By Santhosh V Perumal/Business Reporter


Sheikh Faisal and Wang sign the co-operation agreement as other officials look on. Picture: Nasser TK
China is set to boost its investments in Qatar with the Asian giant’s private sector, especially small and medium enterprises (SMES), increasingly keen to establish partnerships and joint ventures here.
As part of fostering healthy bilateral investment relations, the Qatari Businessmen Association (QBA) last week entered into an agreement with China Qatar Business Council (CQBC) to encourage direct contact between businessmen of the two countries and promote private partnerships.
The agreement was signed by QBA chairman Sheikh Faisal bin Qasem al-Thani and CQBC executive chairman Lei Wang in the presence of Chinese Ambassador Zhang Zhiliang and other QBA and CQBC board members. The initiative follows the visit of Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao to Qatar last week.
Sheikh Faisal expressed the importance of this initiative in terms of the increasing economic co-operation between the two countries, as the volume of bilateral trade rose 72% year-on-year to $5.1bn in 2011.
“We would like to see more joint ventures and Chinese SMEs move into Qatar to establish their manufacturing base here,” QBA board member Sheikh Hamad bin Faisal al-Thani said.
Asked whether the investments would also include equity participation by Chinese companies, Sheikh Hamad, who is also chairman and managing director al khaliji, said all kinds of relations would be possible.
Terming the Chinese Prime Minister’s two-day visit to Qatar as “phenomenal and opened a new chapter”, Zhiliang recalled Jiabao’s statement, which said China was keen to contribute towards the Qatar National Vision 2030, especially in the private sector.
“Chinese Prime Minister believes that the private sector can play a bigger role” and hence there was a need to promote investments into Qatar through joint ventures with Qatari partners, he said.
More than 24 years after China and Qatar established diplomatic relations, the two countries have conducted fruitful co-operation in the fields of politics, economy, trade, energy and culture.