UAE Embassy In Israel Hosts First Business Innovation Forum

The United Arab Emirates’ embassy in Israel hosted business leaders and government officials last week at its first-ever conference dedicated to innovation and technology and promoting bi-national business cooperation.

The event was held in partnership with Israeli tech non-profit Start-Up Nation Central and the Israeli Ministry of Economy and Industry.

The conference highlighted “the countries’ commitment to innovation diplomacy by way of promoting business-to-business ties in an effort to create a joint regional hub of entrepreneurship,” the announcement said.

Some 200 people attended the event, including the first state-sponsored business delegation from the UAE, led by UAE Minister of State for Entrepreneurship and SMEs (small-and-medium-sized businesses) Dr. Ahmed Belhoul Al Falasi and Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr. Thani Al Zeyoudi.

The forum was initiated by UAE Ambassador to Israel Mohamed Al Khaja, building on his commitment to innovation and ties with Start-Up Nation Central to advance technological innovation between the two nations.

 “As people of the region, in order to advance our own societies and our economies, it is imperative for all actors in this room, and our counterparts to find ways to ‘lean- in’ to this relationship and work together to open doors and correctly navigate and fuse together the respective strengths of our societies and economies. We are proud and excited to host Israeli start-ups, corporations, and joint ventures aiming to capitalize on the language, cultural and global connections of the dynamic Emirati marketplace, and to allow you to tap into the diverse talent pool and global business acumen of the UAE,” said UAE Ambassador Al Khaja.

“It is truly remarkable how only a year after the Abraham Accords, we have already established strong relationships in the form of business and commercial agreements. This is more than simply a foundation to build on. It is a solid partnership of real significance, not just for our nations, but for the region and the world as a whole,” said Dr. Al Zeyoudi.

“Everywhere I look I see alignments, both in our strengths and our challenges, when it comes to small and medium businesses, startups, and tourism. There are a lot of ways that we can work together and enable our respective businesses to expand from the UAE to Israel and the other way around,” said Dr. Belhoul Al Falasi.