Today's Edition
KHALED AL KHAWALDEH (ABU DHABI)
The Managing Director of the International Finance Cooperation hailed the UAE's leading role in the sustainable development of emerging markets. Speaking at the second day of the World Government Summit in Dubai, Makhtar Diop said the UAE had emerged as one of the key partners for the IFC in recent years.
"In recent years, the UAE has created investment in sectors which were not usual. Today the largest investor in renewables in Africa is a UAE company in Central America, one of the largest players in renewable energy is a UAE company," he said on Wednesday.
The IFC leads efforts to mobilise investments in developing economies and drive sustainable recovery. Diop said that the investment of UAE companies had given the organisation the leverage it needed on the ground to be able to push for vital reforms that would help the development of many emerging countries. This included efforts to simplify bureaucracy and fast-track projects.
"What we do with the UAE companies is use our footprint on the ground to push for policy reform in some countries," he said.
Diop was joined on stage by Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, the UAE's Minister of Economy, who emphasised the importance of multilateral cooperation and investment.
He said the UAE was looking to enhance its role not just as a distributor of funds, but also as an attractive investment destination, with aims to reach $40 billion in foreign investment in the coming years.
"The UAE remains a committed driving forward thinking policy that supports long-term economic growth and positions our economies as leaders in innovation and investment," he said.
Diop said the GCC's sovereign wealth funds had become a critical part of the global economy both locally abroad.
He highlighted projects across the Middle East and Africa as examples of how money was being put to work in developing emerging markets, but indicated that, in future, Latin America would be an increasing area of interest for the organisation.
"There is a lot of opportunity in that part of the world, and next time I'm sitting here, we would like to have a conversation about how we can get you involved," he said.
