to witness a paradigm shift from day one. For a global company like the SB
Group, this change is consequential — our teams can reduce operational latency
and manage time zone differences effectively, adding to overall productivity.
This move is one among the many that the UAE leadership has made to enhance the
nation’s competitiveness. More power to them as they pursue greater causes in
2022. Real estate, in particular, continues to be the sector generating maximum
initiatives and favourable policies from the government,” added Bhatia.
The UAE economy is likely to see an upward movement in 2022. History says that
the country that hosts the Expo sees a steady growth in the months to follow.
“Around 93 per cent of the UAE’s population is vaccinated, which makes the
country a safer place and people are looking forward to visiting the country.
This will give a major boost to the economy fuelled by the growth in tourism and
investment as the country’s culture is a perfect mix of East and West. All this
is majorly due to the exemplary initiatives by the UAE Government,” said Anis
Sajan, vice-chairman, Danube Group.
“The UAE has seen quite a few changes like ease in doing business, golden visa
for select residents and the recent one being the change in the working week to
get in sync with the rest of the world.”
Imran Farooq, Group chief executive officer, Samana Group, said: “The year 2021
was very different and challenging. It would not be wrong to say that it changed
the dynamics of the entire world and impacted the entire humanity, created
ripple effects on every section of society, the industry, the economy, and the
way we work and look at things.”
Cryptocurrency
The Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) announced in July 2021 a
roadmap to integrate a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) into the country’s
financial, investment, and trading ecosystem. This followed years of research,
analysis, and idea-sharing by the CBUAE and some of the key entities in the
UAE’s Crypto ecosystem and forms part of the country’s 2023-2026 strategy to
promote digital transformation. Evidently, Crypto has been evaluated as an
innovative and important asset class in improving the efficiency and
effectiveness of the financial, investment, and trading landscape.
Arshad Khan co-founder and CEO of Arabian Bourse, said: “I see the UAE economy
strengthening further in the next year. Several initiatives taken by the
government in 2021 will add to improving the economic parameters. Expo 2020 and
initiatives in the areas of blockchain and cryptocurrencies, in particular, will
add significant strength to the overall growth.”
Jolivette Dela Cruz, Managing Director of Chef Signature
Year 2021 was a challenging year for everyone due to the Covid-19 situation. For
me as Entrepreneur, I’ve been through a lot with our businesses. Moreover,
before the year ends – the Emirate open us with other opportunities. One is
opening the first Franchise of OFF THE HOOK in Sharjah. We have given the chance
to be part of the team to operate and to manage OTH Sharjah. My other two
businesses are back on track, start moving forward and quietly recovering.
There are Government measures in place to support and to boost this recovery for
businesses like stimulus package, the discount offered during license renewal or
new licensing and more. There are changes in UAE legislations which are aligned
with the international best practices which improve the ease of doing business
in UAE. Herewith UAE become appealing with the entrepreneurs .
I believe UAE economic will strongly recover from pandemic in 2022 and surely
will be back with it’s pre-pandemic stage. UAE good governance, best practices
in handling the pandemic situation and changes in doing business will boost the
Emirate’s Economy in 2022. One indicator I have seen is the positive impact of
the Expo 2020 with different sectors of business.
Abdul Jebbar PB, Group Managing Director, Hotpack Global]
2021 was a challenging year for everyone. The disruption of the global supply
chain was difficult to deal with for everyone and the new year is going to bring
new challenges with it as well. However, it will also bring new opportunities,
so I hope that everyone is able to reflect on the past with humility and move
forward in hope of a better future.
Naren Vijay, Executive Vice President – EMEA, Lumenore
The new year is a cause for celebration because it’s always exciting to think
about what new innovations and opportunities the next year is going to bring.
What makes the new year special is that it serves as a reminder that things will
keep changing and that it is up to you to make the most of the opportunities
that these changes present.
Abdulla Nalapad, MD Nalapad Investments
The year 2021 was a welcome return to normal for children, parents and teachers.
We should all be proud to have shown such resilience in these trying times and
understand that we are capable of achieving anything if we want it. We hope to
keep that momentum going through to 2022 and not slow down, no matter what life
throws at us next.
Mohammed Mahabub Alam, Chairman of Tokyosat Group and Mahabub Perfumes, Dubai
The year 2021 has been a year of recovery, while 2022 will be a year of growth
for all of us. The Expo 2020 has helped the overall UAE economy and we are
witnessing the benefits of it through increased tourist traffic, higher spending
in the retail sector and increased investment in real estate. Dubai
International Airport once again has become the world’s busiest airport that
shows the increase in passenger movement, thanks to the visionary leadership of
the country.
Shahinoor Shah, Director of E-First Global, Dubai, UAE
The year 2021 was a learning period for all of us in the UAE as we all were in
growth mode and to adapt to the changes quickly and diversify with changing
demands in the market.The 2022 will be a year of growth for the UAE economy,
much better than what we have seen last couple of years. The Government of the
UAE has opened the doors to so many new opportunities for all over the world.”
Shabbir Merchant, Chairman, Champion Group
The UAE economy is all set to grow in the coming year. Most industries that were
impacted during peak Covid times have revived and are getting back on track.
Companies are hiring and scaling up their resources to be able cater to growing
market demand.Additionally the oil price gains and sustained demand will work to
UAE’s economy advantage. I am confident that the economy will grow further by
bold initiatives and policies by the UAE government.
2021 in UAE was unprecedented where we witnessed the launch of the world’s
greatest show - Expo2020. We were privileged to work on projects at Expo,
launched new solutions, invested in the latest machinery, and scaled up
resources to gain new clients. More importantly, the pandemic was curbed which
helped the overall healthcare scenario in UAE and brought back everyone’s
confidence.
Ahmed Shaikhani, President, Pakistan Business Council, Dubai.
2021 was a challenging year but we have witnessed how the UAE and its leadership
had showdown with it, overcame and managed the Covid-19 crises so well that the
country, especially Dubai, has become a role model in the world in handling such
situations. Dubai has done a great by organizing the vaccination drive and
sanitizing the entire city.
Covid-19 temporarily affected the Expo plans but did not stop it. Dubai delayed
it for a reason - to manage the vaccination drive first. And when the Expo was
launched, it went with a big bang and is now an extremely successful event among
all international events. Till mid December 2021, Expo 2020 Dubai visit numbers
climbed to more than 6.3 million and it is boosting the visitors by a range of
entertainment and country pavilion activities.
The new Covid-19 variant is impacting again but I am pretty sure the UAE will
overcome it as the country has the experience of handling such crises.
Looking at the success of Expo and revival of Dubai real estate and other
industries, I can say with conviction that the year 2022 will be a promising
year for every business.
We at Pakistan Business Council always supported the initiatives of the local
government and followed the new guidelines from the rulers. Pakistan Business
Council works hand in hand with local authorities and ministries, especially
Dubai Chamber, for supporting the bilateral trade between Pakistan and the UAE,
which has started showing up the results. I, on behalf of Pakistan Business
Council, wish a very happy New Year and even greater successes to the UAE and
expatriates living here.