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An interview with the Secretary General of the Union of the Federation of the Gulf Cooperation Council Chambers (FGCCC) Abdulrahim Hassan Naqi Featured

(Read the article on the occasion of this visit by clicking here)

 

(بالعربية)

 

On the occasion of the visit of the Secretary General of the Federation of the Gulf Cooperation Council Chambers (FGCCC) GCC Chambers, Abdulrahim Hassan Naqi to Geneva Chamber of Commerce and Industry in December 2017. This led to the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two parties. We had this interview with Mr. Naqi on the sideline of the signature of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

 

1/ During your last visit to the city of Geneva in December, you signed a memorandum of understanding, why choose Geneva itself?

There is no doubt that the city of Geneva is an important and attractive city for cooperation in the field of economy and trade. It is considered an economic capital because it is characterized by a strategic position for the global economy, as well as an incubator of the United Nations and other international organizations and international bodies and centers. Switzerland has strong economic ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council, not to mention the GCC countries are Switzerland's first partner in the Middle East. The volume of foreign trade between the GCC and Switzerland has grown rapidly over the past years. Trade volume has increased from $3.5 billion in 2005 to $8 billion in 2012 and then to $25 billion in 2016. The UAE is Switzerland first trade partner with imports from Switzerland worth $15.6 billion and exports of $4.2 billion. Saudi Arabia is the second trade partner with imports of $2.4 billion and exports of $325 million.

The Swiss trade balance remained stable for Switzerland, with Swiss exports reaching about $20 billion and Swiss imports reaching about $5 billion.

 

2/ What is the most important points in this Memorandum, how do you view the future cooperation with Geneva Chamber and the Swiss economic cooperation with the GCC countries?

The Memorandum of Understanding reflected the sincere desire of the two parties to enhance cooperation and communication between their private sectors. The discussion of the memorandum lasted more than 6 months. It confirms the willingness of both sides to open many prospects for cooperation. The memorandum, which included nine items, open many horizons for cooperation, foremost of which was the organization of a Gulf-Swiss economic forum in 2018, in order to finalize the forum we have identified liaison officers. We are looking forward to discuss the prospects of economic relations and trade trends in the future, as well as to enhance confidence between the two sides. We are eager to take advantage of the facilities available for investment opportunities between the two sides

The Forum will discuss the most important challenges facing investors in order to facilitate investment related aspects. The MoU also included the coordination of bilateral meetings between members of the Geneva Chamber of Commerce and the members of each local Chamber of Commerce in the Gulf countries. We have agreed to organize the forum periodically in the Gulf cooperation council states and Switzerland.

 

3/ Are there other memorandums of understanding or joint agreements between the Federation of Gulf Chambers and the Swiss Chambers of Commerce and Industry?

Yes, with the help of God, a memorandum of understanding was signed with the Center for Commercial Arbitration of the Swiss Arbitration Chamber on August 7, 2017, as well as the establishment of a Swiss Gulf economic platform in Geneva aimed at enhancing cooperation and activating memorandums of understanding between the two sides. There are a range of programs and initiatives for small and medium enterprises, as well as programs for entrepreneurs and young people, as well as other programs to enhance communication between businesswomen of the Arab Gulf States and their Swiss counterparts.

 

4/ What are the goals you are looking for through signing this MoU?

One of the main objectives of the Memorandum of Understanding is to increase investment opportunities between the two sides, organize joint events, organise visits for trade delegations between the two regions, encourage technology transfer, spread awareness of private sectors of both sides on the most important investment opportunities in both regions, as well as performing programs to facilitate the exchange of experience in the areas of technology and commercial franchise, especially cooperation between small and medium enterprises, and strengthening cooperation between the private sectors of both sides. The MoU also included the foundations of the organization of the Swiss Gulf Economic Forum in September 2018, which will be the first fruit of such cooperation.

 

5/ Do you expect this agreement to have consequences on trade cooperation?

Yes, we expect this MoU to open new horizons for cooperation, especially in the provision of distinguished services to members of the Gulf Chambers, and to benefit from the development of business through the cooperation of Gulf and Swiss institutions in expanding trade exchanges in goods and services, especially in the handicrafts and crafts industries, and the marketing of the Gulf cooperation council products in food and other services in which it as relative advantage.

 

6/ Do you have plans to organise delegations of businessmen/women under this MoU?

Yes, official invitations have been sent to the Swiss Chambers to visit the GCC countries, in addition to organizing visits by specialized trade delegations representing various sectors of health, education, food and other Swiss companies to the Gulf Chambers of Commerce, in order to meet their counterparts, and to familiarise with the investment environment in the GCC countries, and to discover the most important investment opportunities. That will be the occasion to arrange meetings with officials in the public and private institutions.

