Dubai Airport Free Zone Authority (Dafza) said it has witnessed an impressive 23 per cent increase in the number of Indian companies operating within its premises last year.

Official statistics reveal that India came first in the list of Dafza investors by country last year, accounting for 38 per cent of total Asia Pacific investments.

The investments of Indian companies, 45 per cent of which are multinational companies, focus on the electronics and communications sector which ranked first at 25 per cent followed by the computer, Internet and IT solutions sector (14 per cent) at second spot and the jewellery, watches and precious stones at nine per cent.

Indian human resources comprise around 34 per cent of Dafza’s total workforce and of the regional, international and multinational companies working in the free zone.

Dafza said it will continue developing investment incentives and applying international best practices, adopting the latest innovative technologies and providing integrated infrastructure to attract more Indian investments in line with its tireless efforts to contribute to further enhancing the strong economic, trade and investment ties between India and the UAE.

The freezone aims to deliver an integrated portfolio of facilities to encourage the participation of Indian companies in the UAE's ongoing development and investment projects which attracted Indian investments of Dh59 billion ($16 billion) over the past year, said a company spokesman.

The freezone has also reaffirmed its commitment to providing the necessary means to activate the contribution of Indian investments in ambitious projects within Dubai’s main economic sectors. This will drive national economic growth forward and reinforce the historic ties between India and the UAE, he stated.

According to him, Dafza is leading the way in terms of opening up new channels of mutual co-operation with the Indian business community.

The leading Indian companies with a major presence in Dafza include Tata Group, Kalyan Jewellers, Himalaya, HCL Infosystems, Tech Mahindra and Wipro.-TradeArabia News Service