Her Excellency Natasa Burke Musar, President of the Republic of Slovenia, expressed her aspiration for the partnership between her country and the State of Qatar to rise to broader horizons, noting that the two countries are linked by distinguished relations based on common interests, mutual respect and fruitful cooperation.
In her speech during the Qatari-Slovenian business meeting, hosted by the Qatar Chamber, the President of the Republic of Slovenia praised the renaissance witnessed by the State of Qatar, stressing her country’s interest in developing cooperation relations with it in all fields and noting the similarity between the two countries in terms of Qatar Vision 2030 and Slovenia’s vision, which are based on economic diversification, sustainability and innovation, which opens many horizons for cooperation and partnership between the two sides.
During the meeting, which was attended by Mr. Mohammed bin Ahmed bin Twar Al Kuwari, First Vice President of the Qatar Chamber, His Excellency Mr. Jassim Yacoub Al Hammadi, the non-resident Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Slovenia, and Ms. Natalia Al Mansour, the non-resident Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia to the country, Her Excellency called on the business sectors to closely learn about the features of the economy, the investment climate, and the opportunities available therein, especially in light of the developments achieved by Slovenia in science, technology, pharmaceutical industries, infrastructure, green technology, and others.
She pointed to the many opportunities for cooperation between the two sides, especially since Slovenia’s economy is strong and diversified and welcomes Qatari investments, and noted that the delegation accompanying her includes 25 leading companies looking forward to cooperating with Qatari companies in many sectors.
Her Excellency pointed out that trade exchange between the two countries is still below the level of ambitions, and the Slovenian side has a great desire to increase it to higher levels.
In the same context, Her Excellency witnessed the exchange of copies of a memorandum of understanding between the Qatar Chamber and the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
For his part, Mr. Mohammed bin Ahmed bin Twar Al Kuwari, First Vice President of the Qatar Chamber, praised the Slovenian President’s keenness to enhance cooperation between the Qatari and Slovenian business communities and explore investment and partnership opportunities available in both friendly countries.
Bin Towar pointed out in his speech that the Qatari-Slovenian relations have witnessed remarkable development in recent years, but the volume of trade exchange between the two countries is still below the level of expectations, as last year it reached 138 million Qatari riyals despite the strength of relations and the common keenness to develop them towards broader horizons, pointing out that the Qatar Chamber believes that the private sector can contribute to developing trade between the two countries.
Mr. Mohammed bin Ahmed bin Towar Al Kuwari, First Vice President of the Qatar Chamber, said: “There are broad potentials and promising opportunities to enhance cooperation between the Qatari business communities and their Slovenian counterparts, and there are opportunities available for partnership between Qatari and Slovenian companies in multiple sectors, including renewable energy, tourism, technology, food security, pharmaceutical industries, and logistics services.”
He stressed the Qatar Chamber’s interest in enhancing trade and investment cooperation with various sisterly and friendly countries, as it works through its committees and joint business councils to expand communication channels between business owners in Qatar and their counterparts abroad, which contributes to establishing successful strategic projects and partnerships.
He stressed that the Republic of Slovenia enjoys a developed investment environment, a strategic location in the heart of Europe, and a diversified economy based on innovation and advanced technology. He expected the memorandum of understanding between the Qatar and Slovenian chambers to add more momentum to the cooperation relations between business owners and investors from both sides by organizing forums, bilateral meetings, and visits by trade delegations that contribute to identifying available investment opportunities and exchanging experiences.
He stressed the readiness of the Qatar Chamber to support everything that would develop economic and trade relations between the two countries, and to provide the necessary facilities to Slovenian business owners who wish to enter the Qatari market or establish partnerships with their Qatari counterparts.
For her part, Ms. Marijana Mairic, Executive Director of the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the meeting constitutes an important platform to discuss partnerships, cooperation, investment opportunities and exchange of experiences between the business community in both countries. She noted that the signing of the memorandum of understanding between the two countries constitutes a qualitative leap to enhance cooperation at the private sector level.
She invited Qatari investors to visit her country to learn about the opportunities available there and to discuss with Slovenian companies in the fields of innovation and sustainable development, and she reviewed a number of initiatives in her country that are related to sustainability and innovation.
In turn, Mrs. Ibtihaj Al-Ahmadani, member of the Board of Directors of the Qatar Chamber, said that the memorandum of understanding between the Qatar Chamber and the Slovenian Chamber of Commerce and Industry represents an important step towards enhancing economic and trade cooperation between the two friendly countries.
During the meeting, Mr. Nasser Al Kaabi from the Investment Promotion Agency reviewed the investment climate and opportunities available in Qatar, while the Slovenian side made presentations from the Ministry of Economy, Tourism and Sports, and the Slovenian Business Development Agency. Ms. Florian Lavod, an international lawyer, also gave a presentation entitled “Qatari-Slovenian relations… a growing partnership.”