Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has said contracts worth €65m over the next three years are likely to be signed arising from his week-long trade mission to the Gulf states.
Mr Ahern is being accompanied on the trip by Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment Micheál Martin, Minister for Education Mary Hanafin and Minister for Agriculture Mary Coughlan.
The Taoiseach defended the mission from criticism about contacts with Saudi Arabia, insisting that ministers Mary Coughlan and Mary Hanafin had been treated as equals by their counterparts despite the restrictions on women in the state.
Dubai ruler Sheikh Mohammed Al Maktoum is better known in Ireland for his associations with horseracing and the bloodstock industry.
In his own country he and his family have charted an extraordinary transformation that has seen Dubai move from a desert state to a high-rise financial and trading centre in 20 years, reflecting the shift away from dwindling oil revenues and towards the service and investment sector.
Irish investment and expertise is pouring into Dubai, which, even in times of conflict, has been a haven in a volatile region. The Irish Government hopes to reflect and boost that by pressing for an embassy to serve the thriving emirate.
The trade mission to Saudi Arabia and Dubai was organised by Enterprise Ireland.
