The Union of Arab Chambers, which is the official representative of the Arab private sector, has affirmed that Qatar’s hosting of the 2022 FIFA World Cup “is a source of pride for all the people of the Arab region.”
This was revealed at the closing statement of the 133rd board of directors meeting of the Union of Arab Chambers (UAC) held recently in the State of Kuwait.
The ‘Kuwait Summit for the Private Sector’ statement also stressed that the World Cup opened broad horizons for Arab companies to implement more projects and gain more expertise.
Qatar Chamber chairman Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim al-Thani led the chamber’s delegation that participated in the meeting, which touched on many topics, including enhancing mutual investments between Arab countries and the most prominent obstacles facing the intra-Arab trade, in addition to upgrades in the global trade and opportunities available for Arab economies.
During the meeting, the heads of delegation praised Qatar’s organisation of the tournament, assuring that it is “a championship for all Arabs” and that its economic gains “would exceed all expectations.”
The statement also called on Arab governments to achieve the four freedoms that enhance Arab economic integration: the freedom of movement of individuals, the freedom of movement of capital, the freedom of movement of goods, and the freedom of transfer of services by accelerating the adoption of the Agreement on Liberalisation of Trade in Services among the Arab Countries.
The establishment of Arab values and supply chains through Arab ports and sea lines and logistics centres, and providing support for multimodal transport, as well as the establishment of an Arab commodity exchange were among the recommendations.
The meeting also stressed on encouraging the private sector to play its societal role in developing and supporting education, training, and entrepreneurship to create productive generations that keep pace with developments, with a focus on youth entrepreneurs.
It further called for empowering women’s participation in economic activity, activating the PPP in all economic sectors, and activating the role of banks and funds Arab development in support of investments.
Qatar Chamber chairman Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim al-Thani and other heads of chambers that participated in the meeting.
