Nasser Ahmed Al Sowaidi Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council, speaks at the Abu Dhabi Quality Forum. Sammy Dallal / The National
Nasser Ahmed Al Sowaidi Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council, speaks at the Abu Dhabi Quality Forum. Sammy Dallal / The National

Drive to improve quality standards in Abu Dhabi



ABU DHABI // The inaugural Abu Dhabi Quality Forum began yesterday in a bid to improve the quality of goods, services and commodities traded in the emirate.

The Abu Dhabi Quality and Conformity Council (QCC), responsible for the development of quality infrastructure and raising awareness on quality in Abu Dhabi, hosted the forum.

More than 80 regional and international industry experts discussed what improvements were needed as part of the capital's 2030 vision to be one of the most competitive economies in the world.

Topics on improving food safety and child safety were among those debated on the first of the two-day gathering at the Jumeirah Etihad Towers hotel.

"This QCC is the first step to delivering better quality and infrastructure here in Abu Dhabi," said Abdalla Hassan Al Muaini, executive director of conformity scheme services for the council.

"This is the first QCC and we are hoping to make it an annual event. We wanted to gather the private sector and the public sector in one place to discuss all the issues they face and discuss how quality infrastructure can be bettered here in Abu Dhabi."

During the conference, the QCC announced the creation of a new body - the Quality Governors Council - that will help deliver improvements to quality infrastructure in Abu Dhabi, said Anas Barguthi, executive director for consumer and market services at the QCC.

"The Quality Governors Council is a council that allows sector leaders, those that are leading industries and initiatives, together with initiators of Abu Dhabi 2030 vision to meet and discuss the agenda of the quality journey representing opportunities and challenges," he said. "That way, us, the regulator, have a better understanding."

About 20 members will make up the body, he said. They will meet once a year - at the Abu Dhabi Quality Forum - and set an annual agenda on improving quality across a broad spectrum of sectors.

The announcement of a memorandum of understanding between Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority and the British Standards Institute was made as the emirate sought to take advice from the UK body on how to improve the quality of food safety.

"Quality is the cornerstone of a progressive economy and it is only befitting that the Abu Dhabi Quality Forum creates a platform for dialogue among global experts," said Hussain Salem Al Katheeri, secretary general of the QCC.

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What drives subscription retailing?

Once the domain of newspaper home deliveries, subscription model retailing has combined with e-commerce to permeate myriad products and services.

The concept has grown tremendously around the world and is forecast to thrive further, according to UnivDatos Market Insights’ report on recent and predicted trends in the sector.

The global subscription e-commerce market was valued at $13.2 billion (Dh48.5bn) in 2018. It is forecast to touch $478.2bn in 2025, and include the entertainment, fitness, food, cosmetics, baby care and fashion sectors.

The report says subscription-based services currently constitute “a small trend within e-commerce”. The US hosts almost 70 per cent of recurring plan firms, including leaders Dollar Shave Club, Hello Fresh and Netflix. Walmart and Sephora are among longer established retailers entering the space.

UnivDatos cites younger and affluent urbanites as prime subscription targets, with women currently the largest share of end-users.

That’s expected to remain unchanged until 2025, when women will represent a $246.6bn market share, owing to increasing numbers of start-ups targeting women.

Personal care and beauty occupy the largest chunk of the worldwide subscription e-commerce market, with changing lifestyles, work schedules, customisation and convenience among the chief future drivers.

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  • The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
  • Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
  • National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
  • In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
  • Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.

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