FBC UAE Blog
Once again FBC board and members gathered for Iftar to celebrate the spirit of Ramadan during the holy month. The Bacchanal restaurant at Ceasers Palace made the perfect venue, as it gave most of us the chance to finally visit the new hotel in Bluewaters Dubai. This year we made the Iftar into a family event and were happy to see so many members participating with their children.
On the 24th of April the Finnish Business Council held it's Annual General Meeting at My Office in Dubai Marina Plaza. 17 people attended the meeting.
FBC Chairman Katja Boutou presented the annual activity report for 2018 and concluded that FBC currently has 20 corporate members, 6 non-resident corporate members and 24 individual members. This is an increase in both corporate and individual members since 2017.
She then presented the Annual Financial Report for 2018, Program of activities for 2019 as well as the budget and membership fees.
The meeting selected following persons to FBC Administrative Committee for 2019 activity year: Petra Turkama, Juha Kaljunen, Tommi Henriksson, Markku Jarvinen, Tomi Saikkonen, Katia Al-Kaisi, Tiina-Maija Bergman, Katja Boutou, Seppo Keranen (Business Finland representative), Minna Herranen, Kimmo Kytösaari, Maria Sillanpää, Riikka Kytösaari. Jaana Tapanainen was elected as FBC Ambassador in Finland and Jaana Räsänen-Pentti (Honorary Chairman, Honorary Member Category representative).
As per the Articles of Association Ambassador of Finland to UAE is Honorary Chairman. The position was hold by Riitta Swan until end of May when the new Ambassador, Marjaana Nissila took over.
Ms. Boutou thanked 2018 Administrative Committee for the cooperation and project coordinator Erika Daintry for her contribution.
Digital technologies have fundamentally changed the way we live, work and play. And this is merely the beginning. We cannot imagine what's coming at us in the next few decades. Exciting right? But all of these evolutions have a huge impact on our lives. And ultimately on the way we do business. Read more
ICV “In Country Value Seminar on 27th May in Dubai Taj Hotel hosted by Mayur Batra Group for Business Councils.
ADNOC has introduced an In-Country Value (ICV) program for its suppliers. This procurement-let initiative aims to boost ADNOC’s ICV contribution by focusing on local supplier selection, development of UAE Nationals, and the localization of critical functionalities in the oil & gas industry.
Announcement of this program was made late 2017, implementation was started early 2018 and later that year it has been revised. Now it is fully implemented in ADNOC and all of its 14 subsidiary companies. Note that each country in the region will have their own similar program, which are all currently in Oil&Gas sector, but later looking to expand nation wide.
How can you get your company ICV certified?
ADNOC has appointed Mayur Batra Group as an independent certification body to support suppliers with certification of their ICV scores. Their team can evaluate your organization/s ICV score and provide innovative solutions to help improve your score. This scoring is based on goods manufactured within UAE, third party spend, revenue, local investments, Emiratization, expatriate contribution.
The certification process will take approximately 10 months and is valid 18 months, exception of improvement plan.
Document can be seen here to understand more closely of calculation method of ICV score etc. To asses your companies ICV value it is recommended to contact an independent certification body, like Mayur Batra Group .
I was happy to meet so many Finnish Business Council members in Dubai on 15th of April. Saudi-Arabia is by far the largest economy and market in the Middle East. The country is going through profound transition in developing the economy to become less dependent on oil and petrochemical production. All this creates a lot of promising business opportunities also for Finnish companies. At the same time, the economy of the country – and in fact, much of the whole region - is still very much tied to the oil price. At least in the short run the oil market price looks rather good. In addition to Saudi Arabia the Embassy in Riyadh also covers Oman and Kuwait. The Embassy, in cooperation with the Business Finland office in Riyadh, is ready to support also Dubai based Finnish companies in their efforts to do business in these countries.
Antti Rytövuori, Ambassador of Finland in Saudi-Arabia, Oman and Kuwait
Finland, together with over 100 Finnish companies, is participating in the World Expo 2020 in Dubai with her own pavilion "Snow Cape". Participation in the Expo is strengthening Finland's visibility in the Gulf region.
The benefits of participating in the World Expo are significant not only for Finland, but also for Finnish companies and clusters. For many industries, e.g. high technology industries, education and health technology, the Gulf countries are a growing market and participation in Expo will strengthen the existing relationships and build new connections between Finland and Finnish companies with UAE and Gulf area. It will also boost the Finland’s brand image not only in Gulf area, but also wider in Africa and South Asia and eventually globally. Finland will be promoted as a trade partner, investment target and destination for travel.
Expo participation consists of number of activities. We are building the actual Pavilion building and designing the exhibition. Furthermore we are preparing the operations and programming for the 173 Expo days. During the process we also wish to spread information about Finland and our sustainable innovations. Presently we are heavily concentrating on the Pavilion construction, but all activities have been initiated and will be intensified as the opening day approaches.
The design concept of the Finland pavilion “Snow Cape”
“Snow Cape” is the name of Finnish pavilion at the World Expo 2020 in Dubai. Simple, but refined Finnish design combined with an entrance resembling an Arabic tent brings together the country’s icy landscapes with the culture of Expo 2020’s host nation, the United Arab Emirates.
