UAE launches new ‘EcoMark’ green accreditation framework for MSMEs

UAE launches new ‘EcoMark’ green accreditation framework for MSMEs

DAVOS - The UAE has announced plans to develop the first-ever sustainability accreditation framework explicitly for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). EcoMark Global Accreditation has been designed to boost the competitiveness of MSMEs in the global green economy by streamlining and standardising the regulatory processes surrounding sustainability benchmarking worldwide. The EcoMark certification, which is based on ISO standards and digitally enabled, will include a full suite of resources to help MSMEs attain EcoMark status, covering document requirement guidelines and a roadmap to progress from basic to advanced levels of sustainability, and a standardised application process and complete eligibility criterion for accreditors in the participating countries. The framework will be overseen by a central body headquartered in the UAE. The initiative was announced at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos by Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, during a panel discussion titled ‘A New Trade Order: Inclusive Growth’. The panel, which gathered ministers, policymakers, and academics to explore means to better integrate LDCs, MSMEs, and female and youth-led businesses into global trade, highlighted the need to help emerging enterprises keep pace with increasing consumer demand for products and services that comply with