The UAE plans to boost the contribution of its industrial sector to 20 per cent of GDP by 2021 as it seeks to attract foreign direct investment and implement laws to help industry grow, the economy minister said yesterday.
The industrial sector’s contribution to GDP was 16 per cent last year, Sultan Al Mansouri said at the UAE Third Economy Planning Forum in Umm Al Quwain.
“The ministry is currently closely working with its strategic partners on a slew of laws and regulations that will develop the sector and bolster its attractiveness,” Mr Al Mansouri said.
These laws and regulations include anti-dumping and foreign investment laws.
The development of the industrial sector is part of government plans to lower the contribution of oil to GDP from about 30 per cent to 20 per cent by 2021, the minister said.
Abu Dhabi and Dubai have formulated strategies to boost the industrial sector’s contribution to GDP. The capital is planning to double the size of its industrial base as a percentage of its GDP, as it seeks to diversify its economy away from oil, Ali Al Mansoori, the chairman of the Department of Economic Development, said in May.
The government will soon launch an initiative to boost industrial production in the emirate, where industry’s contribution as a percentage of GDP could rise to 10 per cent from 5 per cent in the long run, Mr Al Mansoori said.
Abu Dhabi’s private sector accounts for 27 per cent of its economy, a figure the Government is hoping to boost to at least 40 per cent by 2030.
Meanwhile, Dubai announced in June an industrial strategy aimed at adding an additional Dh160 billion to the emirate’s economy by 2030.
The strategy includes the creation of 27,000 jobs and boosting exports by Dh16bn.
The industrial sector’s contribution to Dubai’s economy reached 14 per cent in 2014.
The UAE and other Arabian Gulf countries want to increase their industrial sector competitiveness to deal with low oil prices, creates jobs and boost economic growth.
dalsaadi@thenational.ae
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