São Paulo – Brazilian industries of the Defense sector can expand their partnerships with Middle East and North Africa countries through exports as well as through the industrial operations in these countries. Carlos Frederico Queiroz de Aguiar, who took office as president of the Brazilian Association of Defense and Security Materials Industry (Abimde) this Wednesday (26th), said to ANBA that Brazil can have a more intense trade relation with “friendly Arab” countries.
He also said that his priority heading the association will be to present the sector to the Brazilian population as strategic and crucial as an instrument of persuasion and not one of violence.
“We have a long partnership in this sector with the Arab world. We can expand it to meet their demand, as well as help them overcome their difficulties, as in the case of jobs. We can help them create jobs; Brazil doesn’t have any restrictions to technology transfer to the Arab countries, so we could bring our technology to them. We will work on this”, said Aguiar after he took office in a ceremony at the 8th Naval District Command in the city of São Paulo.
The new president of Abimde replaced Sami Youssef Hassuani and his term goes from 2016 to 2018. He is the president of the non-lethal weapons manufacturer Condor and already held the position of president of Abimde twice early last decade.
Data from the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC) organized by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce show that, last year, member companies of Abimde exported USD 5.8 billion, an increase of 3% over 2014.
In his speech, Aguiar said that the amount is small if compared to the size of the Defense and Security global market, estimated to be around USD 1.3 trillion per year. “There is a growth potential for exports”, he said. Sales to the Arab countries totaled USD 171 million, a decline of 48.1% over 2014. The main importer was Saudi Arabia, with orders that totaled USD 110.6 million.
Besides expanding the operations of Defense companies in the Arab countries, Aguiar said that he will have other priority heading the association. “Demystify our performance for the public opinion and promote a wide-ranging discussion. It’s not a shame to export [our products] to friendly nations. It’s a commitment”, he said.
Attending the event were Perpétua Almeida, secretary of Defense Products of the Ministry of Defense; MP Jô Moraes (PC do B – MG), member of the Committee of Foreign Relations and National Defense; Carlos Zarattini (PT-SP), MP and president of the National Defense Joint Parliamentary Committee; and vice admiral Glauco Castilho, commander of the 8th Naval District.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
