By Akanimo Sampson
Abu Dhabi holds the key to the future of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Government leaders, global CEOs and other investment stakeholders will be meeting in the city from December 6-10.
They will be stepping up efforts to promote investment for sustainable development at the 7th biennial United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) World Investment Forum (WIF).
It will also be the first-ever Asian E-Commerce Week to be held in Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi is, however, the capital and the second-most populous city of the United Arab Emirates (after Dubai). It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhai, which is the largest of the UAE’s seven emirates. The city of Abu Dhabi is located on an island in the Persian Gulf, off the Central West Coast.
Most of the city and the Emirate reside on the mainland connected to the rest of the country. As of 2020, Abu Dhabi’s urban area had an estimated population of 1.48 million, out of 2.9 million in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, as of 2016.
The city houses local and federal government offices and is the home of the United Arab Emirates Government and the Supreme Petroleum Council. The city is home to the President of the UAE, who is a member of the Al Nahyan family.
Abu Dhabi’s rapid development and urbanization, coupled with the massive oil and gas reserves and production and relatively high average income, have transformed it into a large, developed metropolis. It is the country’s center of politics and industry, and a major culture and commerce center. Abu Dhabi accounts for about two-thirds of the roughly $400 billion UAE economy.
In the mean time, the WIF is the largest global platform for high-level dialogue and action on investment and development. This year’s edition will seek to accelerate actions to align international investment with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
UNCTAD Secretary-General Mukhisa Kituyi and the Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Economy for Foreign Trade Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, Abdullah Bin Ahmed Al Saleh, signed on February 13, an agreement to host the forum.
“At the onset of what UN Secretary-General António Guterres has declared the decade of action on Agenda 2030, more investment must be mobilised into areas of greatest need to ensure inclusive prosperity. I thank the United Arab Emirates for offering to host this important forum”, Dr. Kituyi said at the signing.
Al Saleh said: “The forum is a unique platform to facilitate policymaking and joint action that is necessary to stimulate investments in development areas.”
A close link will be sought with the underlying theme of the World Expo 2020, “Connecting Minds. Creating the Future.”
Investors, firms and governments are, in increasing numbers, putting sustainability at the core of their activities. Initiatives like the WIF can change investor behavior and further leverage investment for sustainable development.
This change requires rapid and constructive dialogue between all stakeholders, the sharing of best practices, and the agreement of concrete investments and financing solutions. The biennial forum therefore:
It produces strategies to address global investment, and development challenges.
Facilitates networking between global leaders in business and politics.
It stimulates public and private action on investment for sustainable development.
Offers a unique opportunity to influence investment policymaking and shape the global investment environment.
The forum will provide attendees with the opportunity to interact with high-level participants from the global investment community, including heads of state and government and ministers.
Other regular participants are executives of global companies and stock exchanges, sovereign wealth fund managers, investment treaty negotiators, heads of investment promotion agencies, international investment location experts, heads of international organizations, parliamentarians, civil society representatives, eminent scholars, and the international media.
Three key issues
This year’s forum will focus on three key issues facing the global investment and development community through a series of high-level events:
How can investment stakeholders more rapidly integrate sustainability criteria into investment decisions and business operations and create both long-term value and sustainable development impact?
