New policies to boost FDI in real estate
ew policies and incentives will soon be announced which will lead to further growth in foreign direct investment (FDI) into Abu Dhabi, a top government official said on Tuesday.
In his opening remarks at the 12th edition of Cityscape Abu Dhabi, an official from the Department of Economic Development said the present market situation was good and the launch of a new investment office would further bolster the environment.
Abu Dhabi Investment Office acting executive director Ahmad bin Ghannam said new steps would be announced soon to attract foreign investors.
“We launched the Abu Dhabi Investment Office in February. The main reason was to create a single platform in Abu Dhabi where you have a one-stop-shop with a proactive team reaching out to investors,” Ghannam said.
The official said the DED was determined to write a new chapter with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office.
“We are coordinating with the government and private sector entities to ensure that investment opportunities are available and presented to investors locally or internationally. Just before the launch of the new office, we went with the largest-ever investment team of around 120 delegates and 25 entities to India. We had approximately 300 meetings. We are serious and mean business. We will create a success story in Abu Dhabi.”
Growth in FDI will also lead to contributions from the non-oil sector. Figures show investor confidence is growing.
“Last year, we registered FDI worth Dh108 billion. In comparison, it was just over Dh100 billion in 2016. So, we have registered a growth in FDI of 7.1 per cent,” he added.
According to the results of an annual report on direct FDI into Abu Dhabi, real estate activities, which include real estate sales to non-residents, contributed the most to direct FDI in the years 2016 and 2017.
“With extra initiatives that we will announce soon, we hope to have higher numbers this year. We are anticipating FDI will continue to grow, not just in real estate but other sectors too. Real estate is an important sector to us in terms of FDI. Up to 27 per cent of FDI flow is from real estate.”
With the new investment office, the onus is on the private sector as well. “This is our first task. If there are any proposals and projects, we want to hear from you. Cityscape Abu Dhabi is a good venue for this,” Ghannam said.
Earlier, Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, chief of the Abu Dhabi Crown Prince’s Court, inaugurated the 3-day exhibition.
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