The activities of the first edition of the Dubai International Real Estate Conference, organised by Dubai Land Department (DLD) from 22 – 24 March at The H Dubai Hotel, kicked-off yesterday, shedding light on Dubai’s real estate market — the most prominent real estate sector in the region —and the growing future position of this sector thanks to the emirate’s world-class environment and infrastructure. The conference also aims to highlight the main role of women in promoting the sustainable development process witnessed by the sector.

The organisation of the conference stems from DLD’s vision to position Dubai as the world’s premier real estate destination and a byword for innovation, trust, and happiness, as well as support national and foreign real estate investment companies, develop and regulate the investment environment, and stimulate the real estate movement by encouraging direct investment and long-term investment.This will lead to promoting the components and advantages Dubai offers in this regardand activating the role of the real estate sector to reach a green and safe real estate environment that contributes to building a green economy.

The conference was attended by a number of DLD officials, headed by Majid Al Marri, CEO of the Registration and Real Estate Services Sector at DLD, and Majida Ali Rashid, CEO of the Real Estate Promotion and Investment Management Sector in DLD, along with Leslie Smith, president of the US National Association of Realtors (NAR), and a delegation from the association, which has 1.2 million members around the world. The conference was also attended by an American real estate delegation representing many governmental and private institutions, including brokers, developers, licensed real estate agents, and a large number of investors. This reflects the importance of the American market and the presence of an increasing number of potential investors, enhancing the opportunity for real estate cooperation in Dubai and the United States, which will inevitably lead to impressive projects and outstanding results. Many local government and private entities and experts and stakeholders at the regional and global levels also participated in the conference.

On behalf of His Excellency Sultan Butti bin Mejren, Director General of DLD, Majid Al Marri welcomed the NAR members and the attendees to the conference, inviting them to visit Expo 2020 Dubai that will conclude at the end of this month. Al Marri highlighted the momentum witnessed by Dubai’s real estate market and the levels of growth over the past period. He also stressed that the Dubai REST app also contributed to facilitating the experience of customers, investors and stakeholders in everything related to the real estate sector via the 100 smart and advanced services it offers that contribute to promoting innovation, excellence and sustainability in the real estate sector.

During her participation in the activities of the conference’s opening day, Majida Ali Rashid highlighted the role of women in the real estate sector, underlining that the event’s focus on women and their role in the real estate sector is evidence of the importance and position that they have secured in the real estate market, whether as employees, investors, motivating men to invest, or given their work in engineering in construction and decoration duties, leading to their prominent role in the real estate brokerage sector.

Rashid said: “DLD is committed to empowering and supporting women in the real estate market, whether through investment or work in the sector or by providing appropriate job opportunities for them in DLD’svarious departments and sections. 3,141 women are working in Dubai’sreal estate sector, and 57,700 recorded 78,500 real estate investments in the emirate over the past five years, with a value of AED 115 billion, which strongly reflects their full awareness of the investment dimensions.

On its first day, the event witnessed several sessions, which hosted local and international speakers, during which they discussed many topics, including the role of women in the real estate sector, the position they play in real estate brokerage and the luxury real estate sector, the role of digital currencies in the sector, and others. In the coming days, the event will address other topics and issues, such as the future of the real estate sector, the role of modern technology in shaping the sector’s features, global real estate investment flows, and sustainability, among others. The third day of the conference will be part of the International Property Show that will be held at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 24 – 26 March.