São Paulo – Brazil’s Agriculture minister Tereza Cristina met this Thursday (28) with ambassadors from Arab countries in the Gulf region during a luncheon event at the Embassy of Kuwait in Brasília. She was accompanied by the Ministry’s Trade and International Relations secretary Orlando Leite Ribeiro.
The Embassy reported that the topics covered included Brazil’s relations with the Gulf and how to increase economic and commercial exchange and investment, especially in agriculture. Talks also revolved around existing issues and ideas on how to drive up business in the sector.
Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce president Rubens Hannun and International Relations vice president Osmar Chohfi were in attendance, alongside delegates from halal certifier institutions – which attest that items are fit for consumption by Muslims –, and the chair of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies’ Parliamentary Front for Agriculture, Alceu Moreira.
Apart from Kuwait’s ambassador Nasser Almotairi, attending diplomats included ambassadors Ali Abdullah Bahittam, of Saudi Arabia; Ahmed Ibrahim Abdulla Al Abdulla, of Qatar; Amad Hamood Al Abri, of Oman; and the chargé d’affaires for the Embassy of Bahrain, Bader Al Hulaibi.
Last September saw minister Cristina tour Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt. She addressed sanitary issues and authorizations for the purchase and sale of certain items to and from Brazil. The tour preceded president Jair Bolsonaro’s own October tour of the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia.
Hannun said that the meeting this Thursday was important, especially to move forward with discussions initiated during the minister’s Gulf tour.
Agribusiness exports from Brazil to the Arab countries in the Gulf fetched USD 3.1 billion through October this year, up 2% from a year ago as per Arab Chamber figures. The top-selling products were poultry, sugar, beef, maize and soy.
Agribusiness exports from Brazil to all Arab countries came out to USD 6.8 billion, up 2.1%. The best-sellers were poultry, sugar, beef, maize and livestock. Saudi Arabia is the biggest Arab importer of goods from Brazil, followed by Egypt and the UAE.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
