São Paulo – While Brazil’s exports to Arab countries are dominated by sugar, chicken meat, ore, and corn, Pará’s sales to the region are primarily composed of live cattle, iron ore, corn, and soy. The state also has different top destinations for its products within the Arab world, namely Oman, Iraq, Egypt, and Lebanon, whereas Brazil as a whole mainly ships to the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Algeria.
It was this diverse face of Pará that the Arab ambassadors encountered during their visit to the state from last Sunday (15) to this Wednesday (18). Organized by the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Brazil, with coordination by the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) and support from Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the mission brought representatives from Palestine, Jordan, Syria, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Sudan, Mauritania, Iraq, and Lebanon for a series of meetings with both the public and private sectors of the state.
Pará is the largest producer of açaí in Brazil and has a broad economic base, ranging from the supply of cosmetics made with Amazon-sourced ingredients to beef and fish production, among other products and sectors. In addition, the state will host this year’s most important global climate summit—COP30—bringing together leaders from around the world.
“It’s a state that produces inputs somewhat different from those we’re used to exporting to Arab countries,” said Mohamad Mourad, Vice President of International Relations & Secretary-General of the ABCC, in an interview with ANBA after taking part in the mission. He pointed out that Lebanon—a country not among the top Arab destinations of Brazilian exports—is, for example, the fourth-largest Arab buyer of goods from Pará. “Pará has a different profile and still holds many export opportunities for other products,” Mourad said.
The broad economic profile of the state of Pará and the city of Belém was presented to the Arab diplomats in meetings with Governor Helder Barbalho and Mayor Igor Normando. During a seminar at industry group FIEPA, the ambassadors also had the opportunity to learn about the state’s productive sectors through various organizations and unions. “We had meetings with important sectors with which we envision possibilities for exchange,” said Ibrahim Alzeben, dean of the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Brazil and Palestinian ambassador in Brasília, in an interview with ANBA.
During the ambassadors’ meeting with Normando, the name of Pará’s capital—which also refers to Bethlehem in Palestine—was discussed. In the meeting, Alzeben expressed his happiness about the connection and mentioned the possibility of Pará’s Belém establishing sister city agreements with Arab municipalities.
A place for COP30
In addition to the economic exchange opportunities with the state, the hosting of COP30 in Belém was also a central topic of the mission. The conference was the subject of discussions between the ambassadors and local interlocutors, including representatives from the COP30 Committee. The diplomats were also able to see the conference preparations firsthand by visiting Parque da Cidade, where the event will take place in November. “It’s a massive project being carried out day and night to ensure the success of COP30,” reported the dean and ambassador Alzeben to ANBA.
Alzeben is keen to emphasize that hosting COP30 is important not only for Pará. “Your success is our success—it is for the good and future of humanity as a whole,” the diplomat said during the meeting with Governor Barbalho. “We also thank the Brazilian government, and President Lula, who, with a forward-looking vision, directed efforts to make Belém the host of this international gathering. It’s a vision that concerns not only the progress of Belém and Brazil but of all humanity,” Alzeben told ANBA.
Alzeben highlighted the efforts made by both the state and federal governments for COP30 and expressed no doubt about the conference’s success, which will host dozens of heads of state and hundreds of delegations. After touring the park’s infrastructure and learning about initiatives such as the construction of a hotel to accommodate authorities, cruise ships that will host conference participants, the planned school holiday in the city, and the airport renovation, among other details, Alzeben said the conference is in good hands. “Our authorities and delegates will be well accommodated to fulfill the main objective of this conference,” he said.
The ambassadors also met with representatives from Brazil’s state-run agricultural center Embrapa during their trip to Pará and toured the facilities the research institution is preparing for COP30. Embrapa will play an important role in the conference, showcasing the sustainability and resilience of Brazilian agriculture through laboratories, experimental farms, and other facilities that conference delegates will be able to visit.
More Pará for the Arabs
During the ambassadors’ meetings in Pará, other topics were also discussed, such as the halal products market—those produced according to Islamic law—the upcoming Global Halal Business Forum organized by the ABCC and FAMBRAS Halal scheduled for October. They also talked about activities the ABCC will host later this year, including missions and trade fairs where Pará businesspeople can participate. “We also invited them to organize a joint mission to the Arab countries,” Mourad said.
The diplomats were also welcomed by the local Arab community at the Monte Líbano club in Belém. According to information provided by the mayor, this community numbers around 400,000 people in Pará, including immigrants and their descendants. The ambassadors also visited the Utinga State Park, attended lunch and dinner hosted by the ABCC, toured the Belém waterfront, and visited Ver-o-Peso Market, one of the largest open-air markets in the world.
Mourad says the visit was very important for the ambassadors to gain a deeper understanding of Brazil’s diverse realities. “Brazil is like 27 countries in one,” he said, noting that the mission was an effort to go beyond the South and Southeast regions. “There is a vast Brazil, with several developed and efficient sectors capable of exporting to Arab countries, not only in the North but also in the Northeast and Central-West,” he affirmed. Mourad believes that the ambassadors’ engagement with industry federations also helps each country understand how to sell its products to these states. “A country’s economy doesn’t rely solely on exports; it needs imports as well,” he added.
The delegation
Speaking to ANBA, Alzeben highlighted the ABCC’s efforts behind the mission, led by Mourad and supported by Institutional Relations Director Fernanda Baltazar, Corporate and Institutional Services Coordinator Ana Cristina Oliveira, and translator Saleh Hassan. “They worked tirelessly for the success of this mission,” he said. He also emphasized the important roles played by Brazil’s foreign ministry, the government of the state of Pará, and the participating Arab diplomats in organizing and ensuring the mission’s success.
The delegation included, besides Alzeben and Mourad: Maen Masadeh, Ambassador of Jordan; Rania Alhaj Ali, Ambassador of Syria; Osama Sawan, Ambassador of Libya; Nabil Lakhal, Ambassador of Tunisia; Abdelaziz Cherif, Ambassador of Algeria; Ahmad Swar, Ambassador of Sudan; Ahmed Bouceïf, Ambassador of Mauritania; Firas Al Hammadany, Chargé d’Affaires of Iraq; and Makram Douraid Said, Honorary Consul of Lebanon in Belém. Accompanying the group were Bruno D’Abreu e Souza, Deputy Chief of the Gulf Countries Division at Brazil’s foreign ministry, and Unaldo Eugenio Vieira de Sousa, Diplomat and Coordinator of International Relations at the Government of Pará’s Representation in Brasília. Some of the Arab ambassadors participated in the mission along with their families.
Read more:
COP30 takes Arab ambassadors to Brazil’s Pará
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
