The UAE Ministry of Economy has signed an agreement with KW Group, the organisers of Global Trade Development Week (GTDW), to host the mega-trade event in Dubai for the next three years.

GTDW is the world's largest trade facilitation event and features a series of specialised trade summits and exhibition that links key sectors across international trade; including business, banking, customs, corporate real estate, infrastructure, specialised economic zones, supply chain logistics and transport and SMEs.

To be held in Dubai from October 27 to 29, this year's event will be an unprecedented gathering of 1,000 trade leaders from government and the private sector coming to Dubai from over 100 countries.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister for Economy, said: "Supporting GTDW reflects the UAE’s commitment to promoting the growth of international trade as an engine for growth, peace and prosperity, for not only the UAE, but across the world."

‘Innovation in Global Trade and Economic Development’ is the theme for this year and innovation will underpin discussion in all of the GTDW’s six trade summits.

"This is highly significant to the UAE, as in 2015 we will be taking forward our National Innovation strategy. We encourage global trade leaders to be guided by the principles of innovation as an engine for growth in trade and economic development," stated Al Mansoori.

"A global trading system focused on innovative policies and institutions will help us find new ways to conduct business together across the world, in a sustainable form, to the benefit of all nations," he added.

The three-day event, being organised under the patronage of the UAE Ministry of Economy, will be addressed by over 150 speakers, who are some of the most influential leaders driving world trade today.

Signing the agreement on behalf of the Ministry of Economy, undersecretary Abdullah Ahmed Al Saleh, said: "The UAE is steadily gaining a track record for playing a constructive role in finding solutions to global issues and GTDW allows us help shape the agenda to promote sustainable economic growth and deepen trade and investment links that will bind economies closer together in the future."

Ayesha Alkobaisi, the director for International Trade Organizations, Ministry of Economy and GTDW project director said: "Securing the event for the next three years allows the ministry to partner with this major forum, in the scale of the event and its significance on the global stage with UAE as annual host."

"The 2015 programme has expanded to include six concurrent trade summits with the launch of ‘Global Cargo, Transportation & Logistics Summit’ and ‘The Global SME Trade Development Forum’. We look forward to the growth of GTDW in the UAE and its development as a leading global forum for trade and economic growth," she added.  

Andrew Keable, the founder and managing partner of KW Group, said: "Working closely with the UAE Ministry of Economy we have planned a dynamic programme that will carry great impact on a global stage."

The event will see many leading players in the global trading system from both private, government and multilateral organisations discuss several issues affecting global trade, he added.-TradeArabia News Service