CEPA programme strengthens UAE's global economic position

The UAE's Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) programme, initiated in September 2021, has resulted in 26 agreements with strategically significant countries and international blocs by the end of the first quarter of 2025, bolstering its regional and global economic position.

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In 2023 alone, the UAE signed five new CEPAs with Kenya, New Zealand, Kenya, Ukraine, and the Central African Republic. These agreements significantly expand the country's global trade network and create new opportunities for the UAE's private sector and business community across some of the world's most economic economies.

Six of these agreements have officially entered into force. Fourteen others have been signed and undergoing final technical and ratification procedures in preparation for implementation. Negotiations on six more agreements have been finalised, and the signing is expected soon.

Throughout 2025, the CEPA programme continues to broaden the UAE's strategic investment partnerships, strengthening the country's role as a hub for foreign direct investment and catalyst for economic growth and development between their business communities.

The results of four key agreements that have already taken effect highlight positive outcomes, including overall trade between the UAE and India grew by 20.5 percent, with UAE exports to India jumping 75 percent by the end of 2024. Trade with Turkey rose by over 7 per cent, with Indonesia seeing growth exceeding 12 per cent, and Georgia recording a remarkable 56 per cent increase.These results underscore the real-world impact of CEPAs, which typically take five years or more to show significant effects.