Welcome to Dubai & PGConnects Dubai GameExpo Summit 2024 - Hadi Badri.

[Music] so I'd initially like to welcome Hadi badri who is the CEO of the Dubai Department of economy and tourism to say a few words hady can I welcome you to the stage give the thanks everyone for being here uh actually this is not early for Dubai you know we're typically up at 4:45 lots of energy enthusiasm um you know I used to work in the private sector before joining the government and uh it wasn't until joining the private sector that I

started wearing tennis shoes with my uh with my national dress that's uh that's hopefully a indication of the running that we do from quite early in the morning so good morning friends thanks for all all for being here welcome to the Dubai game Expo Summit uh for those of you visiting Dubai for the first time welcome I'm really excited about you experiencing Dubai so hopefully you'll enjoy this event and also enjoy what's happening outside these Halls um and I'm really excited to share with you the Dubai opportunity um and I'm not a gamer but what I understand is that in some of these RPG games um you get to explore you know these large areas uh and every corner is a new Quest and Dubai is very much like that I think uh you will find new quests where you can level up up with lots of opportunities for

growth this Summit is an integral part of the Dubai Esports and games festival and I want to extend my sincere appreciation to the Dubai festivals and Retail establishment alongside the valued Partners stakeholders sponsors that that you mentioned for making this happen and for creating an exceptional experience for everyone in our city since in Inception last year the gaming sector in Dubai has experienced significant Milestones already uh notably with the launch of the Dubai program for gaming in 203 2033 by his H hamdan bin Muhammad bin Rashid makum Crown Prince of Dubai through this program we're very clear about what we want to achieve we want to position Dubai amongst the top 10 cities in the global gaming industry we want to generate 30,000 new jobs in the gaming sector and we want to contribute a billion dollars annually to

our economy by 2033 so quite ambitious but Dubai has a track record of making things happen and I'm confident that we'll be able to do that I know you'll be hearing more about it today excuse me from our colleagues uh at the Dubai Future Foundation who are driving this program forward but you know this is a a program that we're taking quite seriously in Dubai um it's really a testament to the support that we want to offer to the gaming sector as you mentioned it's an it's a market that in this region is growing fast relative to the rest of the world and really want Dubai to be the epicenter of that it's also fitting that we're having this event uh at the World Trade Center I mean this is a location where we host as Dubai some of the world's largest events globally uh the world's largest tech event as an example gitex is held in this very location

excuse me Dubai of course is a super connector um we have achieved our status as a super connector over the past decades making significant investments in infrastructure and we connect trade we connect Talent we connect for tourism we connect for finance and we really believe that Dubai can be a global Crossroads for knowledge sharing and networking and for the gaming industry we as a as a government continue to push forward on Pro business environment uh initiatives and investment friendly policies and business communities like dmcc who are sponsoring today and the Dubai internet City are creating dedicated platforms to really power players in the gaming industry to contribute from Dubai and use Dubai as a springboard for the rest of the world just to round off with a with a small conclusion um we as Dubai

government are really committed to pushing the boundaries of what's possible Innovation collaboration creativity these are all Focus areas where we want um we want Dubai to thrive and that's why Dubai stands out we're a vibrant ecosystem we have state-of-the-art infrastructure you as um the gaming industry and creatives will get unwavering support from us as the government and Dubai we believe really provides a perfect playground for gamers developers and enthusiasts alike for those of you experiencing Dubai for the first time uh I'm really excited for you to get a glimpse of why this city uh is the uh Talk of the Town or talk of uh what's happening globally um and that you see it really as a uh a market where there's rapidly uh a rapid Focus around major gaming and Esports

and why businesses are choosing Dubai as a springboard to accelerate their growth I'd like to leave you with one quote from His Highness shik Muhammad bin Rashid he says the future belongs to those who can imagine it design it and execute it therefore really the future belongs to you thank you and I hope you enjoy the remainder of the event thanks so much [Music]