Dubai to have strong presence at World Economic Forum in Davos

Taking place from 25 - 29 January, WEF is an independent international organisation committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas. The 2006 Forum will see 2,340 participants from 89 countries. This comprises 15 heads of state or government, including Angela Merkel, Federal Chancellor of Germany, who will give the Forum's opening speech, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Prime Minister of Turkey, Pervez Musharraf, President of Pakistan and Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, Prime Minister of Poland. Other political speakers include Jack Straw, United Kingdom Foreign Secretary, and Robert Zoellick, US Deputy Secretary of State.

The business world will be represented by more than 730 chairmen and CEOs from the world's leading companies will take active part in the discussions - the highest ever since the World Economic Forum was launched in 1971. Business participants include Paul D. Wolfowitz, President, World Bank, and Sir Richard Branson, Founder and Chairman Virgin.

The overarching theme of the Forum is "The Creative Imperative." H.E Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem will be participating in a discussion and workshop on "Pioneering Cities", which will look at the formula required for a city to emerge as a global leader in innovation and creativity. Bin Sulayem is a regular participant at the WEF, and was recently elected as a "Global Leader for Tomorrow" by WEF - a recognition of Bin Sulayem as one of a generation of leaders who are "global" in terms of their accomplishments and potential.

H.E Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation and Nakheel said,

"The World Economic Forum is unparalleled in terms of bringing together the world's key decision makers under one roof; the number and caliber of participants means that it is an absolutely essential to ensure that TCO and Dubai are well represented. Dubai's success has been built on being outward looking, progressive, and in tune with world developments. It is an excellent opportunity to make new business relationships, and strengthen existing ones, as well as gaining valuable insights into global trends and issues."

"I am also delighted to be representing Dubai in the 'Pioneering Cities' forum. The growth of Dubai into a leading destination for business and tourism has been noted internationally, and strong, visionary leadership has ensured that our ideas have always been innovative, ambitious and well thought out; developments such as Jafza and The Palm have proven this. The World Economic Forum is an excellent platform for exchanging ideas, and it is pleasing that Dubai has developed to be seen as a pioneer in its field."

Led by Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman Ports, Customs and Free Zone Corporation and Nakheel, the six strong TCO delegation is Mahmood Saleh, Executive Director of Shared Services and Secretary General TCO, Salma Hareb, Chief Executive Officer Jafza, Ahmed Butti Ahmed, Director General Dubai Customs, Adel Al Shirawi, Chief Executive Officer Tamweel, and Hamed Kazim, Group Chief Financial Officer.