Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE Maksim Zagornov sums up the activities of 2022 (interview)

Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE Maksim Zagornov summed up the 2022 activities.  He talked about the implemented projects, business missions of entrepreneurs to the Emirates as well as the results of the work of the Business Russia Trade House in the UAE in his long interview with Andrey Kotov, Director of the Public Relations Department of Business Russia.

– You were appointed to the post of Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE in 2018. What attracted you to this public work and who is a business ambassador in your understanding?

- Yes, I' ve been Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the United Arab Emirates, a country of enormous opportunities and huge prospects, for over five years already.  At that time, in early 2018, I already had my projects in the Emirates, developed my own business, had certain administrative resources and developments as well as understanding how to work in this sector, and decided to combine my key activities with the public work of a business ambassador.

Initially, I liked the very idea of the Business Russia ambassadors institute establishment. At that time, the urgent need of Business Russia was to approach the foreign market in an orderly manner and to expand its activities there. Unfortunately, trade organizations representing Russia abroad are not always open for entrepreneurs, being overloaded with work, which is not always effective. I realized that the business ambassadors institute establishment had good opportunities and prospects for business promotion. First of all, because business ambassadors are entrepreneurs themselves having a clear understanding of business problems, tasks and requests. They are mobile, responsive, ready to efficiently and unconventionally solve tasks required by not only their own business, but also by Business Russia members seeking promotion help abroad. 

The business ambassador status, for sure, provides a certain administrative resource. Business ambassadors are incorporated in Intergovernmental commissions on trade, economic and investment cooperation, engaged in various expert councils. We carry certain authority for Trade representatives and Ambassadors first of all because we have one of the largest business organizations in Russia behind us. That is Business Russia which unites 7,000 entrepreneurs, owners of high–tech and innovative companies. 

Besides, I'd like to mention that it is easier for the companies themselves to market abroad, in the UAE in particular, under Business Russia auspices. You and your company gain a completely different attitude and authority if you mention that you do not only represent the interests of a specific business but come as a part of the organization that unites companies with aggregate annual revenue of thirty billion dollars and three million employees. 

Business ambassadors institute is also efficient for the companies because of the fact that a business ambassador may become a "bridge", an entry point to a particular country. Today, in order to promote their business, the companies of our organization do not have to open foreign branches – it is very expensive in terms of resources and time. Besides, it's not a given that your product will immediately find a buyer, because each country has its specific features. In this case, the ideal option is to find a local partner. It is a business ambassador of Business Russia that may act as a local partner to help promote the business. It is interesting for business ambassadors themselves, because they earn money by participating in such joint projects. A mutual positive economic effect, synergy is obtained. 

While speaking about the institute establishment I shall mention that business ambassadors started to effectively cooperate with each other at some point. Business Russia incorporates over 40 business ambassadors. We actively exchange information on countries, consult each other and try to build networks for exchanging goods and services, sometimes excluding Russia - directly from country to country. This testifies to the fact that the establishment of business ambassadors of Business Russia institute turned out to be a very effective, viable working tool.

– Tell us about important business decisions and initiatives that you managed to implement as  business ambassador of Business Russia in the UAE.

– First of all, it is, of course, the launch of Business Russia Trade House in the UAE designed to implement export projects of members of the business association. The Trade House was opened in early 2022 having offices in Moscow and Abu Dhabi with their personnel and website. The life itself proved that the Trade House opening was a very timely decision. We gained over 150 inquiries from Russian companies in just six months.  Most of the requests were related to the following: establishment of companies and settlement of accounts in the UAE, assistance in the export of goods, selection of partners and contractors, consultations to entrepreneurs who needed entering the Emirati market to save their business. Today, I can say that we have found the optimal solutions for most of the requests.

While speaking about important initiatives I would like to also mention the business ties built with many significant organizations of the UAE over the years. As Business Ambassador of Business Russia to the UAE I signed a cooperation agreement with Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry in 2020. The document has opened the doors to one of the richest emirates of the UAE. Abu Dhabi accounts for about two-thirds of the UAE economics; all the key state-owned companies of the Emirates, such as ADNOC, ENOC, etc., are located here. The agreement has also reinforced the interest of both sides to build constructive cooperation.  In 2019, a similar cooperation agreement was signed with Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a very active body aimed at interacting with Russia. At the moment, we are preparing a visit of the business delegation to Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

One of the important achievements of my work as business ambassador, I believe, is the very close relations I have built with the Embassy of the United Arab Emirates in the Russian Federation. In April 2021, I initiated a visit of the UAE Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Russian Federation, Mohammad Ahmad Al-Jaber to the office of Business Russia. In July and December 2022, we received a counter invitation from the UAE Embassy in Russia. We held three business breakfasts with the participation of Business Russia entrepreneurs. The events held amid the unprecedented sanctions pressure on Russia from Western countries emphasized the UAE's position to increase cooperation with Russian companies once again.

I would like to note also that I opened my representative office in Abu Dhabi at the very beginning of my work as business ambassador. My representative who knows the local market very well works there on a permanent basis. Any member of Business Russia visiting the Emirates for business or vacation can meet my representative and receive, at least, information support, advices and recommendations.

