GENEVA (AlertNet) - The Jebel Ali port and free trade zone in the Gulf emirate of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates has plans to become a key regional humanitarian hub for U.N. agencies and NGOs, it was announced at the Aid and Trade Europe expo in Geneva.

With a war against Iraq looming and an expected multi-billion dollar recovery programme to follow, the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority believes it can play a vital role as a centre of supply and logistics because of its geographical position and the 2,350 companies already using it for manufacturing, trade and services.

The Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority used last week's annual Aid and Trade conference and exhibition to hold talks with agencies from the office of the U.N. High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Walid Mohammad Hareb, the authority's development manager, said he was confident Jebel Ali would prove attractive for aid agencies and others engaged in humanitarian and development tasks in the region.

"If you look at the region, it is clear how much faster it can be to procure aid supplies from Jebel Ali than to ship items from Europe to Iraq, for example," he told AlertNet.

Besides being the world's largest man-made port, Jebel Ali is within 24 hours driving from most Middle East and Gulf countries, most of the region's ports are within 48 hours by sea, 125 of the world's major container shipping lines call at Dubai and 95 airlines from 137 destinations use its airport.

Hareb added: "UNHCR is already using Jebel Ali as a convenient place for procurement of goods and equipment so it is prepared for future operations.

"While we are in Geneva for Aid and Trade we are holding series of meeting with aid agencies to see how we can best meet their needs."

Creating a humanitarian hub in Dubai would allow more efficient deliveries for emergencies in southern Africa, East Asia and the Indian subcontinent, according to the Authority.

It argues that gathering relief and development agencies under one roof with suppliers would help develop aid strategies for the region, allow closer cooperation between agencies, companies, donors and recipient governments and encourage cooperation on the development of products and services.

The Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority is one of the main sponsors of Aid and Trade Europe, which reflects a wider trend of Arab companies and institutions taking a larger role in supplying the relief and development market.

Among the 250 exhibitors at Aid and Trade were fellow sponsors, multinational relief supplier H Sheik Noor-ud-Din and Sons, Jordan's Export Development and Commercial Centers Corporation, and foodstuffs firm the Halwani Brothers and Cairo-based Arma Food Industries.

That commercial engagement was matched by the Al-Haramain Charitable Foundation, the International Islamic Relief Organisation of Saudi Arabia, the Prince Sultan Bin Abdul Aziz Special Committee for Relief, and the Red Crescent Societies of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

The Iranian Red Crescent stand showed another direction for humanitarian agencies as it exhibited the products and services of a range of companies it owns, from the SOHA3 pharmaceutical factory to its Medical Procurement Organisation.

Links

Aid and Trade: http://www.aidandtrade.com/

Jebel Aid Free Zone Authority: http://www.jafza.co.ae/