Page 30 - MOE ENGLISH PR REPORT - JULY 2024

Press Release

opportunities in emerging markets, and offering an interactive platform that brought together senior
leaders, economic players, investors and entrepreneurs at the local, regional and global levels.

H.E. added that the UAE and India share the vision of embracing a new and sustainable economic
model, which underscores Investopia’s key role in promoting and supporting the achievement of this
vision in the government and private sectors of the two countries.

The UAE and India are among the fastest growing economies, with the UAE’s non-oil GDP growing
by 6.2% in 2023 compared to that of 2022, ranking 5th globally in the real GDP growth index.
Meanwhile, India's GDP grew by 8.4% in the last three months of 2023. These figures reflect the
momentum of growth of economic opportunities in the two countries' markets during the next phase,
given their outstanding economic partnership.

H.E. Bin Touq said: "We introduced the inaugural Investopia Global Talks in India in 2021, hosting
two sessions in Mumbai and New Delhi. Today, we are launching a new milestone in the South Indian
city of Chennai, highlighting the significance we attach to the Indian private sector as a key economic
and investment partner to the UAE’s business sector. This has great relevance considering there were
over 232,000 Indian commercial licenses operating in various economic sectors and activities within
the UAE's markets as of the end of H1 2024. In this, 20,000 Indian commercial licenses were registered
during the first six months of this year alone."

"The choice of Chennai, India as the venue for the Investopia Global Talks is driven by its strong
economic foundation in new and innovative sectors like electric vehicles, programming, medical
tourism, sustainable manufacturing, data centres, and the development of fintech sector. This
establishes Chennai as a key hub for fostering attractive investment prospects in these sectors, which
are crucial to the UAE private sector to explore and capitalize on. The Indian government has set an
ambitious target for Chennai to achieve a trillion-dollar economy by 2030 through sustainable sectors
and initiatives, cutting-edge innovations, e-commerce, and the upskilling of talent," H.E. added.

H.E. Alia Al Mazrouei, Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, said: "Under the directives of its wise
leadership, the UAE attaches significant importance to developing the SMEs sector, which is a key
partner in fostering the growth and sustainability of the national economy. SMEs today make up 94 per
cent of all private sector companies in the UAE and contribute 40 per cent to the UAE's GDP.” H.E.
emphasized that the Ministry of Economy has set a target of raising the number of SMEs operating in
the country's markets to one million by 2030. This objective aims to support the increase of the UAE's
GDP to AED 3 trillion within the next decade, aligning with the goals outlined in the 'We the UAE
2031' vision.

"This edition of Investopia marks a new step in fueling SME sector growth in both the UAE and India.
Its purpose is to shed light on the opportunities and enablers available to entrepreneurs and startups in
both countries, while also motivating them to invest in new economic sectors." H.E. added.

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