The MoU will help to promote and strengthen cooperative relations between COAD and the Center for Competitiveness as well as collaborating on knowledge sharing and exchange of competitiveness strategies. The MoU was signed by Mohamed Omar Abdulla, Undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development (ADDED), and Prof. Dr. Philippe Gugler, Director of the Center of Competitiveness of the University of Fribourg.

The strategic partnership will cooperate in following areas: Creating a platform for mutual exchange, capacity building, and knowledge transfer through workshops, seminars, and secondments. Establishing joint researches, studies, advisory activities, public policy seminars focusing on the field of competitiveness, innovation, cluster mapping, and the role of clusters in economic development.

Abdulla expressed the importance of the MoU, as he ensured that ADDED aims to establish channels of cooperation's with different international competitiveness entities for the purpose of knowledge sharing in order to improve the competitiveness of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. He also added: "Improving competitiveness is about creating the sustainable economic environment that enables the Emirates enterprises and its people to realize their full productive potential. This entails providing the conditions for the Emirates workforce, businesses, sectors and regions to excel in both local and global markets. The signed MoU with the Center for Competitiveness will help us to create a sustainable economic environment by transferring knowledge in the field of competitiveness and joint researches, studies and advisory activities. The Competitiveness Office of Abu Dhabi (COAD) and the Centre for Competitiveness in Fribourg will highlight various topics which are of mutual interest in order to address the competitiveness challenges." Prof. Gugler said that the Centre for Competitiveness is very impressed with the competitiveness strategy adopted in Abu Dhabi over the last few years and very keen to cooperate with the initiators of these important developments: "The Centre for Competitiveness is very proud and honored to collaborate with the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development and the Competitiveness Office of Abu Dhabi (COAD). This MoU highlights the excellent relationships tied so far between both Institutions and opens the door to future collaboration in the field of research, knowledge sharing, joint projects and advisory tasks. This collaboration reflects perfectly the initiatives promoted by Michael Porter to whom the Centre for Competitiveness is affiliated".