The State of Qatar participated in the eighth session of the Belt and Road Summit, held recently in Hong Kong under the theme 'Prospering on a Decade of Collaboration'.
Assistant Undersecretary for Commerce Affairs at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI), Saleh bin Majed Al Khulaifi, attended the inaugural ceremony of the summit in the presence of HE Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) John Lee, alongside a host of government officials and representatives of states and international organizations.
Al Khulaifi attended several sessions organized during the summit, in addition to participating in a work session on the Middle East region titled: " Business and Investment Outlook in the Middle East Market".
Assistant Undersecretary for Commerce Affairs at MoCI affirmed that Qatar's participation in the Belt and Road Summit translates its strong belief in the principle of a multi-lateral trade system and consolidation of cooperation frameworks with a variety of world countries, especially with Hong Kong which represents one of the most crucial trade partners for Qatar, where the volume of trade exchange between the two sides reached $1.1 bn in 2021, with an annual growth average exceeding %35 compared to 2017.
He lauded the solid historic relationship between Qatar and People's Republic of China (PRC), pointing out that China comes at the forefront of trade partners with Qatar, the largest source of imports and largest destination for exports with a trade exchange volume in commodities reaching $26bn in 2022.
The characteristics of business environment in Qatar were highlighted during the work session, including laws, legislations, initiatives, and programs that were endorsed to spur foreign investment.
Also, several meetings with senior dignitaries from public and private sectors participating in the summit were held.
This years summit was held concurrently with the 10th anniversary of launching the initiative that aims to build a trade network and infrastructure linking Asia, Europe, and Africa in quest of jointly achieving development and prosperity in those regions.
Nearly 6000 representatives from states and regions relevant to the belt and road initiative participated in the eighth session, including a contingent of government officials from over ten states, prominent government dignitaries, alongside business leaders from various territories of the world.
The summit highlighted the advancement made in the belt and road initiative since its inception in 2013, as well as the future prospects for investment and business.
Source: Qatar News Agency