Gulf states step up private sector investment Aim to create 25,000 jobs DUBAI: The Emirates Development Bank is allocating 30 billion dirhams ($8.17 billion) to support companies regarded as a priority for the UAE economy, Dubai Ruler Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum announced on Monday. The program will benefit about 13,500 companies in industrial sectors, in turn creating 25,000 jobs, according to a statement carried by WAM. It was launched to support the UAE’s “Operation 300bn,” a 10-year strategy to expand the country’s industrial output, raising its contribution to GDP to 300 billion dirhams by 2031. أطلقنا البرنامج الاستراتيجي الجديد لمصرف الإمارات للتنمية ... محفظة تمويلية بقيمة ٣٠ مليار درهم لتحفيز مجموعة من القطاعات الحيوية ذات الأولويات الوطنية .. الهدف تمويل ١٣٥٠٠ شركة جديدة في هذه القطاعات خلال الأعوام القادمة .. pic.twitter.com/orNmcgT4yf — HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) April 5, 2021 “The new EDB strategy will help accelerate industrial development and the adoption of advanced technology through dedicated financing programs and will also provide dedicated investment funds that will support entrepreneurs, start-ups and SMEs,” said Sultan Al-Jaber, chairman of the EDB. The UAE minister also said EDB will prioritize creating partnerships with UAE banks to give small and medium-sized industrial companies access to financial services, and in increasing its direct financing by 73 percent in 2021 for priority sectors. The bank is also set to launch a 1 billion dirhams investment fund for start-ups and SMEs in 2022. Since its inception in 2011, the EDB has supported 550 companies, allocating AED 1.8 billion business loans to small and medium-sized enterprises and providing housing loans worth AED 2.4 billion.