The Zadi food import portal of Jebel Ali Free economic Zone has shown good progress by combating the challenges that occurred due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A partnership venture by the Dubai Customs and Dubai Municipality, Zadi has managed about 360,000 transactions and supported over 18,000 companies through the platform. It enables food and customs checking as well as lowers the operational charges and time for the importers.
Mohammed Al Muallem, CEO and Managing Director of DP World of UAE Region and CEO of Jafza says that “we did not anticipate COVID-19 but we were prepared to deal with the disruption it caused.” The portal had aided in the import and re-export of food shipments through Dubai ports.
In the first six months of 2020, the external trade of food in Dubai had reached about 9 million tons which was worth nearly $8.71 billion, whereas the total food import in the emirate was only $5.9 billion.
Mohammed Al Muallem CEO – Jafza
“Jafza plays a central role in supporting the National Food Security Strategy’s primary goal of facilitating global food trade and diversifying import sources. To ensure trade flow amid a deteriorating market, we work closely with the Dubai Food Security Committee, and introduced a key digital initiative with a focus on prudent cost management, better productivity, asset utilization and automation processes.”
Zadi
The first of its kind platform in the Middle East, Zadi was initiated for bringing a smooth import and re-export of food shipment throughout Dubai ports.
“Jafza takes its responsibility to society very seriously and the COVID-19 crisis makes it imperative that we remain committed to supporting food security in the UAE and beyond. Since the onset of COVID-19, DP World in the UAE region has been committed to facilitating an uninterrupted flow of medical supplies and essential goods,” said Mr. Al Muallem.
The platform protects the food supply chain from monopoly and other disturbances, allowing traders to easily access food supplies. DP World’s presence in more than 50 countries is a major reason for this smooth flow.
