Dubai plays major role in paving "New Silk Road"

DUBAI, March 24 - In the quest for foreign trade opportunities, firms and businessmen in the Gulf Arab sheikhdom of Dubai increasingly expand to the region from Cape to Cairo.When Emirates Airlines headed with Airbus A330 for the first time to Algeria's capital Algiers on March.it was more than just another daily flight route for the Middle East's fastest growing carrier. It was a demonstration of commitment by the emirate of Dubai for betting high stakes on connecting with Africa."Algiers is our 22nd destination in Africa," said Emirates chairman Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al-Maktoum," providing a wealth of new travel options for customers in Algeria, who will be able to fly non-stop to our industry leading hub in Dubai." The chairman added that "as a key oil and gas supplier, Algeria has an abundance of natural resources and Emirates' new service will help to grow trade routes and create new markets for imports and exports."Earlier in the year, United Arab Emirates (UAE) minister of economy Sultan Al-Mansouri said that due to the ongoing Euro zone crisis it was not a luxury but a necessity to reach out new emerging markets in Africa, Asia and Latin America.Twelve days later after Emirates' move to Algiers, another milestone in favor of Arab-African ties was done by Dubai Ports ( DP) World when the third biggest port operator launched a direct shipping line to the post-civil war Somali capital of Mogadishu after years of interruptions. Container trade to Mogadishu was suspended some years ago due to the political situation in Somalia and the risk of piracy.

In 2012, DP World's net profit rose 10 percent year on year to hit 749 million U.S. dollars. When presenting DP World's annual results last Wednesday, DP World chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said that port activity in its African ports in Senegal's capital Dakar, Algiers and Maputo, Mozambique, performed "better than expected" and that DP World, which controls 10 percent of all container ports globally, would be ready to expand operations in Africa "as we are optimistic for trade with Africa in general."The optimism is bilateral, as Mozambique's president Armando Guebuza pointed out when he paid an official visit to Dubai. "We invite Emirati businesses also to invest in our infrastructure, in our agriculture and fishery industry as well as in trade and logistics," said Guebuza, who was joined by a 60-member strong business delegation from his country at the UAE Mozambique Business Forum held on March 17th.On behalf of the emirate of Dubai, the UAE's trade and financial hub, Mohamed Alabbar, the chairman of the Gulf region's biggest real estate developer Emaar Properties, talked about his recent business trip to Mozambique. "We see huge opportunities in your country," said Alabbar, adding that he evaluated investment opportunities for Emaar, the builder of the world's highest building, the 828 meters tall Burj Khalifa in Dubai.Alabbar praised Mozambique as Africa's future "gas storage" and said the UAE, a major oil supplier, was ready to share its knowledge and experience in oil and gas exploration. According to Royal Dutch Shell, recent discoveries in Mozambique indicated that the south-east African country could rise to the 4th biggest gas exporting nation behind Russia, Iran and Qatar.