The latest developments in Dubai’s domestic maritime community will be highlighted and discussed at the Seatrade Maritime Middle East (SMME), to be held later this year in Dubai, UAE.

The event will take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from October 20 to 31.

Widely regarded as one of the most important maritime events and to be held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, UAE, SMME will showcase and cement anew the cosmopolitan city’s status as a leading regional and international maritime hub, said a statement.

The recent news of Dubai being included for the first time in the ‘top five international shipping centres’ comes in the midst of intensive efforts aimed at catapulting the local maritime industry into the ranks of the world’s best as per the directives of the UAE’s leadership, it said.

Citing its innovative free-trade zone and improvement in the domestic trade environment, Dubai is one of the top five world-class maritime cities listed in the International Shipping Centre Development Index (ISCD) compiled by the Baltic Exchange and Xinhua alongside Singapore, Hong Kong, London, and Shanghai.

This landmark feat is expected to further raise the confidence of the global maritime community in Dubai’s world-class maritime infrastructure and capabilities, it said.

International experts are upbeat as well that the emirate is going to be the seventh leading maritime centre in the world by 2020 from being the Middle East’s current leading maritime city. This sentiment was revealed in the recent international survey conducted by Menon Business Economics Group, which benchmarks the world’s leading maritime capitals, it added.

The latest developments are seen to further bolster the positive mood in the domestic maritime community ahead of the SMME.

Amer Ali, executive director of Dubai Maritime City Authority, said: “The ongoing efforts of Dubai maritime authorities are paying off as evidenced by the emirate’s recent global achievement.”

“This year, Dubai was ranked fifth in the list of the most important shipping hubs worldwide based on the ISCD released by Baltic Exchange and Xinhua news agency,” he said.

“It is an honour and a privilege to be recognised by the global community, further emboldening us in Dubai to continuously take the necessary steps to sustain this accomplishment, support innovation and competitiveness, and attract maritime-related businesses and investments to maintain the industry’s vibrancy, sustainability, and inclusiveness,” he added.

“SMME’s upcoming latest edition is another initiative that will back our endeavours designed to help realize the key goals and objectives of Dubai Plan 2021,” Ali concluded.

Chris Hayman, chairman of Seatrade, said: “More than ever, the strategically located Dubai is poised to play a pivotal role in the continued progress and development of the many aspects of international trade and the global maritime community, specifically in the shipping segment.”

“SMME is an opportunity to discuss in-depth Dubai’s potentials and advantages as it sets to gather international and regional ship owners and operators, ports, financiers, and other maritime professionals,” he said.

“This year’s edition will again encourage maritime professionals to network, do business, strengthen and nurture new relationships, while hearing about industry topics within relevant and comprehensive conference sessions,” he added.

SMME, the region’s largest gathering of shipping and maritime industry decision makers, yearly attracts nearly 8,000 attendees from across 90 countries. The international participants take advantage of the platform to do business with ship owners, ship operators, ship managers, charterers, superintendents, senior management, and other industry professionals involved in the procurement of equipment and services within the maritime, offshore, oil and gas, and ports industries.

The agenda of the 2018 edition will revolve around autonomous shipping and automation, fuels of the future, digital and cyber technologies, and environmental challenges within the shipping industry, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service