Ras Al Khaimah eyes investment from India

RAS AL KHAIMAH (UAE): The Free Trade Zone in Ras Al Khaimah (RAK FTZ) is eyeing investment from India Inc in its attempt to become the most sought-after business destination in United Arab Emirates. The trade zone was set up 10 years ago.
Giving stiff competition to neighbouring emirates like Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, RAK FTZ offers advantages like cheaper cost of living, better infrastructure, state-of-the-art business centres , availability of trained work force and tax-free environment for companies, especially SMEs.
Talking to an Indian media delegation to Ras Al Khaimah, Sheikh Faisal bin Saqr Al Qasimi, chairman of RAK FTZ, said, "India is a mass market and we want to be a part of the development process of the country. Our ties with Indian companies have grown manifold in the last 10 years due to our focus on the mass segment. We are building a network of financial institutions to cater to Indian firms."
Appealing to Indian firms to invest in the tourism sector, he said, "We have sand, sea and mountains, besides an excellent law and order situation. We want to tell business leaders that they are safe here. We are setting up a tourism board for promotion . RAK Airways plans to strengthen its operation in India to tap the growing traffic. We are also planning to pump in about AED 730 million in the aviation sector and want to create a maintenance and repair hub in RAK FTZ," he added.
According to Christopher Tomseth, director (sales and marketing), RAK FTZ, "around 7,000 companies have been given licences for operating from RAK FTZ so far, of which more than 1,900 are from India. We hope that 10,000 companies will operate from RAK FTZ by the year-end ."
Indian firms are operating in the academic, commercial , industrial, consulting and general trading sectors. "We are now targeting SMEs, because it would be easier for them to tap the global market once they start operations here. At least six universities from countries like France, India and the UK, have signed up to open educational institutions ," he said.
(THE WRITER WAS IN RAS AL KHAIMAH AT THE INVITATION OF RAS AL KHAIMAH FREE TRADE ZONE AUTHORITY)