The UAE has signed trade deals with the Philippines and Nigeria to expand investment and reduce trade barriers with the countries.
The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements will reduce tariffs, enhance co-operation between the countries' respective private sectors, boost supply chains and enable small and medium enterprises to expand their access to global markets, state news agency Wam reported on Tuesday.
They are also “new chapters” in the UAE's bilateral relations with the Philippines and Nigeria, it said.
The Cepas were signed on the sidelines of the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
The deal with the Philippines, signed in the presence of President Sheikh Mohamed and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, is expected to boost trade in areas including electrical equipment, financial services, agriculture and precious metals.
Mr Marcos, who is on a working visit in Abu Dhabi, also discussed existing agreements between the two countries to develop renewable energy projects in the Philippines.
Bilateral non-oil trade between the UAE and the Philippines grew 22.4 per cent annually to $853.7 million in the first nine months of 2025, on pace to surpass the $940 million posted in the previous year, official data shows.
The UAE is the Philippines’ top export market among Arab and African countries, and its 17th largest trade partner globally. Filipinos also make up one of the largest expatriate communities in the Emirates.
Co-operation between the Arab world's second biggest economy and the South-East Asian nation continues to grow on several fronts. Last month, UAE national airlines were granted permission to run more flights to Manila to boost air connectivity between the two nations as passenger demand continues to rise.
Last year, Abu Dhabi clean energy company Masdar signed agreements to develop renewable energy projects with a capacity of 1 gigawatt in the Philippines, marking its entry into the country.
On the humanitarian front, UAE non-profit Clean Rivers had teamed up with authorities in the Philippines for a $20 million deal to revitalise Pasig River, a vital waterway in Manila.
The Cepa with Nigeria, meanwhile, is centred on technology, agriculture, precious metals and energy, Wam said.
The UAE's negotiations with Nigeria began in November, alongside fellow African nations Chad and Rwanda, as the Emirates enhances its co-operation within the continent.
Bilateral non-oil trade between the UAE and Nigeria reached $3.1 billion in the first nine months of 2025 after rising 55 per cent annually in 2024 to $4.3 billion.
Since launching the initiative in September 2021, the UAE has concluded more than 30 Cepas with countries around the globe.
Agreements have come into effect with India, Indonesia, Cambodia, Georgia, Costa Rica, Mauritius, Serbia, Jordan, Malaysia, New Zealand and Australia, according to data published in November by the Ministry of Foreign Trade.
The Cepa programme aims to increase the value of the UAE's non-oil foreign trade to Dh4 trillion ($1.1 trillion) by 2031.
The agreements are “in pursuit of the UAE’s Projects of the 50, a series of bold initiatives driving the nation’s next phase of sustainable development”, according to the ministry.
In the first nine months of 2025, the Cepas programme helped the UAE's non-oil trade reach Dh2.67 trillion, a 24.6 per cent increase year on year. Non-oil exports reached Dh579.4 billion during the same period, up 42.6 per cent on the same period in 2024.
In addition to the Cepas, the UAE last month started negotiations with the EU for a Strategic Partnership Agreement, aiming to deepen co-operation in areas including energy, green and digital transition and artificial intelligence.
