Abu Dhabi: SiltaNews – News Desk
His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Tourism and Chairman of Investtopia, led the UAE delegation to Canada to participate in a new edition of the Investtopia Global Dialogues, which kicked off in Alberta, Canada. The dialogues aim to strengthen economic and investment partnerships and explore cooperation opportunities in vital sectors, including the new economy, clean energy, food security, artificial intelligence, space, and advanced technologies in the air transport and aviation sector. This will contribute to supporting sustainable economic growth and expanding the scope of UAE-Canada cooperation in future economy sectors.
His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri affirmed that the UAE and Canada share strong and growing economic relations, strengthened over the past years through a series of high-level official visits and bilateral meetings. This reflects mutual trust and a shared desire to build on existing achievements, expand cooperation across economic and investment fields, and build qualitative partnerships between the two friendly countries. He also highlighted the vital role of the public and private sectors in supporting sustainable growth and economic innovation in both countries.
He pointed out that the selection of Alberta to host and convene the first edition of Investopia’s Global Dialogues is a new step towards enhancing cooperation in the fields of energy, advanced technologies, tourism, aviation, and advanced space technology, as part of Investopia’s vision to expand globally and connect the international investment community with new opportunities in the fastest-growing markets.
His Excellency added that the “Investopia Global Alberta” event reflects the shared commitment between the UAE and Canada to developing diverse partnerships that serve sustainable development and economic innovation. This comes in light of the growing bilateral economic ties between the two countries, especially since the total number of Canadian commercial licenses operating in the UAE markets rose to 14,719 licenses by the end of August 2025, a growth rate of nearly 19%, compared to 12,374 licenses at the end of August 2024, achieving remarkable growth. Meanwhile, Canadian commercial agencies operating in the country recorded a growth of 8.57% during the same period, reflecting the attractiveness of the business and investment environment in the country and confirming the growing status of the UAE as a major gateway for Canadian companies to expand into the region’s markets.
“On behalf of the people of Alberta, I am delighted to welcome our partners and investors from the United Arab Emirates, who are here today to celebrate the launch of the first edition of the Investopia Global Dialogues in Canada,” said the Honourable Danielle Smith, Premier of Alberta. “This step embodies the strong relations and shared ties that unite us with the UAE, particularly in the fields of energy, emissions reduction, advanced technology, and other strategic sectors. In Alberta, we are proud of our flexible economic environment, investment-supportive policies, and skilled workforce, in addition to our abundant natural resources and diverse competitive advantages, which support stimulating growth and promoting innovation across various sectors of the economy. We are confident that our Emirati partners will find Alberta an ideal destination for achieving tangible investment returns.”
His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri participated in a ministerial session attended by His Excellency Jean Charret, former Deputy Prime Minister of Canada and former Premier of Quebec; and Joseph Shaw, Minister of Labour, Economy, Trade and Immigration in the Government of Alberta. The session addressed the most significant transformations taking place in the global economy, the role of international cooperation in building sustainable investment partnerships, and the prospects for integration between the innovation systems in the UAE and Canada. It also highlighted the importance of leveraging advanced technology, artificial intelligence, and clean energy to support future growth paths.
During the session, His Excellency Bin Touq reviewed the UAE’s vision for strengthening its position as a global hub for the new economy, and the achievements of the national economy in recent years. His Excellency emphasized that the UAE-Canadian partnership, with its promising investment opportunities in the energy, food security, and advanced technologies sectors, represents a model of cooperation capable of keeping pace with global economic changes, supporting sustainable economic growth in both countries.
During the event, a roundtable meeting of the UAE-Canada Business Council was held, attended by His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq and a number of representatives from the public and private sectors in the UAE and Canada. The meeting discussed ways to enhance the investment partnership between the two sides, expand cooperation in new economy sectors, facilitate investment flows, develop joint projects that support sustainable economic growth, and enable entrepreneurs in both countries to expand abroad.
In this context, His Excellency Bin Touq said that the UAE-Canada Business Council represents a strategic platform for deepening economic ties between the two countries and transforming promising opportunities into investment partnerships. Through this open dialogue, we seek to explore opportunities for cooperation and open broader horizons for the exchange of visions and ideas between business leaders in Canada and the UAE. This will contribute to achieving added value for our economies, enhance the position of the two friendly countries, and consolidate their role in the growth and sustainability of the global economy.
The event also featured a number of dialogue sessions bringing together decision-makers and business leaders from the UAE and Canada, addressing priority topics aimed at enhancing cooperation between the two countries. The first session, titled “Energy Transition and Clean Technologies: Investing in the Future of Energy,” reviewed prospects for cooperation in the fields of hydrogen, carbon capture, and solar energy, as well as innovative policies to support the transition to more sustainable energy systems, thereby enhancing the economic competitiveness of both parties.
In the second session, titled “Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture,” attendees discussed ways to link UAE investments in climate-resilient food systems and smart agriculture with Canada’s capabilities as a major global food exporter. The session reviewed the most prominent innovations in protected environmental agriculture, sustainable irrigation, and AI-assisted agriculture, paving the way for broad joint cooperation in this vital sector.
In the third session, titled “Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and Digital Twins in Industry,” participants focused on the growing role of these technologies in the logistics, advanced manufacturing, and clean energy sectors, while exploring opportunities for collaboration in developing regulatory frameworks and innovating new financing mechanisms to support the industrial transformation process.
The fourth session, “Cross-Border Capital Flows and Investment: Building the UAE-Canada Corridor,” addressed the importance of deepening investment ties between the two countries by enhancing the role of sovereign wealth funds and innovation centers, and expanding venture capital ecosystems. This will enable Canadian companies to access Gulf markets and open the way for Emirati investments to enter the Canadian market.
The final session, titled “Airports of the Future: Co-innovating for a New Era of Aviation,” explored aviation sector cooperation between Alberta and the UAE in the areas of airport digital transformation, drone systems development, and creating more advanced and sustainable travel experiences. During the event, Jay Sadek, Founder and CEO of FortyGuard, delivered a presentation titled “Smarter Cities of the Future: Innovation from the UAE,” highlighting the role of climate innovation in building more sustainable and livable cities.
He also showcased the experience of his Emirati startup, which has seen global expansion in this field through its innovative solutions to improve the quality of life in cities. The UAE delegation participating in the event included representatives from the public and private sectors in the country. The event brought together more than 150 business leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, and decision-makers from the UAE and Canada. The event was held in partnership with the Alberta provincial government and in collaboration with Edmonton Global Investments and dmg events.