UAE Minister Of Economy Opens GIAS 2020

UAE Minister of Economy opens GIAS 2020

DUBAI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News / WAM - 28th Jan, 2020) Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy and Chairman of the General Civil Aviation Authority, GCAA, opened the second edition of the Global Investment in Aviation Summit, GIAS 2020, at Madinat Jumeirah, Dubai, which is offering a platform for stakeholders to share insights, experiences and expertise.

Organised by the GCAA under the theme, "Enabling global aviation growth through fundraising and key partnerships", the three-day event got off to a flying start, with the largest ever gathering of aviation ministers and heads of civil aviation authorities from around the world, in addition to a stellar galaxy of leading aviation companies, airlines, aircraft operators and investors, as well as a large number of visitors from more than 57 countries.

In his opening speech, Al Mansouri said, "GIAS 2020 aims to highlight the promising investment opportunities in the aviation sector, especially in light of the giant infrastructure projects being implemented in the UAE and worldwide as part of international efforts to advance the aviation industry, like a locomotive of the global economy and one of its main drivers."

He underlined the importance of holding such global economic events that reflect the wise leadership’s forward-thinking vision for developing proactive plans necessary for shaping the future of the country in the next five decades, across all economic sectors, notably the aviation industry, which is the main driver of economic development in the UAE.

"Thanks to the great attention and priority given by the UAE leaders to the aviation sector and its future for the UAE economy, it is expected to achieve a robust growth of 170 percent by 2037," Al Mansouri said, referring to the promising outlook for the UAE aviation industry, according to a recent report issued by the International Air Transport Association.

Saif Mohammed Al Suwaidi, Director-General of GCAA, said, "Through GIAS, we look at raising the awareness of investors and industry professionals over the importance of this sector, which has witnessed rapid growth over the last 10 years. We aim to showcase the promising investment opportunities aviation offers to investors."

He added, "The UAE Aviation sector had maintained a fixed growth after the 2008 global financial crisis, and is expected to witness high growth over the next two decades, thanks to highly sophisticated airport infrastructure. This is because the UAE government, from an early stage, realised the importance of the aviation sector to the country’s economy, so it strengthened its air transport network and infrastructure and invested billions in its infrastructure, enabling its modern aviation sector to succeed in today’s competitive world, leading the UAE to be ranked among the top nations in global competitiveness indicators."

The second day of GIAS 2020 saw two ministerial sessions titled, "World Leaders: Vision and Strategies for Growth, Sustainability and Better Aviation".

It also included a number of panel discussions, including "Success Factors for Airport Investments", "Leading the Investment in Aviation: Where are the next challenges?", and a women-only session titled, "Woman Entrepreneurship in Aviation: Global Leaders and their Visions".