Michael Corbin, US Ambassador to the UAE, outlines the importance of the Arab Health conference after US$40million of business resulted from last year's event. Pawan Singh / The National
Michael Corbin, US Ambassador to the UAE, outlines the importance of the Arab Health conference after US$40million of business resulted from last year's event. Pawan Singh / The National
Michael Corbin, US Ambassador to the UAE, outlines the importance of the Arab Health conference after US$40million of business resulted from last year's event. Pawan Singh / The National
Michael Corbin, US Ambassador to the UAE, outlines the importance of the Arab Health conference after US$40million of business resulted from last year's event. Pawan Singh / The National

UAE is a great business destination, says US ambassador


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DUBAI // The UAE is at the crossroads of the world and is a great place to do business, according to the United States ambassador to the country.

Michael H Corbin also outlined the importance to the US of the Arab Health conference after US$40million (Dh147m) of business resulted from last year's event.

"We are just so pleased to see 186 US companies participating, of which 60 are newcomers to this show," he said. "For us, this underlines how this show is increasingly one of the most important healthcare shows in the world.

"From last year ... $40m of business came out of this one show."

Healthcare ties between the area and the US go back half a centuryafter two American doctors founded Oasis Hospital in Al Ain in 1960. The hospital was founded at the invitation of the nation's founder, Sheikh Zayed.

More than 50 years later, the relationship has continued to flourish, with US hospitals and institutions such as Cleveland Clinic and Johns Hopkins Medicine International both managing local hospitals.

With Arab Health, the UAE has also made a name for itself on a global level, said the ambassador.

"It underlines the UAE as the crossroads of the world and it underlines the fact that people are coming here - from south-east Asia, from all of sub-Saharan Africa, from the central Asian republics, from the rest of the Middle East - they are coming in droves and the figures are showing in the hotel rooms, the figures are showing at Dubai Shopping Festival, the figures are showing in Abu Dhabi, as people transit and visit the United Arab Emirates," he said.

"For us ... this is where people can do business. And for us, when we look at the US-UAE trade relationship; in 2011 it was $16bn; in 2012, we think, it's going to be - when the figures are totalled up - about $22bn. So that's more than a 40 per cent increase in trade, and what that reflects is that people are bringing business here."

US companies of varying size have a presence at the conference, with one small outfit offering inflatable mattresses that make transferring morbidly obese patients an easier task.

Other equipment being displayed includes a locking code system that ensures that patients receive the correct blood type.

Arab Health, which is in its 38th year and takes place each year at the World Trade Centre, Dubai, runs until Thursday.

The BIO:

He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal

He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side

By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam

Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border

He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push

His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level

Infiniti QX80 specs

Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6

Power: 450hp

Torque: 700Nm

Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000

Available: Now

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While you're here
Fixtures and results:

Wed, Aug 29:

  • Malaysia bt Hong Kong by 3 wickets
  • Oman bt Nepal by 7 wickets
  • UAE bt Singapore by 215 runs

Thu, Aug 30: 

  • UAE bt Nepal by 78 runs
  • Hong Kong bt Singapore by 5 wickets
  • Oman bt Malaysia by 2 wickets

Sat, Sep 1: UAE v Hong Kong; Oman v Singapore; Malaysia v Nepal

Sun, Sep 2: Hong Kong v Oman; Malaysia v UAE; Nepal v Singapore

Tue, Sep 4: Malaysia v Singapore; UAE v Oman; Nepal v Hong Kong

Thu, Sep 6: Final

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