Chairman's Message

Chairman Message

Respected Members,

I am proud, honoured and blessed to have an opportunity to lead the chapter in its 41st year of establishment. I have reached at the pinnacle of The ICAI Dubai Chapter, by grace of God, blessings of parents and specially with your vote and support during the last 4 years.

I accept this great honour with a deep sense of pride and humility and equally with a sense of determination to serve the professional colleagues in the UAE. So, your new Managing Committee is all set to begin together, progress together and succeed together to bag yet another “Best Overseas Chapter Award” for the year 2023-24.

We have lots of work to do and goals to achieve and we are equally excited and eager to start working towards the future. I truly believe that there exists within the committee, a cohesive unity and willingness to do what is in the best interest of the chapter and its members.

As the world warms, Sustainability and technology will be the most dominating theme of the 21st century and industries will need to adapt. This year the chapter will have more conversation and initiatives on the challenging realities of scaling sustainability strategies and how the dawn of the metaverse and generative Artificial Intelligence are impacting us. Our theme of this year would be “Sustech through Innovation”.

During the year, we will be focussing on Sustainability, Technology, Innovation, Governance, Risk and Compliance. As part of the compliance, we will mainly focus on UAE Corporate Tax, Transfer Pricing, AML law and newly introduced “Code of Ethics”, which is going to be implemented from 31st December.

A metaphor attributed to Bernard of Chartres from the 12th century was made famous by Sir Isaac Newton in 1675 when he said: "If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." As a newly elected Chairman, I am now standing on the shoulders of those giants who have gone before me. The work that was put in by the previous Chairmen and the sacrifices that were made, allows me to now be able to stand solid, look further, and have a clear picture of where I have come from and where I am going.

I am proud of our Chapter's success over the last few years, and we will continue to provide more opportunities for meaningful engagement of our members and sponsors, innovative topics, professional development, and outreach opportunities.

I thank each one of you for your continued participation and enthusiasm in our professional community and thank sponsors for their incredible support. I also look forward for the same support during my tenure.

Lastly, I would like to give a special shout-out to all my fellow committee members who will be leveraging the collective strength in paving the trajectory for the year. I am looking forward to my term as a Chairman of the Chapter, knowing that these are the people alongside whom I shall be working. I am honored to call you, my Sisters and Brothers.

Best Wishes

CA Rajesh Somani
Chairman