São Paulo – This week, the 40th Conference of Arab Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture should take place. The event should include participation of organisations in the Arab world and in other regions, including the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. The central theme of the meeting, which takes place on the 29th and 30th, in the Egyptian capital, should be "The challenges of the private sector and of financing amidst the international financial crisis".
To the president at the Arab Brazilian Chamber, Salim Taufic Schahin, who should be at the event in the company of the organisation’s secretary general, Michel Alaby, the conference should offer an opportunity for exchange of ideas with business and government leaders about ways to minimize the effects of the crisis. "We may study how the situation is in each country, learn," said Schahin.
The meeting should include the following panels: "Liberalization of trade and the future of Arab industry", with participation of the minister of Industry and Trade of Egypt, Rachid Mohamed Rachid; "The part played by the private sector and the challenges of development," with the Egyptian minister of Finance, Youssef Boutros Ghaly; "The part of the private sector in the search for food safety", with the ministers of Agriculture of Egypt and Syria, Amin Abaza e Adel Safar; and "The development of commercial transportation", with the Egyptian Transportation minister, Mohamed Mansour.
According to Schahin, despite the crisis, relations between Brazil and the Arab world have been advancing. In the case of Brazilian exports, for example, after a reduction in the first two months of this year, business returned to growth in March, although imports dropped due to the devaluation of oil on the international market and to the greater Brazilian production of the commodity.
Closer ties
In the sidelines of the conference, Arab Brazilian Chamber board members should have meetings with trade leaders and authorities from Egypt. On Tuesday (28), they should have a meeting with minister Rachid and another with the secretary general at the League of Arab States, Amr Mussa. During the week, visits to the minister of oil, Sameh Fahmy, and to the presidents of the main trade organizations in the country are also scheduled.
With the ministers, apart from thanking them both for having visited Brazil last year, Schahin also plans to learn a little more about the situation of the local market in the current scenery and to discuss opportunities in the areas of trade, investment and tourism. "Egypt is the Arab country with the largest population and is always a potential market. We want to make use of the trade opportunities, in the tourism sector – after all, the country is a great tourist hub -, as well as bringing Brazilian and Egyptian businessmen closer together and verifying the reciprocal investment possibilities that may take place," he said.
Schahin also wants to explore themes like logistics, as, in his evaluation, Egypt may be used by Brazilian companies as a platform to reach other markets in Africa and the Middle East; and the oil sector, as the Arab country has been announcing new discoveries and companies in Brazil may offer a broad range of products and services for the sector. "These are contacts specifically to improve the connection between both nations," he said.
In the meeting with Mussa, the Arab Brazilian Chamber directors plan to thank him for the support received with regard to the strengthening of relations between Brazil and the Arab world. The secretary general of the League has been a great supporter of these ties since Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva placed them as one of the foreign policy targets of Brazil, soon after the beginning of his first term in office, in 2003.
In the meetings with trade and government leaderships, not only in Egypt, but also during the future trips he plans to take, Schahin also tries to collect information so that the Arab Brazilian Chamber may help more in the work of Arab embassies in Brazil.
*Translated by Mark Ament
