Maksim Zagornov took part in the cultural and business festival «UAE Day in Skolkovo»

The «Business Russia» Ambassador to the UAE Maksim Zagornov took part in the cultural and business festival «UAE Day in Skolkovo.» The event, organized by the Skolkovo Foundation, was supported by the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in Russia and brought together representatives of business, governmental bodies and innovative structures of Russia and the UAE. During the discussions, the participants talked over the issues of economic and investment cooperation between the two countries. The central event of the UAE Day in Skolkovo was the pitch session of the Russian start-ups.

During the panel session «Innovations as a way to cooperation» the Chairman of the Skolkovo Foundation Arkady Dvorkovich noted that today Russia considers the UAE as a key platform for promoting Russian high technologies in the Middle East region. Russian IT companies - Kaspersky Lab, iiko, First Bit, etc. - are already successfully working in the UAE. Residents of Skolkovo represent advanced Russian technologies. Among the most demanded areas of interaction are digitalization, smart cities, energy efficiency, health, biotechnology and education.

UAE Ambassador to Russia H.E. Maadad Hareb Alkhyeli noted that the UAE is an innovative hub of the Middle East region, introducing advanced solutions from all over the world into the economy and daily life of the country. However, innovations are not the main target. «We focus not on machines, but on people. We are introducing new ideas and new business models - and this is the main secret of our success». Mr. Ambassador emphasized that one of the global problems of the world economy is underemployment. And one of the key tasks of innovative development is not to replace people with machines, but, on the contrary, to create new high-tech job opportunities. Business, including start-ups, needs to play a major role in this.

The questions of informational, organizational and investment support of high-tech companies entering the UAE market were treated during the discussion. The investment programs were told by the adviser of the sovereign investment fund of the UAE Mubadala Investment Company Khalifa Al Hajeri and the Vice-President of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Rustem Zaripov. Since 2013, Mubadala and RDIF have implemented over 40 joint investment projects, including those in the field of innovation and technology. As Khalifa Al Hajeri said, today Russia is considered as a «technological test site», confirming the status of one of the strongest economies in the world.

The «Business Russia» ambassador to the UAE Maksim Zagornov told about the resource opportunities of the organisation. In the past year alone, two Memorandums of Understanding have been concluded with the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Sharjah and Abu Dhabi, and cooperation has been established with many free economic zones of the UAE. «We see great interest of the Arab business in the Russian products, technologies and opportunities, we see the focus of UAE companies on mutually beneficial partnerships,» - said Maksim Zagornov.

The central event of the UAE Day in Skolkovo was the pitch session of the Russian start-ups. Companies selected to participate in the Russian stage of the AIM National Start-Up Pitch Competition 2020 competed for the right to present their project in the Final stage, which will take place on March 24-26 in Dubai within the framework of the prestigious international forum Annual Investment Meeting Congress (AIM).

The UAE Day in Skolkovo was finalized by the Startup4Startup session, during which four cases of Russian companies having successfully introduced their technologies in the UAE were presented. The success stories were told by Alexander Atamanov, General Director at the «Hoversurf» Company (the company offered flying motorcycles to the Emirates market), Daniel Oniskiv, Deputy General Director at the «Promobot» Company (all-purpose auxiliary robots' supply to the UAE market), Technical Director of the «GeoSplit» Company Kirill Ovchinnikov (implementation of a development to increase the efficiency of geological exploration works in the UAE), «BrainSoft» company General Director Galina Bahmetieva (Software development for the UAE banks).

According to the moderator of the session - the «Business Russia» ambassador to the UAE Maksim Zagornov - today the United Arab Emirates has become an advanced platform for the development of innovative technologies from all over the world. At the same time, it is very important that these unique developments serve Russia itself.