- GCC nationals register 56,663 property contracts in the UAE 2012
- Saudis represent 43.2% of the licenses granted to GCC nationals to practice economic activities within the UAE
- Investments amount to AED 7.32 billion in public shareholding companies with shares accessible to GCC nationals
In line with its strategic plan to own a significant role in activating the mechanics of the Gulf Common Market (GCM) and pursuing its continuous efforts to implement the resolutions of the economic integration of the GCM, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has issued its annual statistical report on the GCM in the UAE 2012.
The report displayed various statistics, which confirm the UAE’s commitment towards enhancing financial and economic cooperation among GCC states. The report highlights statistics on real estate property ownership, trade licenses and activities, stock trading and buying, beneficiaries of social insurance, GCC bank branches, and public education, in addition to a variety of other topics.
Commenting on the report, HH Sheik Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and Minister of Finance, emphasised the UAE’s determination to proceed with applying and activating all resolutions of the GCM, aiming to promote the principles Gulf economic integration and provide all the possible economic and social facilities for all GCC countries.
HH Al Maktoum said: “The results of the annual statistical report on the GCC highlight the UAE’s economic attraction within the GCC, which is due to the implementation of nationalship principle in the Gulf and the achievement of complete equality in the trade and economic activities within the UAE.”
The property section of the annual report – issued by the Department of Economic Development and the Department of Municipality Affairs pointed out that the number of registered property contracts of GCC nationals in the UAE increased by 8.2% in 2012 amounting to 11,761 contracts compared to 10,873 contracts in 2011. In fact, the cumulative number of registered properties for GCC nationals in the UAE amounted to 56,663 ownerships by 2012, whereby Kuwaiti citizens had the largest share by representing a total amount of 30,094 real estate properties by 2012.
Furthermore, the report presented an increase in the number of licenses granted to GCC nationals to practice economic activities within the UAE. The licenses granted recorded a continued increase from 2000 until 2012, whereby 1,516 licenses were issued last year bringing the cumulative number of licenses to 30,425 in 2012 compared to 28,909 licenses in 2011, which equals an increase of 5.2%. Meanwhile, the total number of licenses granted to Saudi and Kuwaiti citizens recorded a rate of 43.2% and 19.6% respectively.
Additionally, the UAE welcomed two new GCC bank branches in 2012, amounting to a total of eight branches which already includes two branches of Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait and Doha Bank and one branch for each of National Bank of Kuwait, National Bank of Bahrain, Samba Financial Group and the National Bank of Oman.
The Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA) in the UAE recorded a total of 80 public shareholding companies in 2012 with shares accessible to GCC citizens, amounting to a total rate of 74.8%. In fact, the number of investors from the GCC that invested in public shareholding companies reached a total number of 126,684 in 2012 with mostly Saudis investing in the public joint stock companies.
With regards to the size of the shares invested in the joint stock companies, MoF’s report recorded a total amount of AED 7.382 billion by 2012 surpassing the total amount – AED 5.314 billion – recorded in 2011 and resulting in a 38.9% increase. Saudi investors have the largest amount of shares valued at AED 2.976 billion, constituting 40.3% of the total. Kuwaiti investors represent a ratio of 17.8% with shares amounting to AED 1.317 billion of the total GCC investments.
According to the report, the Federal Authority for Government Human Resources and the Ministry of Labor recorded a significant increase in the number of GCC nationals working in the public sector in the UAE, with the number of workers reaching 1,680 employees in 2012, an increase of 645 employees compared to 2011. In addition, the number of GCC workers in the private sector increased from 2,927 employees in 2001 to 3,031 employees in 2012.
In the social section of the report, the results indicated an increase in the total number of GCC nationals covered by social insurance within the UAE between 2007 and 2012 with an annual compound growth rate of 19.8%. The number of beneficiaries increased by 26.8%, bringing the total number of GCC nationals covered by social insurance to 7,225 beneficiaries compared to 5,698 beneficiaries in 2011. In fact, Omani citizens benefited the most from social insurance, with the report recording a total of 5,719 Omani citizens in 2012; constituting 79.2% of GCC nationals covered by social insurance.
The UAE played a prominent role towards the implementation of all resolutions relevant to the GCM, especially in the education sector. The report showed that the number of GCC students enrolled in public schools and in various educational levels in the UAE increased to 13,190 students; an increase of 9.3% to 1,120 students in 2011. Private schools in the UAE received 2,407 students at various educational levels in 2012, which presents an increase of 805 students (50.3%) since 2011.
MoF coordinated with many federal agencies involved with the GCM, utilizing integration with gulf economic entities in order to collect data and prepare the statistical report.
