São Paulo – Living in Dubai since 2007, Brazilian lawyer Cecilia Bicca Paetzelt has just started working for office Cramer-Salamian, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, with a branch in Dubai. She analyses company structure and real-estate purchases in Dubai. “I am also available to guide foreign companies interested in investing in or opening offices in Brazil,” she said, by email.
Cecilia is one more Brazilian professional reaching a prominent position in the emirate, as is the Ericsson Middle East and North Africa finance vice president, Luciano Ferreira, the owner of construction company Engeprot, Omar Hamaoui, the production and multimedia manager in the shopping centre area of real estate company Emaar, Reinaldo Mesquita, among others who have already spoken to ANBA.
Graduated in law from the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas, after a 16-year career, Cecilia decided to move to Dubai, accompanying her husband, who is a businessman in the United Arab Emirates.
This, however, did not mean that she was going to interrupt her professional activities. On the contrary, before entering Cramer-Salamian, she had already worked as the contract manager at a company in the real estate sector and in the Commercial Sector of the embassy of Brazil to Abu Dhabi, the country capital. “That is where I acquired experience in the area of foreign trade between Brazil and the Emirates,” she said. “All opportunities for work in the Emirates arose after my arrival in the country,” she added.
The office the lawyer works for operates in partnership with a local office, Abdulla Al-Ali & Associates. The areas of operation are share capital, commercial, real estate, sports law and arbitration. She guarantees that being a foreign woman does not affect her daily work.
“In general, I do not face difficulties. Foreign women residing in the Emirates are much respected and do not suffer any discrimination, as long as they know how to respect the laws of the country that receives them. Being foreign in Dubai does not mean belonging to a minority, it means being one more individual contributing temporarily to the local economic growth,” she explained.
Cecilia lives with her husband, one daughter and two step-children and points out the characteristics of Dubai that favour family life, among them safety, cleanliness, good schools, several leisure options and good health services. “In the financial point of view, rents and schools represent the main expenses,” she pointed out. “In general, costs with feeding, transportation, mobile telephony and internet are reasonable. Urban traffic has improved significantly and there is no crime,” she added. A few years ago the city was known for its enormous traffic jams and for the difficulty to take a taxi.
To those interested in working in the region, Cecília makes some recommendations: speaking fluent English and having an undergraduate degree. Specialisation is also very important. “In the Emirates, Brazilians compete in the labour market with Europeans, North Americans, Asians and citizens from other Arab nations, all with very good professional training,” she said. “Nobody will be discriminated for being Brazilian, but that will also not be a benefit,” she explained. “There is no space for adventurers here,” she finished off.
*Translated by Mark Ament