 

7/ What advice do you give to businessmen who wish to invest in the GCC?

We know that Switzerland has the economic and financial resources, and has sufficient experience in the field of services, especially education, banking, health and technology, especially in watches and jewelry, not to mention the agricultural and food special capacities. Therefore, Gulf businessmen have great opportunities to benefit from these elements and to establish strategic partnerships that serve the interests of the Gulf. In addition to inviting the 750,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in the Gulf to develop their business with Swiss companies, as well as benefiting Gulf businessmen and young people from their Swiss counterparts in developing the innovation and entrepreneurship skills especially in the field of knowledge economy, and to develop cooperation in the fields of scientific research, and to cooperate in the development of educational system and training programs. Also, there are areas of cooperation between GCC and Swiss businesswomen, especially in the empowerment of Gulf women and benefiting from the support programs provided by GCC governments in forging partnerships with their Swiss counterparts.

 

8/ What are the main sectors attracting investment in the GCC countries in the coming years?

There is no doubt that the Swiss private sector has a valuable opportunity to benefit from the infrastructure projects, which were presented in the presentation I made during the meeting, such as the railway project, which is more than 2,200 kilometers and is expected to provide more than 80 thousand jobs for the GCC citizens and expatriates, as well as opportunities derived from the localization of the railway industry, and thus the Geneva Chamber can benefit from this plan for example by calling the experts in this industry to build a center for sustainability, training and rehabilitation of specialists of GCC in order to build a real railway industry. There are many opportunities in the industrial sector, in this side the Swiss investors can benefit from the opportunities offered by the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting (GOIC). Also Geneva Chamber of Commerce can benefit from the vision of Saudi Arabia 2020, which included many opportunities through the privatization of important sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, entertainment and tourism. Another important opportunities are available through Expo 2020 in Dubai and the importance of Switzerland's presence in this exhibition, as well as the World Cup 2022 to be organized in Doha, and other importunities in Bahrain through the Vision of the Kingdom of Bahrain 2030, which has achieved many positive results so far, in addition to industrial sectors opportunities and logistics services in the region of Duqm in the Sultanate of Oman, which is located in the most strategic areas and launched in 2008. There is the possibility to benefit as well from partnerships with the Kuwaiti private sector and the government sector through the establishment of partnership projects between the private and public sectors in Kuwait. Swiss companies can establish joint ventures in the United Arab Emirates, especially in the areas of energy, banking and various services and benefit from a large and promising market. In the Federation of Chambers we can provide more information on the investment opportunities and other related regulations and legislations.

We have an excellent and sophisticated legislative environment that is undergoing many reforms in order to facilitate the investment environment for the foreign investors.

 

9/ Can you give us an idea of ​​Swiss investments in the GCC, according to sector and type of business?

Hundreds of Swiss companies operate in GCC markets in the areas of logistics, infrastructure, hydraulic systems, groundwater and well drilling, equipment, coatings and chemicals, engineering systems for energy, water, environment, technology, hospitality, logistics, communications, banks, investment funds, pharmaceuticals, robots, machinery & export development, office & mobile rooms, power generation & industrial metal production, education, consulting & quality control, chemical products, foodstuffs, agricultural development and trade shows.

The bilateral relations in the financial and investment sector, especially in the banking field, have also developed in order to accelerate trade and to provide exporters with financial means.

 

10/ Given Switzerland's position as the world's leading economic competitiveness, how do you see cooperation between you and the Swiss side on the innovative projects and startups?

There is no doubt that the federation of the GCC will seek to cooperate with Switzerland in this particular area because of Switzerland's leadership in the field of "outputs of knowledge and technology". One of the indicators of the competitiveness of Switzerland is the number of patents it has. It has the highest patents applications per capita at the European level; this is an important filed of cooperation especially because the Gulf society is characterized by the growing number of young people and this poses a great challenge for the GCC countries. We have noticed that there are many areas of cooperation in the fields of invention, innovation and entrepreneurship.

 

It is necessary to find an incubator for such projects, and the Swiss Arab Entrepreneurs Platform (SAE) can provide their services and programs in this regard, and the mechanisms to implement them. SAE can be an incubator of ideas and initiatives of the young people and entrepreneurs from both Gulf States and Switzerland.

 

Finally, it will be our pleasure to cooperate with the Federation of Chambers of Commerce of the Gulf Cooperation Council and to provide the necessary support to strengthen cooperation in the field of entrepreneurship, as spreading the culture of entrepreneurship and facilitating network are within the most important objectives of this platform, and we invite Gulf entrepreneurs and businessmen/women to join our platform to be active and discover investment opportunities, joining our platform will facilitate the link with their counterparts and the experts in entrepreneurship both in the Arab world and Switzerland.

 

Last modified on Monday, 01 January 2018 18:55
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