Abu Dhabi International Airport has been named the Best Airport for the Middle East region category of Airports Council International (ACI) ASQ Survey results. The ASQ (Airport Service Quality) Survey, which gauges passenger satisfaction, is a key benchmark for customer service in the global airports' industry.
The awards, announced by ACI in Montreal, Canada, showed that Abu Dhabi International Airport had the biggest overall improvement in ASQ satisfaction results in the region for 2012. The airport excelled in categories that measure operational efficiency and quality of service. The airport scored 4.40 in the ASQ indicators for 2012, up from 4.31 in 2011, to place the airport 1st in the Middle East. It was ranked 2nd last year.
ACI World Director General Angela Gittens said: "This is an exciting time for airports. As airports and their operators increasingly accept the positive correlation between passenger satisfaction and airport revenues, we see more and more airports striving to meet, and in some cases exceed, the levels of customer service that their passengers expect from their favored product and service providers. Airports that deliver superior customer service stand apart from the competition and superior customer service remains one of the most important differentiators in the increasingly competitive airport industry."
Gittens added: "I am delighted to see longstanding favorites take home ASQ awards as it is testament to the growing and accepted wisdom in the airport community that maintain customer service excellence, which is central to a winning business strategy.
I am equally excited to see other airports rank for the very first time this year, which stands to prove that it is never too late to adopt a winning customer service orientation to which the ASQ program is fundamental."
Chairman of Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) Ali Majed Al-Mansoori said: "ADAC is thrilled to be named the Best Airport in the Middle East' from the industry-leading Airport Council International (ACI). It is an honor to have achieved this ranking through the opinions of millions of visitors to Abu Dhabi International Airport, as their testaments to the quality of service is an accolade that ADAC has been striving to achieve. This award today crowns ADAC's continuous efforts to achieve its mission to become the world's leading airports' group, and it comes as a result of the team's relentless commitment to achieve excellence in quality service." Al-Mansoori added: "I would like to thank our customers and passengers for giving us these ratings and I want to salute our various teams from ADAC, and airlines and agencies at Abu Dhabi International Airport who together have realized this achievement with their collective and honest work. As ADAC celebrates this victory, it promises to continue developing and enhancing its products and services to deliver millions more of unique travel experiences in the years to come."
Since its creation in 2006, the ASQ Awards have become the world's leading airport passenger satisfaction benchmark, with over 275 participating airports. The ASQ Awards recognize and reward the best airports in the world based on ACI's ASQ passenger satisfaction survey and they represent an opportunity to celebrate the commitment of airports worldwide to continually improve the passenger experience.
Abu Dhabi airport ‘best in Middle East’
Abu Dhabi airport ‘best in Middle East’
First EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials reflects shared policy commitment
RIYADH: The EU–Saudi Arabia Business and Investment Dialogue on Advancing Critical Raw Materials Value Chains, held in Riyadh as part of the Future Minerals Forum, brought together senior policymakers, industry leaders, and investors to advance strategic cooperation across critical raw materials value chains.
Organized under a Team Europe approach by the EU–GCC Cooperation on Green Transition Project, in coordination with the EU Delegation to Saudi Arabia, the European Chamber of Commerce in the Kingdom and in close cooperation with FMF, the dialogue provided a high-level platform to explore European actions under the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU alongside the Kingdom’s aspirations for minerals, industrial, and investment priorities.
This is in line with Saudi Vision 2030 and broader regional ambitions across the GCC, MENA, and Africa.
ResourceEU is the EU’s new strategic action plan, launched in late 2025, to secure a reliable supply of critical raw materials like lithium, rare earths, and cobalt, reducing dependency on single suppliers, such as China, by boosting domestic extraction, processing, recycling, stockpiling, and strategic partnerships with resource-rich nations.
The first ever EU–Saudi roundtable on critical raw materials was opened by the bloc’s Ambassador to the Kingdom, Christophe Farnaud, together with Saudi Deputy Minister for Mining Development Turki Al-Babtain, turning policy alignment into concrete cooperation.
Farnaud underlined the central role of international cooperation in the implementation of the EU’s critical raw materials policy framework.
“As the European Union advances the implementation of its Critical Raw Materials policy, international cooperation is indispensable to building secure, diversified, and sustainable value chains. Saudi Arabia is a key partner in this effort. This dialogue reflects our shared commitment to translate policy alignment into concrete business and investment cooperation that supports the green and digital transitions,” said the ambassador.
Discussions focused on strengthening resilient, diversified, and responsible CRM supply chains that are essential to the green and digital transitions.
Participants explored concrete opportunities for EU–Saudi cooperation across the full value chain, including exploration, mining, and processing and refining, as well as recycling, downstream manufacturing, and the mobilization of private investment and sustainable finance, underpinned by high environmental, social, and governance standards.
From the Saudi side, the dialogue was framed as a key contribution to the Kingdom’s industrial transformation and long-term economic diversification agenda under Vision 2030, with a strong focus on responsible resource development and global market integration.
“Developing globally competitive mineral hubs and sustainable value chains is a central pillar of Saudi Vision 2030 and the Kingdom’s industrial transformation. Our engagement with the European Union through this dialogue to strengthen upstream and downstream integration, attract high-quality investment, and advance responsible mining and processing. Enhanced cooperation with the EU, capitalizing on the demand dynamics of the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, will be key to delivering long-term value for both sides,” said Al-Babtain.
Valere Moutarlier, deputy director-general for European industry decarbonization, and directorate-general for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and SMEs at European Commission, said the EU Critical Raw Materials Act and ResourceEU provided a clear framework to strengthen Europe’s resilience while deepening its cooperation with international partners.
“Cooperation with Saudi Arabia is essential to advancing secure, sustainable, and diversified critical raw materials value chains. Dialogues such as this play a key role in translating policy ambitions into concrete industrial and investment cooperation,” she added.
