The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) is participating in the St Petersburg International Economic Forum 2019 (SPIEF) being held in St Petersburg, Russia from June 6 to 8.
The participation of the MoCI in the key event as part of the Qatar pavilion highlights the State of Qatar's "keenness to enhance economic, trade and investment relations with Russia".
The event is being held under the theme of "Establishing the Agenda for Sustainable Development".
It also highlights the incentives provided by Qatar for foreign investors and the investment opportunities available in various “promising” sectors.
This is part of Qatar’s strategy for attracting more foreign direct investments and strengthening the country’s competitive position in the region and beyond.
Through its participation in this year’s edition of the forum, the MoCI will highlight the characteristics of Qatar’s investment environment and provide insight into the key laws and legislations adopted by the State to stimulate domestic and foreign investments, including the law on regulating the Investment of the non-Qatari Capital in Economic Activity.
The pavilion will showcase the incentives and advantages offered to investors such as the exemption of foreign capital from income tax for up to ten years when it comes to specific investment projects across many sectors in addition to exemptions from customs taxes and duties when importing equipment and raw materials. The ministry will also highlight the services it provides to investors to streamline investment applications, company incorporation procedures and various transactions.
Qatar’s participation in the 23rd edition of the SPIEF precedes the designation of Qatar as an official partner of Russia in the 2020 edition of the forum, which will bring together more than 600 participants from Qatar.
Qatar is represented at the forum by the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Qatar Chamber, Qatar Russian Business Council, Qatar Development Bank, Qatar Financial Center, Qatar Investment Authority, Qatar Airways, National Tourism Council, Higher Committee for Projects and Heritage, Gulf Organisation for Research and Development, Science and Technology Park, Qatar University, Center for Sustainable Development – Faculty of Arts and Sciences and Hamad Bin Khalifa University.
The St Petersburg Forum has been organised since 1997 and is a leading global platform that brings together politicians, decision-makers, economists, business leaders from all over the world, representatives of academia, the media and civil society.
The forum annually organises extensive outdoor activities, business forums and meetings for business representatives. Major economic issues concerning the Russian Federation, emerging markets and the world as a whole are also discussed.
Last year, the forum was attended by some 17,000 people from 143 countries.
More than 150 business events were held as part of the forum in 2018, featuring nearly 1,000 speakers. As many as 593 investment agreements were also concluded.
