Dubai – Discussions are underway between São Paulo state governor João Doria and Emirates Airline president Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum for an additional daily São Paulo-Dubai flight. Doria, who’s in the UAE on a mission since last Sunday (9), met with Al Maktoum this Tuesday. “We will work to add a second daily flight connecting São Paulo and Dubai as of next year. We are negotiating,” the governor told the press during an event at the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry (Dubai Chamber).
Doria said the Dubai Chamber will be partners with the São Paulo state government’s Dubai office in efforts to entice investors into privatization programs as well as private investments. “The Dubai Chamber is highly relevant. It is the UAE’s own CNI [National Confederation of Industry] for both trade and industry. It is closely linked to the UAE’s prime minister Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and we have established a good rapport,” the governor said.
Besides the governor, panelists discussing business and investment opportunities at the Dubai Chamber event included São Paulo state secretaries Gustavo Junqueira, for Agriculture; Henrique Meirelles, for Finance; Patrícia Ellen, for Economic Development; Júlio Serson, for International Relations; João Octaviano Neto, for Logistics and Transportation; and São Paulo Investment Promotion Agency (InvesteSP) president Wilson Mello. Dubai Chamber president Majid Said Al Ghurair and international offices director Omar Khan also spoke. Pictured at the beginning of this story are Brazil’s ambassador to the UAE Fernando Igreja, Serson, Doria and Al Maktoum.
During another meeting, governor Doria and Al Ghurair entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on behalf of InvesteSP and the Dubai Chamber that will see the organizations work together to enhance Dubai-São Paulo economic ties.
This Tuesday, governor Doria also met with the UAE’s minister of Economy, Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri, and was slated to meet in the afternoon with the UAE’s prime minister and Dubai’s emir, but the meeting fell through. “He met with president Bolsonaro during his trip to the UAE. He’s very fond of Brazil and Latin America and he’s a big champion of Brazil-UAE relations; he’s aware of and encourages a number of initiatives,” Doria said of the emir.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
