The Israeli delegation of business leaders, consisting of members of the Israeli Chambers of Commerce, the Association of Manufacturers and the Israel Export Institute, is visiting Dubai to lay the foundations for trade and cooperation between Israel and the UAE.

The delegation aims to set the stage for Israeli and Emirati business links and foster connections with UAE institutions in the fields of manufacturing, trade and investment. Another main goal is to advance free trade activities with the Arab Gulf States and East African and South Asian nations through the special free trade zones of the UAE, the organisations said in a statement.

The Founder and Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Dubai, Hamad Buamim, who also serves as Chairman of the World Chambers Federation, invited the Israeli delegation.

The Israeli delegates would visit the key trade centres of the city and its free trade areas during their visit to Dubai; the Expo 2020 pavilion; the Port of Jebel Ali, one of the largest ports in the world; DP WORLD; and the Dubai World Trade Center.

Business organisations forecast that the amount of trade between the two nations will approach billions of dollars per year in the "near future," they said in a statement. It is expected that most of Israel's exports to the UAE will concentrate on advanced technology in areas such as cyber security, medical devices, agricultural technology and desert agriculture, solar power , water desalination and water quality, and pharmaceuticals.

There is also a large demand for food, chemicals , plastics, medical equipment and services, security services, and software-related research and development services in the Gulf States, Uriel Lynn, president of the Israeli Chambers of Commerce, who is part of the delegation, said in the release. Israel plans to purchase oil products and tourism facilities from the UAE, he said, and there are also "ample prospects for joint investment."

The normalization of relations between Israel and the UAE and Bahrain in September triggered a whirlwind of activity on both sides, with companies , investors and start-ups trying to forge ties between nations.

Dubai has been attracting foreign investment for a number of years since its declaration as a free trade zone and a lack of income tax. These policies have made the region a centre of foreign trade. Israeli companies, producers and importers will now be able to take advantage of the country's free trade by exploiting it for greater access and trade with India, as well as other African and Asian nations, the statement said.

The ties with the UAE would promote "a wide-ranging export and import system that will inevitably bring Israel and the UAE together commercially, politically, socially and diplomatically," said Ron Tomer, President of the Israel Manufacturers' Association.

Israel can offer access to its factories and technology to the UAE, and the UAE can be a gateway to new markets in the Middle East and Africa to compensate for the economic crisis caused by the pandemic of coronavirus, he said.