Alexandre Rocha, special envoy*
alexandre.rocha@anba.com.br
Sanaa (Yemen) – Yemen needs everything. Dependent on exports of oil, the country needs to import all kinds of products, be they food, raw materials or finished goods. This information was supplied by the chairman of the board of governors of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry of Yemen, Mohammed Abdo Saeed, who met yesterday (01) with the secretary general at the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby, and with the ANBA reporter at his office in Sanaa, the country capital.
“Here it is possible to sell everything. The country is open and import fees are low, 5% for most products,” said Saeed, who is also the manager of the Sanaa office of Kayel Saeed Anam (KSA), the largest local business group. Brazil is currently known as a sugar, beef, chicken and coffee exporter in Yemen. KSA itself imports Brazilian products and has even thought of establishing a sugar mill in the country, a project that has not yet developed.
The Federation represents the 22 chambers of commerce in Yemen, private organisations set up in the 22 provinces of the country. Saeed suggested participation in a multi sector fair that takes place in Sanaa in June, as a way to expand promotion of Brazilian products.
He also spoke about the investment environment in the country, where foreigners may install companies and have 100% off the capital, be they trading companies, industries or even retail shops. To the businessman, who is also a member of the local parliament, the sectors with the greatest potential for growth are tourism, fishery and foreign trade.
“The country is located between Asia and Africa. For those interested in the African market, investing here is worthwhile,” he said. The country has a historic tradition as a trade centre and is close to the African coast.
In the area of tourism, the country is considered the berth of the Arab and Jewish people and is covered in historic monuments and archaeological sites, as well as having beautiful mountain landscapes and beaches. Just to give an idea, the Great Mosque of the Old City of Sanaa was built few years after the death of Prophet Mohammed.
The local architecture is an attraction in itself, with ancient multi-storeyed buildings built out of mud bricks. The narrow winding streets of the Old City hide a large number of “souks”, the traditional Arab markets, where they sell handicraft, garments and food.
The country’s long coastline favours fishing. The country is bathed by the waters of the Red Sea, of the Gulf of Aden and by the Arabian Sea. All these sectors, however, still need much development and the population of the country is poor.
Today, according to Saeed, the main source of income in the country is oil. The country exports around 300,000 barrels of oil a day, especially to the Far East. Tourism also has a respectable participation, with visitors coming from Germany, Italy, France and Spain.
Coffee
Among the historic elements, the country is also known for having been the first place to cultivate coffee, originally brought from Ethiopia. From here coffee won the world and arrived in Brazil, which is currently the main global exporter of the commodity.
“Today the production of coffee is small, around 5,000 tonnes a year, but it is very good quality,” said Saeed. According to him, coffee farming was replaced by “qat”, a stimulant plant whose leaves are constantly chewed by the local population.
Company
KSA Group, of which Saeed is the director, has, according to him, annual revenues of US$ 5 billion. Just to have an idea, the Gross Domestic Product of Yemen is US$ 18.7 billion. The company operates in trade, industry, banking and insurance. The group has 18 factories in Yemen, four in Saudi Arabia, five in Egypt, two in England and others in Indonesia and Malaysia.
The population of Yemen is around 22 million people. Apart from chicken and Sugar, Brazil also exports iron and steel, tobacco, dairy products, machinery and equipment, weapons and ammunition, paper, rubber artefacts and chocolate to the Arab country, although at lower volumes.
*Translated by Mark Ament
