UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and his Israeli counterpart, Gabi Ashkenazi, greet as they visit a Holocaust memorial together with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, prior to their historic meeting in Berlin, Germany, Oct. 6, 2020. Photo: Reuters / Michele Tantussi.

JNS.org – The United Arab Emirates office responsible for attracting foreign and domestic investment recently opened a mission in Tel Aviv and signed agreements with two offices at Israel’s Economy Ministry aimed at accelerating private-sector collaboration in various fields of innovation.

The agreements are part of a series of strategic initiatives by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) to create further opportunities for Israel’s private sector.

Mohammed Ali Al Shorafa, the chairman of Abu Dhabi’s Economic Development Department, said that “as a regional leader in technology and R&D, Abu Dhabi sees synergies with Israeli entities across multiple innovation-focused sectors, including AgTech, biomedicine and advanced manufacturing. The cooperation agreements mark a significant milestone on a journey to advance collaboration between our two markets in pursuit of solutions that can benefit the wider region.”

Israeli Economy and Industry Minister Amir Peretz said in a statement that his office was “delighted to support the cooperation agreements between Invest in Israel and also the Israel Innovation Authority with the Abu Dhabi Investment Office. We are confident that these mutual alignments will further strengthen the economic dialogue between Israel and the UAE, and promote collaboration between the nations.”

ADIO CEO Tariq Bin Hendi said, “Abu Dhabi is an established destination for businesses and startups from all over the world. We have had an amazing response from Israeli companies, and are currently in discussions with a large number of Israeli entrepreneurs, startups and businesses about expanding to Abu Dhabi, some of which already have.”

He added that the “cooperation agreements with Invest in Israel and the Israel Innovation Authority will accelerate partnerships and opportunities for businesses in our two markets. It is truly amazing to see how far we have come since our initial meeting with Ziva Eger [who heads the Economy Ministry’s Foreign Investments & Industrial Cooperation] and her team at Invest in Israel in the days following the announcement of the Abraham Accords. Both of these partnerships and much of the activity to date can be attributed to that historic moment.”

Israel’s chief scientist and chairman of the Israel Innovation Authority, Ami Appelbaum, called the agreement “a unique opportunity to leverage the UAE’s dynamic economy and Israel’s sweeping innovative culture.”

“This collaboration will benefit both countries, building on Abu Dhabi’s standing as a global hub for business and innovation and an industry and finance trendsetter, and Israel’s creative entrepreneurial spirit and breakthrough academic research. The agreement catalyzes partnerships between Emirati and Israeli companies at all growth stages, as well as institutions, investors, startups and aspiring entrepreneurs for the development of advanced technological innovations in leading sectors, such as agriculture and healthcare,” he said.

“We are fostering mutual economic growth, technological diversity and sustainability across both regions. It is by combining the UAE’s and Israel’s respective strengths and engaging in best practices that both countries will be able to spearhead transformation and design the future, impacting the lives of people in the UAE, Israel and worldwide,” he concluded.