(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula
Doha: Qatar Chamber (QC) First Vice-Chairman Mohamed bin Ahmed bin Twar Al Kuwari lauded the close relations between the State of Qatar and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, stressing that both countries enjoy historic ties based on solid foundations of brotherhood and intimacy.
This came during the Qatar-Saudi Business Meeting which was co-organised by Qatar Chamber in cooperation with Council of the Federation of Saudi Chambers at Marsa Malaz Kempinski Hotel, yesterday.
The Saudi side was headed by Chairman of the Council of the Federation of Saudi Chambers Ajlan bin Abdulaziz Al Ajlan. QC Second Vice-Chairman Rashid bin Hamad Al Athba alongside with many board members and a crowd of prominent Qatari and Saudi businessmen attended the meeting which highlighted ways to enhancing cooperation ties between Qatari and Saudi businessmen and identified the investment opportunities available in both countries.
It also touched on the possibility of establishing alliances and partnerships between Qatari and Saudi companies to achieve the economic and commercial integration between the two brotherly countries. Activating the Qatari-Saudi Business Council and setting an agenda of its meetings to review all issues that are of interest to businessmen from both countries were also discussed. Al Kuwari went on to stress that the specificity of the relationship between the two countries and the sound visions of the wise leaderships constituted a catalyst for the rapid return of their relations, and a motive to open new horizons for cooperation between them at all levels, especially after the Al-Ula Summit that established a new phase constructive cooperation between them.
He noted that businessmen from both countries are looking forward to exploring new aspects of cooperation and opening new channels of active partnership, expressing his hope that the meeting would contribute to further developing economic and commercial relations to meet aspirations of the two brotherly countries.
As for economic cooperation, he noted that Qatar and KSA enjoy strong and distinguished relations, pointing out that their trade exchange amounted to QR386m during the first nine months of this year despite the repercussions of COVID-19 pandemic.
He underscored the importance to intensify mutual visits between both business sectors during the coming period, develop cooperation and coordination between Qatar Chamber and Council of the Federation of Saudi Chambers, in addition to activate the Qatar-Saudi Business Council to consolidate cooperation between the private sector and revitalise trade and investments between both sides.
QC First Vice-Chairman reiterated that the Chamber strongly supports and encourages cooperation between Qatari and Saudi firms by establishing commercial alliances and partnerships in all fields whether in Qatar or in KSA.
Al Kuwari called on Saudi businessmen to invest in Qatar to take advantage of the attractive incentives provided by the state to foreign investors, inviting at the same time Qatari businessmen to explore opportunities available in KSA and cooperate with their Saudi brothers in joint projects that enhance the contribution of the private sector to achieving both countries' visions 2030, which produce many major projects and investment opportunities in both sides.
For his part, Chairman of the Council of the Federation of Saudi Chambers Ajlan Al Ajlan stressed that this meeting will help in strengthening cooperation ties between both sides, expressing his hope that it represents a starting point for effective recommendations that underpin future cooperation between businessmen in the two countries.
He also noted that this meeting came as part of the visit of HRH Crown Prince of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Prince Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to Qatar, which confirmed the keenness of the wise leaderships of both countries on developing their economic links. Al Ajlan pointed out that Qatar is in the fifth place among GCC states in terms of the volume of trade exchange with KSA and the 33rd partner worldwide in terms of exporting.
Touching on the competitiveness of both countries' economies, he noted that the Saudi economy ranked 36th while Qatar economy ranked 29th globally according to the Global Competitiveness Report 2020, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF), stressing that this emphasized the competitiveness of both economies worldwide.
With respect to the Qatari-Saudi Business Council, Al Ajlan said that both sides are working on restructuring and activating it with a view to enhancing communication prospects and exchanging information about investment opportunities available in both sides, noting that the Saudi Vision 2030 and Qatar National Vision 2030 generate a host of opportunities in which businessmen from both countries can invest in.
These opportunities include food and medicine production, logistics services, technology services, digitization, and other promising opportunities that ensure the diversity and competitiveness of the two economies and raise standard of living in both countries, he said, adding that Qatar host of the 2022 World Cup is one of the most important investment opportunities that must be considered.
The host will contribute to developing trade exchange in goods and services and revitalising the tourism sector, in addition to providing an additional source of income for the host country and investors, he added.
During the meeting, both parties delivered many presentations on the business and investment climate and opportunities available for cooperation between businessmen from both countries.
On the sidelines of the meeting, three MOUs were signed between Qatari and Saudi companies to enhance cooperation between them in trade and investment fields. The companies that signed the agreements include Qatar-based Al-Athbi Group and KSA-based Hamad Al-Shuwayer Real Estate Investment Group. The agreement was signed by Rashid bin Hamad Al-Athba, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al-Athbi Group, and Majid Al-Gharbi on behalf of Al-Shuwayer Group.
Also, Qatar-based Al Dulaimi Oil Well Equipment Company signed a strategic partnership agreement with KSA-based Oil Industry Supplies & Services Co. LLC
In the tourism and hospitality sector, KSA-based Al Rajhi Group signed 4 cooperation agreements with four Qatari hotels which are: Souq Waqif Hotels, Al Rayyan Hotel, Banana Island Hotel, and Dusit International Hotels.
The meeting also featured bilateral meetings between Qatari and Saudi businessmen, during which they reviewed investment opportunities in both countries and discussed efforts to build long-term economic cooperation mechanisms.
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