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Qatar

Qatar offers vast opportunities for Asean nations

Published: 22 Nov 2017 - 02:31 am | Last Updated: 02 Nov 2021 - 03:23 pm
Soonthorn Chaiyindeepum (fifth left), Ambassador of Thailand and Chairman of ACD; Joseph Abraham (fourth left), Group CEO of Commercial Bank; and ambassadors of other Asean member countries.  Pic: Baher Amin / The Peninsula

Soonthorn Chaiyindeepum (fifth left), Ambassador of Thailand and Chairman of ACD; Joseph Abraham (fourth left), Group CEO of Commercial Bank; and ambassadors of other Asean member countries. Pic: Baher Amin / The Peninsula

By Raynald C Rivera / The Peninsula

A seminar organised by Association of SouthEast Asian Nations (Asean) Committee in Doha (ACD) on Monday highlighted the enormous potential in trade and investment between Qatar and Asean-member countries.
Held as part of the events to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of the founding of Asean, the “Seminar on Trade and Investment Opportunities in Asean” followed the success of the Business Seminar ACD organised with Qatar Chamber last year.
“This year, we build up from what we achieved during the last seminar in providing the perspectives from a leading business person as well as all Asean Ambassadors on the potentials in doing business with Asean. It is especially more relevant today, in light of the current situation that Qatar is now trying to diversify and encourage more trade and investment with countries in South East Asia, and to build up strong ties with Asean, as reflected by the recent visit of H H the Emir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia last month,” said Soonthorn Chaiyindeepum, Ambassador of Thailand and Chairman of ACD.
Chaiyindeepum went on to highlight Asean’s achievements in the past five decades, its contributions to economic growth and prosperity in the region and recent developments on its economic integration.
“Significant progress on its economic integration has seen the elimination of intra-regional tariff, streamlining of customs procedures, harmonisation of standards as well as business regulatory frameworks, liberalised financial market, and easier mobility of skill manpower and professionals in the region. All of these have led to reduced transaction costs and enabling environment for doing business in Asean,” he said.
A report from the World Bank on Ease of Doing Business for the year 2018 which was published last week has shown significant improvement in ranking of many Asean countries, he added. With Asean expanding Free Trade Agreements and an increasing investment in infrastructure and human resources, Asean has emerged as a strong player in the global trade arena leveraging on its strategic location, rich resource endowment, cost effectiveness, young demographic dividends and relatively stable political and security environment. Its economic dynamism has made Asean one of the world’s preferred investment destinations. Given these strengths, the region will continue to provide a platform for business to thrive with sustainable growth, he stressed.
Delivering the keynote address, Joseph Abraham, Group CEO of Commercial Bank, said the current blockade has opened up an opportunity for Asean and Qatar to look at the complementarities that are available.
Food and processed industries as well as construction materials are among the vast opportunities for Asean countries to help Qatar in its drive towards food security and self-sufficiency, he said.
In addition, he mentioned education, infrastructure and services sector as among the areas that can be explored to benefit both sides.
“Qatar offers a lot of opportunities with the diversification of the economy away from hydrocarbons, whether in the sports, education, free zones,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity to leverage the complementarities of Asean and Qatar so that both Qatar and Asean can look towards each other to ensure a very productive and long-term partnership which will meet the needs of both. For Qatar, it will provide its security and diversification needs and for Asean it will provide the opportunity for Qatar to invest and to deploy its capital in new and exciting areas in a growth-oriented region,” he stressed. Philippine Ambassador Alan Timbayan presented the key outcomes of the Asean Summit which concluded last week under the Philippines’s chairmanship.
Ibrahim Yousif Abdullah Fakhro, Chief of Protocol at Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Rawda Safwan Zeedan, Director of Private Schools Affairs Department at Ministry of Education and Higher Education, and all seven Asean Ambassadors attended the gathering held at Shangri-La Doha.
Business leaders from companies operating in Qatar, Asean and in the region attended the seminar which was followed by a Street Food Festival featuring famous cuisines from Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. A number of cultural performers from the seven Asean member countries enthralled the guests at the food festival which will run until the end of the month at Sridan Restaurant in Shangri-La Hotel Doha.