Dubai Trade, the online gateway for trade and logistics services in Dubai, has announced the 8th cycle of its annual flagship event, the e-Services Excellence Award, ESEA, with a new theme and categories to support the Smart City initiative and 2015 - Year of Innovation, as announced by Vice President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

The ESEA was launched by Dubai Trade in 2008 to highlight the application of e-Services in trade and logistics and to recognise the best example on the Dubai Trade Portal which recently reached a 100% adoption rate by users on most of its services.

During this 8th cycle of the ESEA, Dubai Trade is unveiling four different award categories in line with government efforts to encourage transactions through smart phones. The categories are the Smart Services Award for m-Token Services, Smart Services Award for Free Zone Services, Smart Services Award for Clearance Services, and Smart Services Award for Payment Services. Winners will be selected on their total number of mobile transactions across key services provided by DP World, Dubai Customs, and Economic Zones World throughout 2015.

Chairman of Dubai Trade, Jamal Majid bin Thaniah, said, "We are proud that we have met the deadline announced by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid to convert to smart services, which reinforces Dubai’s position as one of the smartest technology driven cities in the world. At Dubai Trade, we strive to apply the vision of our leadership to innovative strategies that create better e-Services and smart services to enable the movement of cross-border trade and ensure faster processing from government agencies using flexible platforms such as e-Payment and other smart services."

CEO of Dubai Trade, Mahmood Al Bastaki, called on the trade and logistics community to grasp the advantages of mobile services to support the Smart Government initiative and to seize the opportunity to be one of the 8th ESEA winners.

He added, "We invite all companies and individuals in the UAE to nominate themselves for the Innovation Awards by October. Creativity and innovation are key to our strategy to ensure that Dubai remains a hub of global trade, as it continues its successful transition into a smart city."