Dubai business licences up 650% over last 25 years
dubai — Dubai Economy has issued more than 170,000 commercial licences over the last 25 years, a 650 per cent increase over the 28,000 licences issued in its first year in 1992, said Sami Al Qamzi, Director General of Dubai Economy.
“The Business Registration & Licensing (BRL) sector in Dubai Economy serves more than 150,000 businesses in the emirate, conducting approximately 430,000 transactions every year relating to issuing, renewing or revoking licences as well as amending trade names and issuing commercial permits,” Al Qamzi said as Dubai Economy celebrates its 25th anniversary in 2017.
Al Qamzi added that over 2,100 business activities have been streamlined by Dubai Economy during the last 25 years in line with the emirate’s economic diversification policy and in response to the requirements of businessmen and the market.
“We are constantly striving to improve efficiency and meet the needs of the business community across Dubai. We need to redouble our efforts to maintain excellence in performance and service quality in line with the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to provide the best customer service and facilitate procedures in addition to making public service a top priority that reflects the development achieved by the UAE. The Government of Dubai is providing all the tools and human resources to achieve that goal,” added Al Qamzi.
“Dubai Economy through the Business Registration & Licensing sector plays a key role in promoting sustainable economic development and competitiveness in Dubai through targeted initiatives and the application of best practices in areas such as ease starting business, company registration, smart services, and providing value-added services to licence owners, creating a world-class business environment,” said Omar Bushahab, chief executive officer of BRL sector.
Dubai Economy has also opened six Smart Halls across the various regions of the emirate to promote customer happiness and competitiveness. Additionally, more than 20 outsourced service centres across the emirate offer business registration and licensing services. As per outcomes recorded in 2016, the service centre network has seen waiting times being reduced to five minutes and average service delivery time to seven minutes, which means a 64 per cent improvement in transaction times compared to 2014.
The ‘Hassle-Free’ initiative launched by BRL was also targeted to facilitate procedures for business licence holders and promote investor confidence and competitiveness in Dubai. The initiative includes an ‘Auto Renewal’ service, first of its kind in the Arab world, which enables renewal of licences by sending an SMS. About 2,096 business activities that do not need any external approvals, equivalent to 99.8 per cent of the commercial licences, are covered by this service.
The Smart Dubai Office, the Smart Dubai Government Establishment and Dubai Economy, in collaboration with IBM, launched the city’s first cognitive computing service to facilitate business licensing and registration in Dubai in 2016.
The service, named Saad,responds to enquiries regarding BRL services in real time and the service is accessible to entrepreneurs, employers and local and foreign investors who wish to set up business in Dubai.
— business@khaleejtimes.com