ع
Ras Al Khaimah Economic Zone served as gold sponsor for the Irish Business Network Dubai annual Rise and Thrive seminar and joined the featured panel on the UAE Advantage, according to a report from the Emirates News Agency. The participation allowed the authority to present Ras Al Khaimah as a base for Irish businesses to establish operations, expand activities and reach customers across the UAE, GCC states and international markets. RAKEZ Group CEO Ramy Jallad outlined the advantages for companies from Ireland during the September 18, 2026 event in Dubai. Jallad noted that Irish businesses view the UAE as a platform for their next phase of development rather than simply a place to register a company. “Irish businesses looking at the UAE are not simply choosing where to establish a company, but the platform for their next stage of growth,” he said in the statement carried by WAM. He added that Ras Al Khaimah delivers stability, cost competitiveness and flexibility together with an established Irish business community that new arrivals can join.
More than 250 Irish-linked companies already form part of RAKEZ’s business community, which includes over 50,000 companies from close to 200 countries, the Emirates News Agency reported. Kelly Steel has grown its Ras Al Khaimah operations into a significant manufacturing enterprise while E+I Engineering set up PowerBar Gulf in the emirate before the business became part of global infrastructure company Vertiv. These cases illustrate the potential for Irish firms to scale within the local ecosystem and integrate into wider supply chains. RAKEZ welcomed nearly 19,000 new companies during 2025, a 44 percent increase on the previous year that lifted its total registered businesses above 40,000 at the time before subsequent growth, according to the authority’s performance data.
Several large-scale projects are generating fresh demand for services and suppliers as the emirate expands its economy. RAK Central is emerging as a mixed-use business district, Tech Flex is developing as a technology and innovation ecosystem and the $5.7 billion Wynn Al Marjan Island integrated resort is advancing, the RAKEZ announcement stated. These developments align with the emirate’s diversification efforts and create openings that match capabilities Irish companies can provide. The seminar formed part of broader outreach by RAKEZ to national business networks interested in the northern emirate’s competitive environment.
Trade between Ireland and the UAE has grown steadily, with Irish exports to the UAE totaling $855 million in 2025, United Nations COMTRADE database figures show. Pharmaceuticals, machinery, essential oils, perfumes and dairy products accounted for the largest shares of those exports. An Irish government agri-food mission to the UAE in early 2026 identified further prospects in food, beverages and equine sectors, with Bord Bia estimating Irish food and drink exports to the wider Gulf region at €370 million for 2025. Such flows complement the manufacturing and services focus that RAKEZ supports through free zone and non-free zone licences, customised facilities and streamlined regulatory processes.
RAKEZ was established in 2017 by the Ras Al Khaimah government to combine the former free trade zone and investment authority under one entity offering integrated services for entrepreneurs, SMEs and industrial investors, according to the authority’s historical records. The zone maintains specialised areas for commercial activities in Al Nakheel and Al Hamra as well as industrial operations in Al Ghail, Al Hamra and Al Hulaila. Its one-stop shop approach has helped attract investors from more than 100 countries across over 50 industry segments. Jallad’s comments at the Dubai seminar underscored the scope for additional Irish participation as Ras Al Khaimah continues to develop its infrastructure and economic base.
The authority’s recent growth reflects sustained international interest, with service licences comprising 40 percent of new registrations in 2025 followed by commercial and trading licences at 33 percent and e-commerce at 17 percent, RAKEZ data indicate. India, Pakistan and the United Kingdom ranked as leading source markets for those new companies. Irish businesses can draw on this momentum and the existing community within the zone to accelerate their regional expansion while benefiting from proximity to logistics routes and a supportive policy framework.
