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Dubai’s Digital Silk Road modernizes trade with Hyperledger Fabric
Technology Category
- Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Blockchain
- Application Infrastructure & Middleware - Data Exchange & Integration
Applicable Industries
- Cities & Municipalities
- Transportation
Applicable Functions
- Business Operation
- Logistics & Transportation
Use Cases
- Smart Contracts
- Supply Chain Visibility
- Track & Trace of Assets
Services
- Software Design & Engineering Services
- System Integration
The Challenge
Dubai, under the vision of Dubai 10X, aims to stay 10 years ahead of other world cities in terms of technology. One of the initiatives under this vision is the Digital Silk Road, a platform to ease worldwide trade. The platform aims to solve the global trading system’s key issues–high costs, low trust, and lack of transparency–with blockchain technology. However, the process of registering to import or export goods in Dubai was neither smooth nor easy. It was a lengthy process that touched on many authorities. For export, the process took even more steps. All these processes were paper-based and time-consuming.
About The Customer
The customer in this case study is the city-state of Dubai, part of the United Arab Emirates. Dubai is the second-largest city in the UAE, with a population of over 3 million people. The city has a history of investing in technology to improve government operations and has set a vision, called Dubai 10X, to stay 10 years ahead of other world cities in terms of technology. One of the initiatives under this vision is the Digital Silk Road, a platform to ease worldwide trade. The platform aims to solve the global trading system’s key issues–high costs, low trust, and lack of transparency–with blockchain technology. The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry and DP World, the port authority, formed a joint team to deliver this project.
The Solution
Dubai Chamber and DP World partnered with Avanza Innovations to develop the Digital Silk Road using Hyperledger Fabric, an open-source blockchain framework. The first two projects for the Digital Silk Road were the Unification of Trade Registration and Export Authorization. With the Unification of Trade Registration, a company wanting to do business in Dubai can register once, through a secure, single-window interface. The data gets distributed across all government trade entities. And if the company needs to update any information, the new information is instantly shared by all. Export Authorization tracks trade transactions, reduces transaction time, and enables secure, encrypted digital authentication. Seamless documentation sharing with relevant government entities happens through smart contracts. Compliance and regulatory checks happen throughout the process, which is completely paperless.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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