Citing new laws adopted by the government, incentives, and advanced infrastructure, Qatar’s investment climate is “well-prepared” for more FDI from Germany, according to a Qatar Chamber official.

Speaking at the Qatar-Germany Business Meeting held in Doha on Sunday, Qatar Chamber board member Dr Khalid bin Klefeekh al-Hajri encouraged German companies “to further increase their investments in Qatar.”

The meeting was held in the presence of the Prime Minister of the Federal State of Lower Saxony, Stephan Weil, and German ambassador Hans-Udo Muzel, as well as a delegation composed of around 40 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from Lower Saxony.

“Qatar and Germany managed to build robust relations covering a wide range of fields; their economic relations are rapidly growing and developing at all levels and with bilateral trade reaching €1.9bn last year.

“There are more than 300 German companies working in Qatar, out of which, 45 of them have full German capital, while the rest have Qatari partners. These companies are active in vital sectors, such as railway, trade, construction, infrastructure and roads, communication, and medical equipment and services. Indeed, these investments are an added value for the Qatari market due to high technological expertise,” al-Hajri explained.

He also said Qatari investments in Germany witnessed “significant growth in the past few years” to reach more than €25bn in vital industries like automobile, IT, and the banking sectors.

“However, Qatar is planning to invest €10bn in the German economy over the next five years. This makes Germany one of the most important destinations for Qatar’s outward investments,” al-Hajri stressed.

Al-Hajri also encouraged German companies to pour more investments in Qatar, and at the same time, he called on the Qatari side to identify the opportunities available in German, particularly in Lower Saxony.

“In fact, there are opportunities galore for co-operation between both sides, especially in preparations for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and other mega projects in Qatar,” he said.

During the meeting, presentations were delivered by Fahd Ali al-Kuwari of the Qatar Free Zones Authority; Investment Promotion Agency director of Strategies Aymen Mohib, and Bern Fedder of the Foreign Trade, Investment Promotion at the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour, Transportation and Digitalisation.

The meeting was also highlighted by B2B meetings between Qatari and German companies specialising in the oil and gas, food and agriculture, TMT (technology, media, and telecommunication), health, real estate, aviation, hospitality, finance, and legal sectors.


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