UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with Cambodia enters into force
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The UAE’s Comprehensive Economic Agreement with Cambodia has officially come into force, promising to improve trade flows, create opportunities for strategic investments and accelerate economic diversification for both countries.
The agreement will do so by eliminating or reducing tariffs on more than 92% of product lines, eliminating unnecessary barriers to trade and improving market access for service exports.
He UAE-Cambodia Comprehensive Economic Agreement It is the fifth CEPA to come into force; The agreement has the potential to more than double the total value of non-oil trade between the UAE and Cambodia to $1 billion by 2030. It builds on growing bilateral relations that have resulted in non-oil trade exceeding 407 million dollars in 2022, a growth of 33% compared to 2021.
In the first nine months of 2023, the UAE’s non-oil foreign trade with Cambodia exceeded $300 million, comparable to the same period in 2022 and 30.5% more than 2021 figures.
Cambodia, one of Southeast Asia’s most promising economies, saw 5.2% growth in 2022, building on an annual growth rate of 7.7% between 1998 and 2019. Through the agreement, the UAE will benefit from new export opportunities in machinery, oils and lubricants, and automobiles and auto parts, while key exports expected to benefit in Cambodia include cereals, fruits, meats, processed foods, clothing, footwear and leather goods .
The agreement is also expected to accelerate investment flows between the two countries in priority sectors, including logistics and infrastructure, travel and tourism projects and renewable energy. Bilateral FDI amounted to $3.8 million at the end of 2020, while at the end of the first half of 2022, total investment flows from the UAE into Cambodia reached almost $3 million.
Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, saying,
“The implementation of our Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with Cambodia marks another important step forward in our foreign trade agenda, strengthening bilateral relations with a robust and agile partner in the increasingly important ASEAN region.
“This agreement lays the foundation for a forward-looking partnership that creates new opportunities, drives investment in priority sectors and accelerates global economic security. By strengthening East-West trade routes, we hope the agreement will unlock the wealth of benefits derived of open, rules-based trade, a system in which our two nations share a common belief.
Cham Nimul, Minister of Commerce of Cambodia, saying,
“The Cambodia-UAE CEPA is unique for both. It will enhance relations and cooperation between the two countries and reinforce the growing ties between the Arab world and ASEAN. The two regions are today among the most economically dynamic in the world. ” Therefore, there is potential growth to explore. The UAE can be Cambodia’s base for the Arab market. Likewise, Cambodia can be the base of the United Arab Emirates for the ASEAN region.”
He highlighted that the CEPA between Cambodia and the United Arab Emirates will serve as a major boost for shared growth by fostering supply chains, improving trade flow, promoting bilateral investment and generating economic synergy for inclusive, resilient and sustainable growth for both countries and beyond.
The Minister highlighted his alignment with that of Cambodia Pentagonal Strategy Phase Ispecifically Pentagonal 2: economic diversification and strengthening of competition.
The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is a vital component of the UAE’s foreign trade agenda, which seeks to establish stronger and more integrated trade relations with the world’s most dynamic markets.
In addition to Cambodia, the UAE has signed and implemented CEPA with several other countries.
News source: Emirates News Agency
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