Successful participation by Dubai delegation at European Property Rights Forum 2005

Senior officials from the Compliance Division at the DED - Mr. Mohammed Hilal Al Muroushedi, Director Compliance Division and Mr Yusuf Ozair Mubarak, Head of Commercial Protection Section and Mr. Abdullah Al Shehi - were part of the Dubai delegation headed by Mr. Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Director General, Dubai Customs.

In his speech entitled: "Dubai: Hub of Trade," Mr. Butti detailed Dubai's experience in combating fraud and counterfeit products, while at the same time sustaining and developing the level of international trade in the Emirate.

"Dubai's unique selling point as the major export and re-export hub in the region is further strengthened because of its world class infrastructure, investor-friendly regulations and absence of lengthy procedures." said Mr. Ahmed Butti. "Dubai offers a supportive environment for businesses and we do not want to impede inward investment by introducing complicated procedures. Dubai Customs, the Department of Economic Development and Dubai Police are therefore working together to develop significant procedures to identify and protect traders of genuine products and keep a continuous check on fraudulent goods, in order to ensure that Dubai's position as the premium trading centre of the region is not compromised," he added.

"Our participation at this conference was extremely important as it enabled us to network with the administrations of other cities. We have signed MoUs with the customs departments of other countries to exchange information and share experiences," he added.

"Dubai has already established itself as a significant hub of trade in the region and is currently ranked third in the world in terms of re-export, following closely behind Hong Kong and Singapore," said Mr. Ali Ibrahim, Deputy Director General, Executive Affairs, DED. "We are taking all steps to ensure that the percentage of trade in duplicate goods is down to a minimum. The DED's participation at the European Property Rights Forum only serves to underline Dubai's commitment towards this objective," he added.

Mr. Mohammed Hilal Al Muroushedi said the UAE delegation had established meaningful relationships with their European counterparts on the sidelines of the forum and had significant and fruitful discussions on various intellectual property rights issues. The UAE delegation and their European counterparts had also shared experiences on combating fraud and trademark infringements in their respective countries, he said.

"The Department of Economic Development is currently focusing more on increasing consumer and corporate awareness of IPR issues as this is one of the greatest obstacles we face in taking action against merchants who deal in imitation and duplicate products. According to the law, the Department cannot take action until a complaint has been registered by the original owner of the brand or product. We are thus working closely with brand owners to ensure more awareness of such issues," said Al Muroushedi.

"We would also like to urge countries from where such goods originate to implement more stringent standards so that such practices can be curbed at the countries of origin," he added.

The European Property Rights Forum is organised by "Union des Fabricants." It groups together French companies and professional federations from all sectors of business and serves as a unique watchdog for the protection of intellectual property rights as well as providing a forum for information and discussion. The DED aims to use the experience to further develop and enhance corporate and consumer awareness about the sale of counterfeit products in the country.