Jafza, the flagship entity of Economic Zones World was honoured for its ‘Business Excellence’ at the inaugural Asian Business Leadership Forum Awards held recently in New Delhi, India to celebrate Asian leaders and organisations who have made significant contributions to the region.
Jafza was one of the two UAE-based companies awarded at the ceremony that was attended by top government officials, industry leaders and other special invitees across India, the Gulf and South-East Asia.
Indian Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath as well as Kapil Sibal, Union Cabinet Minister of Human Resource Development and Minister of Communications & Information Technology, delivered key note addresses at the ceremony. The former presented awards to business leaders in five prestigious categories: ABLF Business Courage, ABLF Business Excellence, ABLF Woman of Power, ABLF Lifetime Achievement and the ABLF Global Asian. Thirteen business leaders, among them Tata Group Chairman Ratan Tata, Economic Zones World Chief Executive Officer Salma Hareb, Essar Group Chairman Shashi Ruia, ICICI Bank Chief Chandra Kochar,  Singapore Airlines Chairman Lee Ching Yen, and Fly Dubai CEO Ghaith Al Ghaith were conferred with the Asian Business Leadership Award at the glittering ceremony.
Mrs. Salma Hareb, CEO, Economic Zones World, parent company of Jafza was presented the ‘Business Excellence’ Award. She said: “We are honoured to be recognized by our Asian peers at such a prestigious global platform. Over the years, Jafza has emerged as one of the most dynamic free zones in the Middle East and we have been fortunate to have a supportive network of strategic partners, stakeholders and employees who have facilitated our steady growth and development. Together, we have built an excellent business model adhering to the best global practices and our 6500+ customers are testament to that fact. This award emboldens us to continue our efforts towards achieving higher standards of excellence and further strengthen Dubai as well the UAE’s position as a vibrant commercial hub of the region.”
Over the last ten years, Jafza has grown its customer base by over 400%, contributed to Dubai’s GDP at 26% on a year-to-year basis (PWC study, 2007), sustained more than 130,000 jobs in the UAE through its companies in 2010, accounted for more than 50% of Dubai’s total exports and accounted for 20% of all FDI inflow into the UAE.
Jafza has also achieved numerous quality accolades including the Dubai Quality Award (DQA) this year. The Free Zone has also won the DQA award previously in 2003 and received the ISO 9001:2008 certification for quality management systems, ISO 27001 certification for its Information Security Management System and the Best Government Department recognition under the Dubai Government Excellence Program in 1999.