São Paulo – This Wednesday (17th), Libya’s deputy prime-minister Abdulsalam Al-Mahdi Al Qadi discussed the resumption of operations by Brazilian enterprises in Libya, during meetings with Brazil’s minister of Foreign Relations Antonio Patriota, vice president Michel Temer, and the president of the Chamber of Representatives Henrique Eduardo Alves (of the Rio Grande do Norte State chapter of party PMDB). Al Qadi is leading a delegation that will pay a visit to the headquarters of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp) on Thursday (18th).
During his meeting with Patriota, Al Qadi talked about reopening operations by Brazilian companies in the Arab country, which were halted during the revolt that led to the death of dictator Muammar Gaddafi in October 2011. The Brazilian companies affected by the uprising in Libya were Andrade Gutierrez, Odebrecht, Queiroz Galvão and state-owned oil company Petrobras.
According to information from the Brazilian Foreign Office (Itamaraty), the purpose of the meeting was not to set dates or sign documents relating to the resumption of operations. Still, this was one of the topics discussed by the ministers, aside from boosting trade relations between the two countries.
The same topic was discussed with the president of the Chamber of Representatives on Wednesday morning. According to representative Adrian Mussi (PMDB-Rio de Janeiro), who presides over the Brazil-Libya parliamentary group and is accompanying the visit, Al Qadi expressed interest and “urgency” in resuming operations by the construction companies and Petrobras in the projects that have been suspended.
“They are interested in our resuming the works because of their importance to Libya. There is a sense of urgency on the part of the companies and the Libyan government,” said Mussi. At his meeting with Temer, the deputy prime-minister said he will speak to all the Brazilian companies whose projects were suspended in Libya. According to the Brazilian Vice President’s Office website, Al Qadi also said the new Libyan government will prioritize the private sector on rebuilding the country.
Democracy and support
Al Qadi also addressed other topics in his trip to Brasília. According to Mussi, the deputy prime-minister of Libya spoke of increasing trade relations between Brazil and Libya starting this year. The Chamber president extended an invitation for Libyan parliament members to visit Brazil, and called upon Alves and Temer to go to Libya.
“The president of the Chamber of Representatives has invited Libyan parliament officials to travel to Brazil in October and spend a week, in the month of the Brazilian constitution’s 25th anniversary. The intention is to pass on our experience in transitioning from dictatorship into a democracy. Brazil has overcome economic issues and it has progressed through democracy. Their visit will be an opportunity to showcase our experience,” said Mussi.
The vice president’s office also informed that Al Qadi called on backing from Brazil during the country’s reconstruction, and said Libya supports the candidacy of the Brazilian diplomat Roberto Carvalho de Azevêdo for director-general of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
Temer called on the deputy prime-minister of Libya to support São Paulo’s bid to host the next edition of the World’s Fair, due in 2020. The capital of São Paulo is running against Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, Izmir, in Turkey, Ayutthaya (Thailand) and Yekaterinburg, in Russia. Al Qadi also had lunch with Brazil’s minister of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Fernando Pimentel. The visits were accompanied by the Brazilian ambassador to Tripoli, Afonso Carbonar.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
