Nadia Abdul Aziz, president, National Association of Freight and Logistics (NAFL), has become the first Emirati woman to be nominated as vice-president on the Global Extended Board of the International Association of Freight Forwarders (FIATA), which represents more than 44,000 forwarding and logistics firms in 150 countries.

She was elected by all global members of FIATA at the recently held FIATA World Congress in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, said a statement.

Commenting on her election, Aziz said: “I am honoured to be elected as the vice-president of the world’s most prestigious freight forwarders association. This election also affirms the UAE’s strong position as a logistics hub and brings with it a great responsibility to further support FIATA and NAFL’s vision.”

“I am committed to further strengthening the UAE’s position as a global logistics hub, raising the industry standards through our professional FIATA training courses and e-platforms and I will always work on opening doors of opportunities to our respected members as well as our country,” she said.

“I will always passionately work to assist all our members and any company interested to invest in the UAE. I am looking forward to enhancing our relations even further with FIATA to build stronger strategic relations for our entire region,” she added.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, chairman of Dubai Airports, chairman and chief executive of Emirates Airline and Group, is he Honorary Patron of NAFL, which is the oldest association of freight and logistics service providers in the Middle East.

UAE is among the biggest contributors to the GCC’s logistics sector. With Dubai alone awarding construction contracts worth Dh11 billion ($2.99 billion) this year in preparations for the World Expo 2020 and investing much more toward developing infrastructure and enhancing its logistics facilities in the run upto the Expo, the country offers unparalleled smart infrastructure facilities for international businesses.

Globally, the logistic industry is expected to reach $15.5 trillion by 2025, at an average annual growth rate of 7.5 per cent. As business worldwide becomes increasingly borderless, companies are seeking to expand their operations and are seeking efficient and reliable movement of goods across international borders.

During the FIATA World Congress, world’s largest gathering of international freight and logistics experts and decision makers, NAFL held an exhibition to promote the UAE as a logistics hub and a top destination for international events as well as an excellent platform to establish foreign freight and logistics firms, especially with the UAE having over 38 free zones.

The NAFL delegation, which comprised of Abdullah bin Khediya, senior general coordinator, NAFL and director, Air Traffic Department, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA); Nadia Abdul Aziz, president; Ahmed Abdul Razak, vice president; Praveen Chandrasen, board member; Ibrahim Abu Zayed, board member; Sudesh Chaturvedi, secretary general; Shankar Subramanian, training director, and other leaders from freight and logistics industry in the UAE, discussed avenues of mutual cooperation with freight and logistics associations from various countries including Vietnam, Malaysia, Morocco, Egypt, Africa and others.

The delegates met the world’s logistics experts, brainstormed, and shared information on ground-breaking issues pertaining to the industry, during the five-day congress, it said.

The Established in 1992, NAFL has been actively working toward ensuring the UAE's leading position and Dubai's pre-eminence in the international freight and transportation fields for the last 25 years.  It is the voice of the industry, and conducts certified trainings as well as hosts regular networking events for its members, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service