The Trivandrum Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TCCI) on Thursday announced that it would assist Thiruvananthapuram-based enterprises, which aspired to expand to international markets through the Middle East region, to set up units in the Hamriyah Free Zone in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The declaration was made at a joint business session organised by the TCCI and the Hamriyah Free Zone.
Speaking on the occasion, Ali Saeed Al Jarwan, Deputy Commercial Director of Hamriyah Free Zone, saw opportunity in the changes ushered in during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said those changes appeared to become permanent competitive advantages for businesses. The high vaccination rate in the UAE and its relatively young population placed the country in a strong position to withstand the current wave of infection, he added.
TCCI president S.N. Raghuchandran Nair said the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates expected the UAE economy to grow at 4.2% in 2022 compared to the previous year’s 2.1% growth. “This will be a good opportunity for our businesses which are already on a revival path in the new normal. Moreover, the UAE serves as the gateway to the rest of the world for Kerala-based businesses,” he added.
Senior representatives of forty companies participated in the session. TCCI secretary Abraham Thomas and Hamriyah Free Zone Head of Overseas Promotion Muhamed Basheer led the discussions. This is the second time TCCI and Hamriyah Free Zone have hosted a joint business session, a press release stated.
