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Dubai
, UAE - March 19, 2009:
Women are today the proud account holders of a total volume of investments in the UAE to the tune of 12.5 billion AED (3.4 billion U.S. dollars). This has been due to the hard work they have put in towards national development and their participation in various meets, symposiums and seminars which have enhanced their business skills.
Women are also actively participating in the Arab Investment Forum (AIF) 2009, which will be held on March 24-25 in Dubai. Emirates Business Women Council and Dubai Business Women Council will present working papers and a specialized workshop that discusses the importance and the role of businesswomen in the current global financial crisis.
Raja Easa Al Gurg, President of Dubai Business Women Council, declared that the volume of women's investments in the country has reached more than 12 billion AED in 2008, after a series of steps which have brought the public and private sectors closer. "This has resulted in a positive economic environment for investment, which is helpful in achieving even better financial outputs in various commercial sectors which are in line with women’s investments," she said.
Al Gurg, who was ranked among the top 50 businesswomen in the Arab world in 2008 and is currently holding the post of Executive Director of Easa Al Gurg Group of Companies as well as DBWC president, said that “the need to understand the current economic environment and how to deal with the next stage of investment, requires paying attention to previous and current strategies of various sectors."
Meanwhile, the global economic scene is witnessing a slowdown in the rate of economic growth, according to the International Monetary Fund in its latest report, which points out that there are economic sectors which are able through wise private initiatives and government support, to overcome the difficult stages falling this year. Measures include overcoming the crisis with less loss and preparation for positive business launches at the beginning of 2010, the report said. Steps like these will result in positive growth after adjustment processes taking place in various sectors.
Al Gurg said that the participation of UAE women in particular and Arab women in general in the Arab Investment Forum 2009, which will be held under the banner of "Wealth Management in the Era of Crisis," is a strong factor that adds important economic dimensions to the forum’s working papers and workshops. She said that the presence of more than 25 speakers and decision makers in the forum will reveal applicable solutions for the crisis.
Mrs. Khawla Lootah, board member of the Dubai Business Women Council and participant in a workshop with the title "Women and the Global Financial Crisis" that will be held on the second day of the event, explained that the workshop will clarify the importance of the role of capital controlled by women in economic decisions and how to use it in an effective and wise way. She said that the coming days will witness an active participation of women in the largest economic sectors of the UAE, through a series of projects and business investments, which will further consolidate the presence of women in the Emirati economic market as well as in the GCC, Arab and global markets.
Lootah, who also holds the post of president of the Women's Council of Dubai Police, added that “the women's proactive role in the UAE has become a reality that has resulted from the active participation of ladies who are aware of the significance of Emirati women as active members of society who are able to bring about required changes."
She added: "Today we are witnessing the Arab Investment Forum 2009 under the banner of 'Wealth Management in the Era of Crisis,' which indicates the fact that real wealth must come from human resources which is able to withstand the global financial crisis. From my point of view, the crisis will not be limited only to the global liquidity crisis and its treatment, but will include the question of rehabilitation of labor in various sectors, to enable it to adapt to the new economic situation in accordance with the surrounding atmosphere."
It is noteworthy that the Arab Investment Forum 2009 which is organized by Etisal Event Management in collaboration with the General Federation of Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture for Arab Countries (GUCCIAAC), the Federation of Gulf Cooperation Council Chambers (FGCCC), and in coordination with the UAE Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FCCI), will be attended by women from various business and economic sectors from the Arab world in general and the UAE in particular, with contributions in the form of specialized working papers, discussions on the financial crisis and the search for effective solutions to overcome it.
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