NEW DELHI: ICICI, in association with Sharjah Airport International Free Zone
Authority (SAIF-Zone), will soon be setting up a state-of-the-art software
incubation center in Sharjah, according to SAIF-Zone director-general, Taryam
Mattar Mohd Taryam.
Speaking at a meeting organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII),
he said the incubation center, which would be located in SAIF-Zone, is the
outcome of an MoU signed between SAIF-Zone and ICICI, a fortnight ago. According
to the MoU, SAIF-Zone will be an equity partner with ICICI in the project and
the incubation center will be the first of its kind in the Middle East, he
added.
Calling for more Indian participation in the SAIF- Zone, SAIF-Zone marketing
and sales officer, Humaid Abdullah Al-khatri, said several firms such as Zee
Telefims, Ashok Leyland, Godrej group, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, have
already set up their offices in the first ever airport free zone of the Middle
East. The number has drastically gone from a mere 55 companies in 1995, to 560
companies till date, he said. Out of this, 349 were trading companies, 135 were
service-oriented, while the 76 were from the manufacturing sector, he said.
Highlighting the salient features of the SAIF-Zone, Al-khatri said firms that
set up offices within the zone would be provided with licenses within 24 hours
and without procedural hassles. SAIF-Zone was world's first ever ISO 9001
certified Airport Free Zone, he added. Besides, allowing 100 percent foreign
ownership and repatriation of funds without currency restrictions, the Zone
levies no corporate or personal taxes, he said.
Accounting for 45 percent of UAE's industrial GDP, Sharjah is the undisputed
industrial nerve center of UAE and offers access to over 1.6 billion consumers,
he said. Sharjah International Airport, home to the biggest air-cargo hub in the
Middle East and Africa, connects 230 destinations worldwide, Al-khatri said.