São Paulo – Next Wednesday (22) will see the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce host its second webinar since the lockdown began. What sets these online events apart is the fact that they feature speakers and viewers from Brazil and abroad – especially from Arab countries. The webinars use technology that allows for simultaneous translation – which is available into Brazilian Portuguese and English.
This week’s webinar will cover one of the relevant aspects to the continuation of Brazilian-Arab trade amid Covid-19: logistics. Last week’s edition dealt with food supplies, another key aspect of said trade, since Brazil is a major supplier of foodstuffs to Arab countries, whose climate does not allow largescale food production.
Arab Chamber president Rubens Hannun believes that right now, it’s important to have international seminars. “We’re bringing opinions from different parts of the globe. Every country is experiencing the same issues, at different points in time,” he says, mentioning the different regions that have and will be represented in the Chamber’s online events, such as South America, the Gulf, North Africa, and Europe. “Getting everyone in one place at once as fast as we’re doing virtually would be impossible in normal times, because planning and organizing takes time,” says Hannun.
The first Arab Chamber webinar featured Brazilian and Arab authorities: Brazil’s Agriculture, Livestock and Supply minister Tereza Cristina and Union of Arab Chambers secretary-general Khaled Hanafy. The second edition will bring major logistics industry players of the likes of Emirates SkyCargo, Maersk Line, Brazil’s National Confederation of Transport (CNT) and a researcher from the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport.
“The Arab Chamber has always used cutting-edge tools to connect Brazilians and Arabs. Despite the need to isolate right now, we have once again managed to achieve this unity through webinars. Simultaneous translation enables all Arab and Brazilian participants to access the content, so they can get together to discuss and make plans the future,” Arab Chamber Information Technology manager Marcos Bulgarelli told ANBA.
The first Arab Chamber webinar had 800 viewers, 70% in Brazil and 30% abroad, mostly in Arab countries. “This is our job: to bring together Brazilians and Arabs,” says Hannun. Each webinar features executives from one Arab and one Brazilian company, who interact with the speakers to convey their experience with the pandemic and ask questions.
Registration is open for next Wednesday’s webinar.
Quick facts
Webinar in International Logistics
Challenges and developments of the Covid-19 situation
April 22, 9 am-10:30 pm
Simultaneous interpretation into English and Brazilian Portuguese
Register here
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
