Jebel Ali Free Zone (JAFZA) has marked its 40th anniversary with record trade volumes of $190 billion over the past year — a 15 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase and its highest-ever contribution to Dubai’s economy.
Established in 1985 as the Middle East’s free zone with just 19 companies, JAFZA currently hosts more than 11,000 businesses. Its infrastructure connects businesses to over 3.5 billion consumers by sea, air and land.
In the past 20 years alone, JAFZA has attracted more than $30 billion in foreign direct investment (FDI) to Dubai and alongside Jebel Ali Port created over one million direct and indirect jobs.
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Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Group Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, DP World, said: “It is fitting that JAFZA has made its greatest ever contribution to trade in its 40th year. Over the past four decades, it has proven to be an anchor of resilience and now serves as a blueprint for our approach to economic zone development.”
Abdulla Bin Damithan, CEO & Managing Director, DP World GCC, stated: ““Dubai has undergone one of the most dramatic urban and trade transformations in modern history from a modest desert town to a global metropolis with less than 1 per cent of its GDP coming from oil.
“The Jebel Ali ecosystem has had a big role to play in that, with modern infrastructure and business-friendly policies connecting over 3.5 billion consumers.”
