São Paulo – This Monday (15th) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, the presidents of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Marcelo Sallum, and of the Arab Argentinean Chamber of Commerce, Edgard Omar Figueredo, have signed the statute that creates the Federation of Arab-South American Chambers of Commerce.
“The idea is to take advantage of the Argentinean Chamber’s 88 years’ experience and our own 60 years’ in order to motivate and help other South American countries establish their own Arab chambers, which in turn will make our federation stronger,” said Arab Brazilian Chamber CEO Michel Alaby, who attended the federation’s launch at Buenos Aires’ Syrian-Lebanese Club.
According to him, the main goal of the federation is to increase trade and tourism between South America and the Arab countries, “as well as enable cultural exchange among the two regions.”
The federation had been discussed at the editions of the Summit of South American-Arab Countries (Aspa) that were held in Brazil in 2005, in Qatar in 2009, and in Peru last year.
The next step, according to Alaby, will be to foster the setting up of Arab chambers of commerce in other South American countries such as Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay and Venezuela.
Former Arab Brazilian Chamber president Orlando Sarhan has been chosen to preside over thet federation, with Figueredo as the vice president and Alaby as secretary-general. Three advisors have also been appointed: Rubens Hannun and Nahid Chicani, respectively the Arab Brazilian Chamber’s Foreign Trade vice president and Treasury Director, and Sattam Al Kaddour, the secretary-general to the Argentinean Chamber.
According to Alaby, the event was attended by delegates from the embassies of Morocco, Palestine and Brazil in Buenos Aires, from Argentina’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, and from business organizations, as well as by Arab colony members and other guests.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