Inspired by the white blanket of snow, which covers the Finnish landscape from autumn onwards, the Finland Pavilion resembles a white snow covered tent. The simple, elegant design reflects the fascinating tradition of Finnish architecture. The Finnish pavilion is a meeting space, a tent where connections between Finnish and Arabic minds can be fostered.
The Finland Pavilion takes its inspiration from Finnish nature, design and innovation
Finland has a unique and long heritage in design and architecture. The pavilion can also be seen as a design object telling a story about this heritage. From outside, the shape is simple but refined; inside a dynamic, open “gorge” is carved into the building. The pavilion aims to stand out from the complex visual noise of its surroundings.
Finland is one of the leading countries in terms of innovation and technological know-how in the entire world. Finnish innovation is highly respected globally. Innovation often requires thinking “out of the box”, including an element of surprise. In the pavilion, the surprise is the wooden heart and exhibitions inside. Waiting to be discovered, the pavilion offers a cool shaded refuge for Expo visitors. Best innovations are simple but intelligent, this is also the approach of the architectural concept.
Connecting Minds, Creating the Future
The main theme of Dubai Expo 2020 ”Connecting Minds, Creating the Future” signals our global need to work together to inspire future generations and to develop partnerships across sectors, organisations and geographies to address multitude of needs of our rapidly changing world.
The theme of Connecting Minds, Creating the Future is structured around the three subthemes of Opportunity, Mobility, and Sustainability. These subthemes represent three critical drivers of global progress. In these respective areas, Finnish companies have a lot to offer.
Exhibition sharing Sustainable Finnish innovations
Construction work on Finland pavilion will start in May and exhibition design in June. On the ground level of the Finnish Pavilion, exhibition will showcase the country’s competences and expertise across various business sectors. Finland will be presented as a destination for business, partnerships, investment opportunities and travel. The latest innovations reside primarily in the corporate world; consequently, technological innovations of Finnish globally operating companies are a strong element in the exhibition.
Sustainability is at the core of all Finnish public and private activity. Sustainable innovations is a concept embraced by Finnish industry at large. Opportunities of connecting minds globally in order to find solutions to human challenges is also inherent to exhibits in the pavilion. Finland’s key strengths – Education & Know-How, Functionality & Wellbeing and Nature & Sustainable Development - are all incorporated into the comprehensive exhibition of Finland.
Finnish Majlis – a platform for deeper connections
The second level, VIP and Conference area or “Finnish Majlis” is bringing the meeting of minds to a deeper level. In this multifunction area business partners, decision makers, politicians, administrations and all other invited groups can meet face to face in the cool shaded refuge inside the Finnish-Arabic tent. During most of the 173 days of Expo different interest groups are invited to meet their Finnish partners and to make new connections with the hosts.
Programming and operations
Planning work for operations and events during the Expo are still at a very early stage. Programming will follow the major events taking place in UAE and the theme weeks of Expo that are being developed. Joint activities with Expo, other National pavilions and especially with our Nordic and Baltic neighbours are being examined.
Communications programme
The entire Expo participation is a communications exercise. Consequently, we are strongly investing in communications activities already during the time before Expo. Press visit to Finland and thematic press events in Dubai are already taking place and more is in the pipeline. The activities are increasing as the opening of Expo approaches and the highlight will be the Finnish National day on November 20th, just a month after the opening of Expo.
Pirkko Autio
Communications Director, Business Finland
On the 27th of February the first in a series of ultimate speed networking events took place at Movenpick Hotel. This was an event organised in co-operation with eight other councils and 60 companies within construction, fit out and design sector met. Keep your eyes out not to miss the next opportunity!
On Sunday 17th of March, FBC met with some of the families who have traveled from Finland to the UAE to take part in the Special Olympics World Games. Everyone had a great time socializing at the Loop Bar in Bab Al Qasr Hotel in Abu Dhabi!
Busy week in deepening trade relations for FBC
Last week of February was busy week for FBC with multiple visitors and events in town to promote business also for the Finns. FBC Board was invited to attend a SME seminar organized by the Ministry of Finance. Board members Kimmo and Riikka Kytösaari, Seppo Keränen (Business Finland) and Jaana Räsänen-Pentti attended the meeting. Many local and federal initiatives to strengthen operations for small and medium sized enterprizes were elaborated in the presentations. Mr. Mika Lautanaho of Business Finland gave a presentation on the Finnish innovation and r&d policy, targets and funding instruments. He described the importance of SME funding through Business Finland through client estimates, that 2018 projects will generate 8.8 billion euros in turnover and 6.9 billion euros in exports. The target for Team Finland is to double R&D investments and exports of SME's by 2025. Other countries invited to present were Ireland and Sweden.
Business Council corporate members were also invited to Business Finland to discuss with Mr Mika Lautanaho and Mr Seppo Keränen to discuss how to optimise and align Business Finland, Finland’s Dubai EXPO 2020 mission and FBC agendas in the wake of Dubai EXPO 2020. Many strategic and operative initiatives were discussed, such as the establishment of the Finnish HUB to support and summon activities under one umbrella and a physical space. FBC ws pleased to note the 'go get' -spirit we seem to share collectively.
Jaana Räsänen-Pentti
Honorary Chairman
