Florianópolis – Spreading knowledge between Brazil and Oman, attracting executives and fostering business between the two countries will be the goals of the presentations and debates of the Brazil-Oman Economic Forum, hosted by the Omani embassy and the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. The event will be held on May 12th at São Paulo’s Hyatt Hotel. The meeting will be attended by the Brazilian vice president, Michel Temer, Brazilian business executives, and by Omani government officials and executives.
The Omani ambassador in Brazil, Khalid Salim Al Jaradi, has told ANBA that the forum’s goal is to increase the konwledge of Brazilians regarding Oman and vice versa, so as to boost trade and establish closer diplomatic ties. “I believe this forum is a good opportunity for increasing mutual knowledge, promoting direct dialogue between Brazil and Oman and between businessmen from the two countries,” Jaradi said.
According to the ambassador, the Omani executives and officials will give presentations on the existing free zones in the country, looking to attract Brazilian companies. The Arab country’s government is also interested in learning about Brazil’s best practices in environment preservation.
The forum’s participants will include the comercial director at the Port of Duqm Company, Reggy Vermeulen, the Emerging Markets vice president for Oman Oil Company, Hilal Al Kharusi, the CEO of the Oman Investment Fund, Hassan Al Nabhani, and the chairman of the Duqm Special Economic Zone Authority, Yahya Said Abdullah Al Jabri, plus officials from the Oil and Gas and Agriculture ministries.
Al Jaradi claims Oman has keen interest in attracting Brazilian enterprises into the country’s free zones. One said company, Vale, is already operating in one of these zones, at the Port of Sohar. The Arab Brazilian Chamber CEO Michel Alaby said the country boasts a strategic position, which enables access to key markets in the region and in Asia, such as India and China. "The connection with the Indian Ocean and with other Gulf countries will give Brazilian enterprises the opportunity to gain a foothold in the region with distribution centres and cater to this expanded market. One case in point is Vale,” he asserted.
In addition to presentations by different companies, the event will feature parallel meetings for Brazilian and Omani businessmen. Approximately 250 people are expected to participate in the forum.
In 2013, Brazil and Oman have promoted other events designed to foster closer ties and partnerships. The Brazilian visited the Arab country in the first half this year. In November, the Omani minister of Education, Madiha al-Shaibani, travelled to Rio de Janeiro. According to ambassador Jaradi, Oman should keep working on its ties with Brazil this year. The Omani government plans on holding two other events in the country this year, in June and August. "We consider Brazil a good strategic partner. The two countries have good relations; their attitudes and diplomatic positions are very similar. We want to work in tandem with Brazil,” the diplomat said.
Service:
Brazil-Oman Economic Forum
May 12th
Hotel Hyatt, São Paulo, SP
Information: 55 11 3283-4066
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
