São Paulo – The Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) provides institutional support to the first FII Priority that is being held this week in Rio de Janeiro. The institution hosted a warm-up meeting ahead of the event in late April and is organizing appointments on its sidelines. According to ABCC international relations vice president Mohamad Mourad, the institution is likely to hold new activities in the wake of this first edition.
“The ABCC has provided an extraordinarily strong institutional support, putting all of its effort in organizing sideline meetings, and we’ve been recognized for it. I believe [new actions in the wake of the FII] are bound to happen, trade relations will increase. Another edition of the event has already been confirmed for the next year in Rio, and they’ll need the ABCC, which was also invited to the October’s edition in [Saudi Arabia capital] Riyadh. This will be its biggest edition ever,” said Mourad.
Green transition and innovation on the agenda
Established by the Saudi Arabia-based Future Investment Initiative Institute (FII Institute), the FII Priority Summit is a gathering of leading figures and decisionmakers to discuss several challenges and opportunities for the future. It was already held in Hong Kong last year, and Miami, the United States, both last year and again in 2024. This Brazilian edition is themed “Invest in Dignity” and addresses green transition, technology, and innovation.
In the official opening of the event on Wednesday (12) at the Copacabana Palace Hotel, Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Rio de Janeiro’s Governor Claudio Castro, and Rio de Janeiro’s Mayor Eduardo Paes emphasize how the Latin American country is an established global player, and not just an emerging nation.
“They all brought an optimistic message for attracting investments to Brazil, for Brazil to be trusted as a cemented nation, not an emerging country. This was the core message they conveyed,” said Mourad.
Over three days, global leaders, government officials, investors, CEOS, entrepreneurs and FII Institute members participate in sessions debating issues such as climate action, BRICS, energy transition, sustainable development, entrepreneurship, and emerging technologies. Among speakers of the event are development bank BNDES planning executive Nelson Barbosa, Saudi officials, Mike Pompeo, former U.S. Secretary of State, and former presidents Felipe Calderon of Mexico; Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia; Jorge Quiroga of Bolivia; Laura Chinchilla of Costa Rica, and Alberto Fernández, former President of Argentina. Ministers of the current Brazilian government, such as Carlos Fávaro (Agriculture), and Alexandre Silveira (Mines and Energy), are also attending. Leandro Yamamoto, Executive Director of Mubadala Capital in Brazil, has also been confirmed as a speaker.
The FII was established by Saudi Arabia and is often dubbed “Davos in the Desert” in reference to the global summit held earlier in the year in Davos, Switzerland.
Brazil and Rio: Hosts of global events
ABCC institutional relations director Fernanda Baltazar said it is important for the institution to be in an environment gathering “extremely relevant” companies and government officials and pointed out Brazil and Rio de Janeiro will host this year’s summit of the G20, a forum composed of most of the world’s largest economies. In 2025, Belém in Pará state, Baltazar noted, will host the COP30 United Nations climate summit.
“It’s a good occasion to also learn more about these movements, explore the diversity of the private sector from Brazil, Arab countries and elsewhere,” said the ABCC director.
Baltazar stressed the services the institution provides to help companies connect their business between Brazil and the Arab countries. “Furthermore, [the ABCC] has two international regional branches [in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Cairo, Egypt] that provide all the support to both Arab and Brazilian enterprises and play a key role in dealing with governments and industry associations. We are an environment that’s conductive to relevant and current discussions with different perspectives to support and guide the private sector,” she added.
Besides Mourad and Baltazar, the FII Priority is attended by ABCC administrative vice president Daniel Hannun, board member Arthur Jafet, head of the Dubai office Rafael Solimeo, and new business director Estevão Margotti Carvalho.
Read more:
Brazil, Saudi Arabia sign defense agreement
Brazil’s FM meets with Saudi counterpart in Russia
Translated by Guilherme Miranda
