São Paulo – In a bid to weigh out the impact of the coronavirus crisis on transportation logistics between Arab and South American countries, the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) will partner up with the Union of Arab Chambers to host a webinar next Wednesday, August 12, at 9 am, Brasília time, themed “The impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the Arab logistics industry: Challenges and opportunities for Arab-South American partnerships.” The event is free of charge and registration is open. Simultaneous translation will be available into Arabic and Brazilian Portuguese.
Arab leaders have recognized the need to create shipping lanes connecting the Arab world and South America. In Brazil, this is one of the priority projects when it comes to driving trade with the Arab world. According to the ABCC’s secretary-general Tamer Mansour, the subject has been covered in a previous ABCC webinar. This time around, it will be discussed by public sector specialists in Brazil and the Arab countries. “We are revisiting the subject to discuss actual steps that can be set in motion,” said Mansour, who is slated to moderate the discussions.
A direct shipping lane between Brazil and the Arab countries has been in the agenda on and off since 2014, but according to Mansour, efforts to that end have not been followed through. “The pandemic and growing Arab-Brazilian relations mean we must resume these talks from two different perspectives. We need to define where to make joint investments towards creating Brazilian-Arab shipping lanes, and also towards creating a hub, in the Arab world, and infrastructure in Brazil,” he said. According to the secretary-general, these actions are important because they can lead to an exponential increase in the flow of goods between Brazil and the Arab countries. “This will facilitate trade, increase foreign sales diversity and cut down costs,” he argues.
Opening addresses will be delivered by Union of Arab Chambers secretary-general Khaled Hanafy, League of Arab States assistant secretary-general for Economic Affairs Kamal Hassan Ali, Alexandria Chamber of Commerce in Egypt president Ahmed Al Wakil, senator and Brazil-Arab Countries Parliamentary Group chairman Jean Paul Prates, and ABCC president Rubens Hannun.
Advances in global logistics and their post-pandemic implications in the Arab world will be discussed by Marcos Valentini, a specialist in logistics and supply chains, data scientist, and founding partner at SCL Big Data Analytics, and by an official from the Alexandria Chamber’s Transport Department.
The future of Arab-South American logistics partnerships will be covered by Suez Canal Economic Zone chairman Yahia Zaki; the director of New Concessions and Port Regulation Policies at Brazil’s Secretariat for Ports, Flávio Lavor; and the vice president for Central and South America of the International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH) & International Business and Innovation director at Port of Açu, Tessa Major.
The dean of the College of International Transport and Logistics at the Arab Academy for Science Technology & Maritime Transport (AASTMT) and Union of Arab Chambers economic consultant Sarah Elgazzar will go over the proposal to connect Arab and South American countries via a direct shipping route.
Quick facts
Webinar – The impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the Arab logistics industry: Challenges and opportunities for Arab-South American partnerships
August 12
Wednesday, 9 am (Brasília time)
Free of charge
Click here to register
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
