Jebel Ali Free Zone (Jafza), DP World, UAE Region’s premier business and logistics hub showcased to its customers the trade payments protection solutions it has rolled out in partnership with Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), the UAE Federal export credit company on 19^th of November 2020.

During a well-attended webinar titled, “Etihad Credit Insurance Collaboration: Trade with Protection”, Jafza-based companies were given a walk-through of ECI’s solutions as part of the Free Zone’sdrive to ensure the growth of businesses, while lowering the cost of export, by reducing the risk of non-payments, and funding, by lowering banking pre and post-shipment funding in the current unprecedented economic climate

Jafza has introduced ECI’s tailored solutions to support UAE-based businesses and increase trade by providing them with protection against commercial and non-commercial risks. More than 8,000 companies in the free zone are set to directly benefit from the strategic collaboration of Jafza and ECI, giving export businesses a major boost and a competitive edge in the regional and global markets.

Jafza believes that Etihad Credit Insurance’s range of export credit, financing and investment insurance products will directly benefit Jafza’s customers, particularly the SMEs. The partnership will be a game-changer for the export of goods and services because ECI’s support increases cash flow, enables trade and contributes towards sustaining growth even as the markets recover. The shared objectives of ECI and Jafza represent the vision of the leadership to establish the UAE as a preferred global hub for exports. The Free Zone is working closely with ECI to take this partnership forward and reinforce their commitment to business continuity with confidence.

In addition, ECIhasissued more than 1,600 revolving credit guarantees for a total exposure amount of AED1.2billionin the first half of 2020, which is equivalent to AED4 billion guaranteed non-oil trade coverage. About 55% of the total revolving credit limits were issued to large private exporters and 17% to SMEs, while the remaining 38% were issued in favour of UAE Government companies.

The top sectors to benefit from these credit lines are F&B, Health & Pharmaceuticals, Automotive, Petrochemicals, Cable, Steel and Building materials, accommodating some of the major sectors present in the free zone.ECI’s solutions were chosen by Jafza for its customers after carefully analysing the advantages they deliver.

The range of conventional and Shariah-compliant export credit, financing and investment insurance solutions offered by ECI cover the exporters and the entire supply chain against commercial and political risks—allowing Jafza customers to mitigate and manage them with efficacy.

Jafza, which facilitated trade worth $99.5 billion in 2019,is widely responsible for promoting the non-oil trade of Dubai and the UAE. Meanwhile, ECIplaysthe role of a catalyst in accelerating the country’s non-oil economy, trade, investments, and strategic sectors development, in line with the UAE National Agenda leading to the UAE Vision 2021.