DCCI adopts a new research strategy

In order to formulate a research plan that meets these requirements, an information needs assessment survey amongst members and stakeholders has been conducted by the DCCI's Data Management & Research Department. The goal of this survey is to identify the information needs of DCCI's members and all relevant stakeholders including Business Groups, Foreign Trade Centers, Business Councils and Associations and Government Organizations.

Among the DCCI members, an internet survey was conducted amongst 13,000 private sector companies. Representatives of other organizations have been interviewed face to face.

The internet survey shows that 99 percent of the respondents is interested in using economic information but only 48 percent does actually use such information. About 84 percent of the respondents experience difficulties in finding the required information.

Difficulties encountered include the unavailability of the required data and research reports, and lack of information about existing information sources and the time it takes to find the information if available. Moreover, respondents are not very satisfied with the quality of the information: they score it a meager 2.9 on a scale ranging from 1 through 5. The new research strategy of DCCI is determined to bring structural changes in this respect in the coming months.

82 percent of DCCI members states that most needed economic information is about future economic forecasts, 28 percent mentioned information about past economic developments, while about 50 percent said statistics and descriptive reports will do.

Furthermore, 60 percent of the members is interested in customers profiles, 59 percent interested in import and export, 57 percent interested in market sizes, 51 percent interested in business trends, while 49 percent interested in suppliers profiles among others.

Members expressed their need as well for the services of DCCI to disseminate relevant information supplied by other organizations, such as foreign Embassies, IMF or World Bank.

Members prefer to receive relevant information through monthly newsletters to be received by mail or collected from central points in town. Other external stakeholders are mainly interested in facts, figures and reports electronically available on the internet for download.

Except that the private sector is a major user of economic information, it is at the same time the most crucial source of information. Only 61 percent of the respondents stated to be willing to provide financial information about their companies to DCCI.

Taking the information requirements of DCCI members and stakeholders into consideration, The Chamber is undertaking an exhaustive feasibility study in the UAE amongst all relevant economic information providers to assess existing information networks, sort and quality of information supplied and degree of accessibility of this information.

The outcome of the feasibility study which will delineate the significance of the information supply in the UAE will be subsequently confronted with the demand for information expressed by DCCI members and stakeholders to determine and fine tune DCCI research plan.

Except the existing information supply, DCCI will cater for a number of periodical economic surveys and develop an exhaustive database of enterprises to generate the information required.

The intended enterprises database is supposed to cover initially, the manufacturing, the trade and construction and services sectors and to be ready for utilization by the end of 2003, and latter to be developed to cover all other sectors and in much broader perspective.