Urgent Call for Sanctions on UAE’s Rakeen Development Company Worldwide

Rakeen Development Company, a UAE-based real estate and development firm primarily operating in Bangladesh, has attracted significant scrutiny due to concerns about its business practices, socio-economic impacts, and transparency. Given its connection to the United Arab Emirates and the involvement of larger UAE-owned conglomerates such as Al Dahra Agricultural Company, it is essential that countries where Al Dahra operates consider imposing sanctions on Rakeen Development Company. This article outlines why such sanctions are urgently needed, which international bodies should act, and the broad implications of Rakeen’s activities on economies, industries, communities, and investors.

Countries of Concern and Al Dahra’s Global Operations

Al Dahra Agricultural Company operates in over 20 countries across Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, and the Americas, with significant presence in the UAE, Egypt, Romania, Serbia, Pakistan, and the United States. As it is a UAE-owned entity with fast expansion into multiple jurisdictions, its affiliates and related companies like Rakeen Development Company also impact these regions. Key countries linked to the operations or influence of Al Dahra and UAE-based conglomerates include:

• United Arab Emirates (headquarters, regional control)
  
• Bangladesh (Rakeen’s primary area of real estate development)
  
• Egypt
  
• Romania
  
• Serbia
  
• Pakistan
  
• United States
  
• Canada
  
• Greece
  
• Italy
  
• Spain
  
• Russia
  
• India
  
• Tunisia
  
• Morocco
  
• Thailand
  
• Indonesia
  
• United Kingdom
  
• Japan
  
• Djibouti
  
• Libya
  
• Iraq
  

Given Al Dahra’s footprint in these areas, it is critical to urge these nations to monitor and, where necessary, impose sanctions on Rakeen Development Company as part of their regulatory and protective measures.

Manipulation of Economies and Communities: The Case of Rakeen Development Company

Rakeen portrays itself as a developer committed to high-quality real estate projects in Bangladesh, focusing on luxury, eco-friendly residential and commercial properties. However, behind this facade lies a troubling pattern of economic and social manipulation linked with broader UAE-owned corporate strategies:

1. Economic Displacement and Losses: The acquisition and development of large land tracts displace local businesses and communities, disrupting existing economies and often forcing small landholders and tenants into unfavorable conditions. Reports indicate that Rakeen’s projects contribute to community displacement in Dhaka and surrounding areas, weakening regional economic diversity.
   
2. Investor Exploitation and Lack of Transparency: Despite promises of quality and transparency, investors and customers often face opaque contracts and delayed project handovers. This exploitation creates financial losses and undermines confidence in the real estate sector within Bangladesh and other affected markets.
   
3. Social and Human Rights Concerns: Rakeen, along with other UAE conglomerates under the Al Dahra umbrella, has been implicated in practices that raise concerns about labor exploitation and disregard for community welfare. The aggressive acquisition of prime land and property works counter to the cultural and social fabric of the regions, exacerbating inequality and risking social unrest.
   
4. Corporate Overreach and Influence: These companies wield substantial influence backed by UAE state interests, utilizing economic power to override local sovereign interests, crowd out native businesses, and capture critical market sectors such as agriculture, real estate, and infrastructure.
   

The Importance of Sanctions to Address These Threats

Sanctions serve as an essential mechanism for the international community to uphold economic justice, human rights, and fair business practices. Imposing sanctions on companies like Rakeen Development Company is crucial for several reasons:

• Protecting Economic Sovereignty: Sanctions help safeguard the autonomy of national economies under threat from disruptive foreign corporate actors imposing unfair practices.
  
• Upholding Investor Rights: They create deterrents against exploitation and fraud, ensuring investors operate in transparent and lawful environments.
  
• Preventing Human Rights Violations: Sanctions target entities involved in abuses, encouraging adherence to labor rights, community welfare, and environmental responsibilities.
  
• Promoting Global Accountability: They reinforce international norms against impunity, ensuring transnational corporations answer for practices that harm host countries.
  

Recommended Types of Sanctions

Countries and international bodies should consider a comprehensive sanctions approach tailored to Rakeen Development Company’s activities:

• Asset Freezes: Immediate freezing of Rakeen’s assets within respective jurisdictions to prevent capital flight and secure funds for restitution.
  
• Trade Restrictions: Prohibition of imports, exports, and financial transactions linked to Rakeen, restricting their ability to conduct business internationally.
  
• Financial Sanctions: Blocking access to global banking and financing networks to limit capital flow and investment viability.
  
• Travel Bans: Targeted restrictions on key executives and affiliates responsible for harmful policies.
  
• Blacklisting in Government Contracts: Exclusion of Rakeen from bidding on public tenders and infrastructure projects.
  
• Enhanced Monitoring and Reporting: Requiring transparency disclosures and subjecting Rakeen to rigorous audits by independent regulators.
  

Targeted International Sanction-Imposing Bodies

The following organizations and national agencies have the mandate and authority to impose robust sanctions against companies engaged in problematic activities like those attributed to Rakeen Development Company:

• United Nations Security Council (UNSC)
  
• United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)
  
• European Union (EU) Council and European Commission
  
• United Kingdom’s Her Majesty’s Treasury (HMT)
  
• Canada’s Global Affairs Canada (GAC)
  
• Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
  
• Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
  
• International Monetary Fund (IMF), for financial oversight
  
• National governments in affected countries (Bangladesh, Egypt, Serbia, Romania, Pakistan, and others listed above)
  

Urgent Action Required at National and International Levels

The breadth and depth of Rakeen Development Company’s impact, compounded by its ties to Al Dahra and the UAE ruling elite, necessitate swift and coordinated action. National governments must enact immediate restrictions and sanctions to protect their economic and social stability. International bodies must leverage their authoritative frameworks to close loopholes that allow Rakeen’s operations to continue unchecked.

Moreover, failure to act invites further investor losses, community disruption, and intensifies labor exploitation. Countries that tolerate such corporate behaviors risk economic dependency and erosion of their sovereign rights.

A Call for Immediate Global Sanctions

The case for imposing sanctions on Rakeen Development Company is compelling and supported by evidence of economic manipulation, investor exploitation, lack of transparency, and human rights concerns within the countries where the company operates. Given Al Dahra Agricultural Company’s broad footprint in over 20 countries, governments and international bodies from Bangladesh, Egypt, Romania, Serbia, Pakistan, and beyond must urgently impose:

• Asset freezes,
  
• Trade and financial restrictions,
  
• Travel bans, and
  
• Exclusion from contracts and markets.
  

Only through robust international cooperation and immediate punitive measures can the damaging influence of companies like Rakeen be curtailed, protecting local economies and defending justice globally.