The regional debut of Qatar Chamber’s ‘Made in Qatar’ exhibition in Saudi Arabia provides an “important window” for Qatari companies to market their products and services, as well as promote various industries, an official of Qatar Development Bank (QDB) has said.
QDB chief executive officer Abdulaziz bin Nasser al-Khalifa said the objectives of the exhibition, scheduled for November 6-9 at the Riyadh International Convention & Exhibition Centre, are aligned with QDB’s mission to open new markets for Qatar’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and encourage investments in industrial projects.
To support this year’s ‘Made in Qatar’, al-Khalifa signed a sponsorship agreement with Qatar Chamber director general Saleh Hamad al-Sharqi yesterday.
He stressed that QDB had supported the four previous ‘Made in Qatar’ exhibitions since its launch in 2009.
“QDB is proud to sponsor this year’s exhibition. It is our unwavering commitment to support all initiatives and ideas that invigorate and enrich the Qatari industrial sector,” al-Khalifa said.
Al-Sharqi expressed his gratitude to QDB: “We are proud to have QDB onboard as our strategic sponsor of ‘Made in Qatar 2016’, as we are certain that the exhibition will help usher in a new economic era for Qatar by helping the nation achieve its aspirations in the global market.”
He stressed that ‘Made in Qatar’ is an initiative that helps provide local businesses, from across a wide range of sectors, with a forum to display their best achievements and showcase the nation’s rapid economic developments.
“Furthermore, the active involvement of the small and medium-sized enterprise participants also serves as a testimony to the fertile environment that the Qatari market offers interested investors,” al-Sharqi said.
He also expressed optimism that the exhibition will succeed in its objective of forging stronger ties between local industries and foreign investors through offering unique business opportunities for both Qatari and Saudi Arabian private sectors.
Al-Sharqi said ‘Made in Qatar’ enables Qatari companies to exchange knowledge and expertise with their Saudi counterparts, and paves the way for further consolidating economic partnership between Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
“Moreover, the exhibition opens new external markets for Qatari manufacturers, especially for SMEs, and presents potential investment opportunities to Saudi Arabian entrepreneurs,” he said.
He said the number of participants is expected to double compared to the previous edition, which attracted more than 220 companies and factories. The total space of the exhibition is 10,000sq m.
In addition to sponsoring all five instalments of ‘Made in Qatar’, QDB has contributed to the ongoing development of Qatar’s industrial sector through its funding and consultancy programmes. Some of the businesses supported by QDB are involved in manufacturing, chemicals, plastics, woods, electronics as well as food and beverage.