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Integral to the
planning and development
of Sharjah's commercial
infrastructure,
following the oil
boom in 1971, the
Sharjah Chamber
of Commerce and
Industry was established.
From
the beginning the
SCCI sought to create
a strong non-oil
sector to lay a
comprehensive foundation
for sharjah's economy.
More than twenty
years later, this
policy is paying
off. The Petrochemical
Industry is well-developed,
as well as the Textile
& Leather, Basic
Nonmetal, Foodstuff
and Wood Industries.
Currently,
the industrial sector
contributes about
9.6% of the Emirate's
GDP. The push to
shift Sharjah into
a redistribution
and re-export hub
for the fast growing
Middle East market
has proved itself
equally rewarding.
The
SCCI gives full
support to investors
at all stages. It
offers technical
advice and assistance
in the preparation
of preliminary viability
studies. Its Industrial
Development Department
provides assistance
at the operational
stage, conducts
market surveys and
assesses the progress
of any enterprise.
It also recommends
optional methods
of production and
suggests ways and
means of avoiding
difficulties.
The
Chamber is continuously
seeking ways to improve
the Emirate's infrastructure
and boost industrial
activity through searching
for and promoting
Sharjah goods in new
markets. It looks
into issues like minimum-wage
requirements, civic
amenities in industrial
source and legal affairs.
With
the implementation
of a comprehensive
Data Bank, Sharjah
has added a major
asset to its services.
The Data Bank contains
a voluminous and
diverse amount of
information regarding
local, regional
and international
business-related
activities e.g.
a world -wide directory
of trade fairs and
exhibitions, details
on international
chambers of commerce,
business opportunities
in Sharjah and elsewhere.
To
complement the Data
Bank, the SCCI have
introduced a hi-tech
on-line information
service network
- the Sharjah Information
Guide. It gives
access to a wide
scope of information
- ranging from trade
to tourism, from
addresses to maps,
from banks to bazaars.
The touch screen
system makes the
guide easily accessible
and user-friendly.
In
the early '90's,
the Sharjah Government
developed an enlightened
plan to set up eleven
industrial zones
- executed by the
Sharjah Chamber
of Commerce and
Industry - to give
an extra boost to
the development
of industry and
to encourage industrial
investors. This
has resulted in
a tailor-made model
industrial zone
with state-of-the-art
facilities, infrastructure
and utilities. It
has been set up
west of the city,
covering 26 sq.
kms., with 2,649
individual plots
of between 10,000
and 20,000 sq. ft.
An ideal location
with first-class
road links to Sharjah's
air and seaports.
There is an efficient
drainage system
and the excellent
power and water
supplies are subsidized
by as much as 70%.
As the SCCI is a
nonprofit organization,
plots can be purchased
at cost price.
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