Gulf participation sought for Italian fairs
01 January 2002
Three major building exhibitions, to be held in Italy during 2002, will come under the spotlight at a Dubai seminar on February 18, while a fourth event will be held in early February, according to a senior UAE-based Italian trade official.
The exhibitions in Bologna will cover urban furnishings, interior architecture, ceramics and general building products and machinery/installations/technologies for building yards and will appeal to specific UAE companies involved in the provision of these services, says Dubai-based Italian Trade Commissioner Dr Massimo Sessa, who is coordinating the promotion in the UAE.
As a result, UAE contractors, public bodies such as the municipalities and individuals who may be interested in visiting the exhibitions will be invited to the seminar and press conference, at which a number of leading officials are expected speak, says Dr Sessa. Up to 50 people are expected to attend the seminar.
In choosing to promote three exhibitions - namely Saiedue Living, Cersaie and Saie, plus the Europolis 2002 show in early February - in Dubai, Dr Sessa says that the aim is to build on already strong trade links between Italy and the UAE.
Indeed, the UAE overtook Saudi Arabia in 1998 as Italy's leading trade partner in the Gulf, thanks in large part to the diversified nature of Dubai's economy, which was able to ride periods of low oil prices at the end of the last millennium.
The exhibitions, to be held at the Bologna Fairgrounds in Italy, are being promoted as the 'most important events for the global building industry'. Europolis 2002 will be held from February 7 to 10, as an 'international exhibition of technologies for a liveable city.' The show will cover urban furnishings, sports and recreation facilities, swimming pools and services, systems and technologies.
The Saiedue Living show will run from March 20 to 24, and will be an 'international exhibition on interior architecture building renewal technologies and finishing'. The Cersaie event will run from October 1 to 6 and is billed as the 'international exhibition of ceramics for the building industry and bathroom furnishings'. And from October 16 to 20, the Saie exhibition will run as 'a major international building exhibition.'
Each event complements the other and gives a global perspective of what the construction sector has to offer.
Emphasising the high quality of Italian building materials, design and innovation, the Italian Trade Commission continues to promote Italian products in the Gulf.
The commission has had a presence in the UAE since 1978, initially in Abu Dhabi, before moving to Dubai in 1989. Dr Sessa has, since his arrival in Dubai in January 1998 following spells in Kenya, Zaire and Egypt, witnessed a significant increase in trading activity between the countries, which now provides unique challenges.
"Italy is the fifth largest supplier of goods to the UAE after the US, UK, Japan and Germany," he says. "And maintaining this position represents a significant challenge."
Italian exports to the UAE increased nine per cent in the first five months of 2001 compared to the same period of the year 2000, and while the export of building materials and machinery still lags behind traditional Italian exports such as jewellery, furniture and clothes, the sector is opening up.
"The UAE is not a major industrialised nation as yet," says Dr Sessa, "though industrial output is increasing, and this is likely to open up more opportunities for Italian suppliers of building materials and industrial goods, such as plant, machinery, pumps and compressors."
The role of the Italian Trade Commission is several-fold. As a government body within the Italian Ministry of Industry, the commission also works closely with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Italian Embassy and Consulate in the UAE, aiming to promote bilateral trade, providing assistance and consultancy to both countries and organising promotional activity. With offices in Dubai, Amman, Beirut, Damascus, Tehran, Riyadh and a correspondent office in Kuwait, Dr Sessa says that Dubai is now a key economic magnet in the region.
"In the UAE, approximately 50 exhibitions are organised every year, and half of the visitors to these events come from outside the UAE," he explains.
"We also invite some 14 delegations - covering a range of different sectors - from the UAE to visit Italy in a year," he adds. Other duties of the commission are to organise Italian participation in UAE events, such as national pavilions at leading trade shows, organising specialised seminars, performing market research in specific sectors, and also providing introductions to UAE and Italian companies to explore mutual investment opportunities.
"Italy is keen to boost its exports further with its products being price and quality competitive. In certain sectors, such as ceramic tiles and sanitary ware, the Italian product is well known in the UAE, and a status symbol.
"Last year, we had 4,200 enquiries from UAE firms interested in dealing with Italy, while we had 1,200 requests from Italian firms to do likewise in the UAE," says Dr Sessa.
The UAE's free zones are, in particular, identified as being potential areas of investment interest from Italian companies, in both commercial and industrial fields.
To date, 60 Italian companies have offices in the UAE, covering sectors including oil and gas technology; civil engineering, consulting and contracting; trading (marble, furniture, heavy and construction equipment) and steel production. Abu Dhabi is the UAE headquarters for many of the major Italian contracting and engineering companies, civil construction firms and companies involved in petrochemicals, electromechanical works, electronics, and the electricity and desalination sectors, while Dubai is more trade-orientated, explains Dr Sessa.
Many of Italy's leading industrial and construction companies have established strong reputations in the UAE and Gulf region, having performed work on projects which have contributed to the infrastructural growth and development of the region.
"Much of the water which flows from the taps in the UAE comes from desalination plants operated by Italian Fisia," says Dr Sessa.
"Ansaldo is involved in electricity distribution in the UAE, many roads have been built by leading civil engineering company Italconsult and electromechanical works in the Emirates Towers project were performed by Aster," he adds.
With the latest series of trade shows due in Bologna, the close trade ties between Italy and the UAE look set to strengthen ever further.