In five years of my work as business ambassador, we were active also in terms of educational projects. We conducted webinars involving key free economic zones of the UAE, organized workshops with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), developed the Business Ambassador's website and Telegram channel. And of course, we organized business missions of Business Russia to the UAE. We have had five of them last years.

- Yes, many people know about your business missions to the Arab Emirates within Business Russia.  How popular is this format?

The format is in high demand. Sure, it is relations that decide everything in the Emirates. Personal contact is very important for building partnerships. From 2019 to 2022, we conducted five large-scale business missions of Business Russia to the UAE: three to the WETEX International Exhibition (in 2019, 2021 and 2022) and two to the EXPO 2020 World Exhibition. About 10-12 companies took part in each business mission. Totally, our business trips involved about fifty companies, eighty percent of them are Business Russia companies.

The effectiveness of our business missions can be proved by the fact that every new trip to the Emirates arouses great interest among entrepreneurs and gathers new participants. The business mission of Business Russia in the UAE held in September 2022 had great success and involved 9 companies. As part of the mission, our delegation took part in the WETEX International Exhibition. We presented a joint stand, visited three key Free Economic Zones (Kezad, Masdar City, DMCC) as well as Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The program was intense.

– Getting back to Business Russia Trade House in the UAE, please specify what services this unit provides? Do you have any statistics on inquiries from both Russian and Emirati sides? 

– Yes, from the very beginning we assumed that there would be requests from the Emirati partners – and of course they are coming. Basically, these are general requests concerning the supply of Russian-made products. The hottest issue is fertilizers, wheat, sunflower oil. The Arabs are also interested in developments related to energy, IT and mechanical engineering sectors. A special demand is for unique, innovative, high–tech products. 

As for the requests from Russian businesses the most frequent issues, as I have already mentioned, are related to registration of companies and opening of settlement accounts in the UAE. Over the past six months, 40 thousand entrepreneurs have left Russia for the Emirates according to the official statistics. The issue of business relocation is very important for them. People seek help from us and we provide it. We hold consultations and assist in opening accounts and registering companies where necessary. 

Besides, we deal with placing the Russian companies withing the free economic zones. We are setting down a number of projects of Business Russian in the Emirates. The process is slow and has many legal and policy issues. Seven or eight companies of the business association are about to start production in the country. The main platform we recommend is Khalifa Economic Zone Abu Dhabi (KEZAD). It is the most interesting zone both in terms of infrastructure accessibility and its unique location - next to the deep-water port of Khalifa from which the sea routes to 70 international ports run. This makes KEZAD a convenient platform for allocation of production and arrangement of export in the UAE  as well as re-export to other countries. Now, we are developing a production site for Business Russia companies in KEZAD - a separate area within this zone. This will enable the cooperation between our companies as well as the collective use of infrastructure aiming to reduce costs and accelerate business development. We have been actively working on this project. The prospects are huge.

– What has changed in your work with the introduction of sanctions, what new aspects have appeared?

– Despite the tense international situation, Russian-Emirati relations have not been subjected to serious turbulence – cooperation is developing dynamically. Anyway, the UAE is not located in a vacuum and cannot but react to the sanctions background developing around Russia. The UAE financial structure and businesses are under strong pressure from the West. As a result, some banks controlled by Western capital refused to cooperate with Russian citizens - they are refused to open settlement accounts. Moreover, the increased control over the flow and origin of funds is imposed. However, the tasks of accounts opening may be solved partly owing to Business Russia Trade House in the UAE. Today, we are building new chains, finding new solutions in terms of payments, logistics and the supply of goods. It is quite a complicated work. We cannot say that all the issues have been closed, because the international situation is unstable. Moreover, we face problems related to the Russian legislation, issues concerning relations with customs.

– Do the sanctions have any positive impact on your activities?

– Absolutely. Businesses get new opportunities along with new challenges. The Russian market has cleared up, Western competitors have left. It is high time to take advantage of these opportunities. As member of Business Russia and business ambassador to the UAE I would like to wish my colleagues and all the entrepreneurs not to waste time and make the most of the new opportunities. On my end, I am ready to provide maximum support to their business in the Emirates. The UAE is open to cooperation, supports the relocation of Russian companies and sees things in a positive way.   It is high time to build up your business in the Emirates and shift the profit center to this country.

– Has Business Russia become a leader in the field of international activities among Russian business associations, what do you think?

– Definitely, yes! Frankly speaking, I do not witness either the Chamber of Commerce and Industry or Opora Russia or any other associations in the United Arab Emirates. As for the organized structures, it is only Trade Missions and Business Russia that are engaged in promoting Russian businesses abroad today. 

– What most vivid memories related to Business Russia activities in recent years do you have?

– Perhaps it is the business mission of Business Russia to the World EXPO in 2021. At that time, the landing of "Business Russians" was carried out in Dubai. We held our own panel session in the pavilion of Russia, took part in the National Day of the Russian Federation, attended the ceremony of raising the Russian flag under the dome of Al Wasl, in line with a number of interesting meetings including these with foreign partners. The EXPO-2020 exhibition showed that men of action, entrepreneurs are focused on cooperation and ready to build businesses, to create. I think this is one of the most vivid memories.

The interview was conducted by Andrey Kotov, Director of the Public Relations Department of Business Russia