UAE, Korea Sign 3 MoUs

The 5th UAE-Korea Economic Joint Committee ended -Monday, May 30, 2016 in the capital of Abu Dhabi. The two-day event focused on enhancing economic cooperation in sectors such as high technology, innovation, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), industry and tourism of mutual importance to the economic policies and plans of the two countries.

Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy, led the UAE delegation, while the delegates from the Republic of Korea (ROK) were headed by Ilho Yoo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance. This year’s session included a preparatory technical meeting held yesterday under the supervision of Mohammed Bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Economic for Economic Affairs, and Hoe Jeong Kim, Director General for International Economic Affairs at the ROK Ministry of Strategy and Finance. A total of eight (8) roundtable sessions were conducted to establish frameworks for cooperation between the two countries.

The UAE delegation also included other officials from the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Development, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, the Ministry of Health and Prevention, the General Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Transport Authority, MASDAR, and other federal and local government agencies and chambers.

The most significant outcome of the committee meeting was the signing of three key Memorandums of Understanding. The first covers a Knowledge Sharing Program (KSP) on SME and Innovation between the UAE Ministry of Economy and the ROK Ministry of Strategy and Finance, while the second involves the secondment of IT experts from the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) to the UAE Ministry of Economy in line with the latter’s program for industrial property. The third is a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) on seawater desalination between Korea Agency for Infrastructure Technology Advancement (KAIA) and MASDAR.

Al Mansouri gave a speech welcoming the Korean delegation and commending the productive bilateral relations between their countries. He noted how their commercial exchange for 2015 was able to reach USD 8.5 billion – inclusive of free zone activities – despite a slowdown in global economic growth.

The Minister added that South Korea’s economic development, especially in the sectors of industry, modern technology and innovation, is a model worth taking advantage of in terms of experience and knowledge exchange. He also emphasized the productive cooperation of their countries which has turned the UAE into South Korea’s largest trading partner in the MENA region and its second largest oil supplier. Korea, on the other hand, ranks among the UAE’s most important global trading partners, the Minister noted.

He highlighted the UAE’s outstanding economic achievements as well, saying that the country’s non-oil foreign trade stood at AED 1.6 trillion in 2014 inclusive of the country’s free zone activities, and that it is the third largest re-export center in the world. The Minister invited the various Korean economic sectors to benefit from the UAE’s attractive trade and investment environment in order to initiate an advanced phase of partnership between their respective private sectors and business communities.

The meeting’s agenda included several topics for reviewing the progress made in implementing the recommendations agreed upon during the fourth session of the Joint UAE – Korean Economic Committee in 2014. Participants discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in various key sectors, including Clean and Renewable Energy, Infrastructure, Industry, Intellectual Property Rights, Innovation and SMEs, Finance and Public Services, Healthcare and Medical Service, Education and Cultural Exchange, and Tourism.