Jammu and Kashmir Finance Minister, Dr Haseeb Drabu today left for UAE to attend the maiden conclave of the Arab India Economic Forum (AIEF) to be held in Dubai on November 16-17.Nearly 300 delegates from the Arab World and India will be attending the first AIEF to highlight investment opportunities in India and discuss solutions to meet investor challenges in the country. The focus of the summit will be investment in critical sectors like infrastructure, tourism, renewable energy and banking.A special session at the two-day conclave is being held with focus on investment opportunities in Jammu and Kashmir.The two-day event is expected to attract delegates, mainly business leaders from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, Egypt and India.While the AIEF conclave will be launched by Union Finance Minister, Mr Arun Jaitley, J&K Finance Minister, Dr Haseeb Drabu has been invited to deliver the keynote address.
Jaitley and Drabu will be joined by a distinguished panel of speakers including Marwan Bin Jassim Al Sarkal, CEO, Sharjah Investment and Development Authority (Shurooq), Sharief Al Awadhi, Director General – Fujairah Free Zone Authority, Mohammad Shael Alsaadi, CEO, Business Development & Strategy, Department of Economic Development (DED) UAE, Adeeb Ahmad, Chief Executive Officer, Lulu Financial Group, Dr Jyotsna Suri, President, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Farhan Syed, Partner, KPMG Lower Gulf, Prakash Gaur, Planner & Economist, IL&FS Group, Habib Ullah, Head of Banking and Islamic Finance, Taylor Wessing, Hazig Beg, Chief Operating Officer, IL&FS Energy Development Company Limited (IEDCL), Ravi Khanna, Chief Executive Officer, Solar Power Business, Aditya Birla Group, Ashish Chauhan, CEO, Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Murtaza Hussain, Managing Director, The Abraaj Group, Chirag Shah, Executive Vice President – Strategy & Business Excellence, Mohamed Al Ayed, Founder, President, CEO, Trans-Arabian Creative Communications Services, Vivek Nair, Chairman, Hotel Leela , Honorary Secretary, The Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI), Dr Jaijit Bhattacharya, Partner, Infrastructure and Government Services, KPMG, Amit Kumar, Partner, Energy, Utilities & Mining Leader GRID, PwC, Mini Menon, Executive Editor, Bloomberg TV India and Francis Mathew, Editor-at-Large, Gulf News.According to Dr Drabu, AIEF will feature discussions on the extensive economic opportunities that can be leveraged between Arab nations and India for investment opportunities. “I would explore the possibility of seeking some investment in J&K at the Forum,” he said.The forum will also address the policy framework and guidelines required to draw the attention of Arab investors and industrialists while providing a strong platform for Indian businesses aiming to explore the Middle East market.