DUBAI, 18th November, 2019 — Tawazun Economic Council, through one of its key drivers, the Tawazun Economic Programme, which revealed its new policy during the International Defence Exhibition and Conference earlier this year, successfully announced the establishment of the first foreign subsidiary for the Hanwha Group in Abu Dhabi.
The agreement was signed today in the Tawazun Chalet at the 2019 Dubai Airshow by Matar Ali Al Romaithi, Chief Economic Development Officer at Tawazun, and Sungsoo Lee, CEO of Hanwha Defence International and Hanwha Defence Systems, in the presence of official delegates from both parties.
Under the umbrella of the programme, the establishment of Hanwha complements the programme’s commitment to attracting foreign direct investment, supports technological innovation in the defence and security sector, and enables the creation of job opportunities for Emirati nationals.
Hanwha joins Raytheon, Swedish company, Saab, and the French Thales, as the fourth global defence giant to be established under the Tawazun Economic Programme’s roster, opening operations in Abu Dhabi.
Al Hosani said, “This signing marks an important step for Tawazun as we continue to embark on new ventures that further enable a sustainable and robust security and defence industry in the UAE. A core pillar of the Tawazun Economic Programme is to enhance the UAE’s capability to attract foreign direct investments and this agreement is a testament to that commitment.”
Al Romaithi said, “The Tawazun Economic Programme was designed to attract foreign capital through long-term partnerships with global defence and security entities. The establishment of these global entities is a testament to Abu Dhabi’s position as a prime global investment hub, most importantly, due to its political safety and security, advanced infrastructure, simple procedures, transparent laws, and other numerous advantages. With the addition of Hanwha, the programme successfully supports Abu Dhabi’s plans to further build and boost its non-oil economy.”
“We are delighted to announce our newly established entity in Abu Dhabi. We have a joint vision with Tawazun to contribute to the UAE’s defence industry, national security and economy. We aim to contribute to the development of an industrial ecosystem, as well as facilitate knowledge transfer to further enable UAE engineers and the creation of domestic industrial capabilities,” Lee added.