BRASILIA, July 23, (KUNA): A joint committee tasked with finding ways to increase trade and investment between Kuwait and Brazil is to be formed, Kuwait Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) Member of the Board Directors Sayer Bader Al-Sayer said in Brazil Friday.
The move is aimed at increasing trade volume between both nations, discussing challenges facing this cooperation and displaying investment opportunities for Kuwaiti businesses in Brazil, Al-Sayer said during a dinner organised by the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (CCAB) in honour of the visiting KCCI.
The KCCI delegation headed by Al-Sayer, is accompanying His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Sabah in his tour of Latin America and the Caribbean.
KCCI member Talal Al-Kharafi while meeting with the CCAB, stressed the importance of the Brazilian economy and the evident growth it is witnessing, which makes it one of the most important countries in the region.
“We hope for practical workshops involving the CCAB and KCCI to look into investment opportunities, displaying them to the Kuwaiti private sector and to make laws, guidelines and the taxation system for foreign investors known after trade agreements between the two countries are signed,” he said.
Al-Kharafi went on to praise historical relations between both countries in all fields, particularly those related to trade and the economy.
He said both sides signed an agreement for economic partnership in 1975, followed by a cooperation protocol between the KCCI and CCAB in 1998 and another in 2006 between the KCCI and the Federation of Industries of the state of Santa Catarina.
The meeting is the twelfth between both sides. The last Brazilian delegation to visit Kuwait was in April and was headed by CCAB Deputy Director Wladimir Rafik Freua. The visit was aimed at identifying Brazilian companies through several presentations.
CCAB Member of the Board of Directors Beshara Aziz Ibrahim said he looked to enhancing trade exchange between both countries.
He said that a high-level delegation of business-owners was set to make a visit to Kuwait in order to display avenues for investment and cooperation and that this visit would likely be in October.
Deeply-rooted
Meanwhile, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva described his country’s relations with Kuwait as being deeply-rooted and dating back to 40 years of diplomatic ties, adding that Brazil truly wanted to enhance these ties and to raise the level of cooperation, political dialogue, partnership and development with Kuwait.
This came in a speech by the president at a luncheon he hosted recently in honor of His Highness the Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and his accompanying delegation.
Da Silva said that relations between Kuwait and Brazil faced some challenges because of international circumstances, but communication between the two sides was never severed and continued despite the debt crisis Brazil encountered in the 1980s. This helped Brazil overcome these problems, and relations were now headed towards greater political deliberation, and were enhanced during the Gulf War in the 1990s.
He said that His Highness Sheikh Nasser’s visit to Brazil represented the beginning of a new era in constructive relations between the two countries, adding that Brazil had its own agenda that would serve the interests of the two countries, and that the aim was not just to strengthen relations with the Kuwaiti government, but also with the Middle East at large in order to fulfill Brazil’s aspirations and interests.
Da Silva added that his country would be working to increase trade exchange and implementing the free trade agreement between Latin American and GCC countries, known as the Mercosul.
“We consider Kuwait an important partner in this agreement because it is a Gulf state, and Brazil supports the Arab-Latin American summit,” he said.
Moreover, he said that his country was content with the interest that Gulf states, and especially Kuwait, were showing to Brazil and Latin America.
“Allow me to say that your visit to Latin American and Caribbean countries reflects the success of our efforts, through which we seek - together, and through visits of Arab leaders and commercial exchange - to build greater relations in the fields of culture, tourism, sports, commerce, economy and finance,” he said.
Impressed
The Brazilian president said that he was “impressed” that Kuwait would be represented by such a high-ranking delegation that included ministers and representatives of the business community, adding that the Brazilian business community was interested to learn more about how to increase cooperation and investment with Kuwait.
“Minister of Development, Industry, and Trade Miguel Joao Jorge will head a commercial delegation, which will visit Kuwait in October. It will group representatives of Brazilian companies interested in seeking investment opportunities and raising cooperation with Kuwait, in line with Kuwait’s development plan for 2035,” he said.
Da Silva said that Kuwaiti investments would be secure in his country, noting that a comprehensive development plan would be in place for the coming year, to keep up with development programs and to prepare for hosting the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympic Games.
He said that Brazil was seeking to attract Kuwaiti investment and partnerships in the interest of both sides, adding that recent oil excavation beneath the mineral layer along the Brazilian coast would be a promising area for Kuwait investments.
“To follow up on these matters, we would like to put in place an active mechanism that will help us continue our constructive dialogue, through a joint committee between our two countries,” he said.
Da Silva said that Brazil’s interests in the Middle East exceeded the boundaries of commerce, because it also sought out peace and stability in the region, adding that Brazil was ready to mediate and to help launch dialogue between the parties, In response, His Highness Sheikh Nasser expressed his deep appreciation for the warm welcome and hospitality with which he and his accompanying delegation were received.
He said that this reflected the strong and historic relationship, which began in the previous decade with the inauguration of the Brazilian Embassy in Kuwait in 1972.
His Highness Sheikh Nasser said that Brazil’s supportive stance towards Kuwait during its 1990 invasion by Iraq “is a stance that the Kuwaiti people appreciate, and has been recorded in history. Brazil is a country with political, social, commercial, investment and cultural relations that exceeded the South American continent to reach out to the world at large. Thus, Kuwait has been keen on enhancing its relationship with Brazil in all areas, and we will march forth on this track, for our joint interest,” he said.
Furthermore, His Highness Sheikh Nasser said that the delegation of representatives of the Kuwaiti private sector that was accompanying him on this tour was of great importance in enhancing commercial, economic and investment cooperation with Brazil, which was a country that had promising investment opportunities for the Kuwait.
He said that his tour of Latin American and Caribbean countries reflected Kuwait’s keenness for boosting its ties with these countries, as well as Brazil, noting that commercial and economic relations between the two countries were developing noticeably.
His Highness Sheikh Nasser called for not only consolidating ties between Brazil and Kuwait, but also with Arab and GCC states.
Moreover, Sheikh Nasser said that Kuwait’s Amir was keen on consolidating relations with Latin America, noting that Kuwait would be highly represented at the Climate Change Summit in Cancun, Mexico, as well as at the Arab-Latin American Summit.