The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Authority (DMCC) said it has signed a deal with Hawkamah, an international association of corporate governance practitioners in the Mena region, to raise awareness of corporate governance among SMEs.

The MoU will see Hawkamah work alongside DMCC and its members to raise awareness of corporate governance and offer in-depth training courses providing practical tools on how to construct governance frameworks.

Hawkamah will also offer advisory services for individual DMCC companies to support the implementation of their corporate governance strategies, said Ahmed Bin Sulayem, the executive chairman of DMCC at the signing ceremony held at Almas Tower.

“One of the many reasons regional and international companies of all sizes choose DMCC is our tailored industry regulatory structure,"  explained Bin Sulayem.

"As the authority of the Free Zone committed to developing Dubai into a global hub for trade and enterprise, we have played a leading role in assisting DMCC member companies demonstrate best practice corporate governance," he stated.

As the number of Free Zone members continues to grow and the regulatory landscape continues to evolve, DMCC wants to ensure that its SME members can trade with confidence whilst having the appropriate toolkit to enhance their corporate governance practices.

"Our new association with Hawkamah is part of our programme to assist members in achieving this," said Bin Sulayem.

Regulatory initiatives established by DMCC include the first UAE Kimberley Process office in the Arab world operated on behalf of the UAE Federal Government in order to regulate the flow of rough diamonds through Dubai; the creation of the Dubai Good Delivery standard for gold and silver bars in 2005; and in 2012, the establishment of the DMCC Practical Guidance to promote the responsible sourcing of gold.

Hawkamah CEO Leonardo Peklar said, "This landmark initiative will pave the way for further collaboration between the two organisations in our efforts to assist DMCC Free Zone members strengthen their corporate governance frameworks and further improve corporate governance practices."

Peklar pointed out that in order to be successful, free zone companies had to compete at a global level in respect of the quality of goods and services being offered.

"The businesses registered with DMCC are very diverse and it is essential for them to focus on good governance as this leads to increased investor confidence and is one of the catalysts for attracting foreign investment and developing the capital markets," he added.-TradeArabia News Service