KHALED AL KHAWALDEH (ABU DHABI)
The UAE solidified its position as the leading foreign direct investment (FDI) magnet in the Middle East according to new data presented at the World Free Zones Organization (World FZO)’s 10th Annual World Congress held in Dubai last week.
New data revealed by Henry Loewendahl, founder and CEO of Wavteq Group Limited and consultant with fDi Intelligence, revealed that between 2023 and July 2024, the UAE led the Middle East in global FDI in free zones, making up 1.6 percent of all “greenfield” projects globally.
Loewendahl emphasised that the Middle East attracted nearly 60 percent of FDI projects in free zones from 2023 to July 2024, largely thanks to Dubai’s proactive approach to investment.
“Dubai, for the last three years, has been the number one city in the world for attracting FDI measured by the number of FDI projects,” he said.
“Dubai’s success is not only due to its own initiatives but also reflects a broader trend in the Gulf and Middle East regions, which are increasingly appealing to investors.”
The new data builds on previous data revealed in fDi intelligence 2024 report released in May which found the UAE had increased its FDI by 36 percent in 2023, with 1,276 projects as compared to 359 projects attracted by Saudi Arabia, which stood at second position.
The report found that the vast majority of FDI projects in the region had concentrated on renewable energy projects.
Abu Dhabi-based Mubadala Investments company was the largest investor in the region while China was the largest source of investments from outside of the region.
Loewendahl underscored the emerging role of AI in attracting investment, which he said had generated nearly 1,000 greenfield FDI projects over the past 19 months.
“AI is presenting huge opportunities for free zones and countries to attract high-tech investments,” he stated.
“AI is approaching 1,000 greenfield FDI projects just in the last year and seven months. That shows the huge opportunity to attract FDI in the AI space. The investment is being made on data centres and it is happening on an enormous scale never seen before,” he added.
Globally, the US remained the largest market for FDI, attracting 19.5 percent of greenfield projects into its free zones, followed by the United Kingdom (11.7 percent), India (8.3 percent), China (7.8 percent), and Germany (6.3 percent).