Qatar has undertaken additional measures to facilitate trade flow and boost the investments, which have resulted in considerable reduction in transaction costs, thus helping the country achieve faster growth with efficiency.
This was disclosed by HE the Minister of Commerce and Industry and the Acting Finance Minister Ali bin Ahmed al-Kuwari at one of the sessions on the second day of the third session of Qatar Economic Forum, powered by Bloomberg.
The additional measures include accepting electronic certificates of origin and electronic certification of invoices associated with imports; accepting commercial invoices issued from a non-export or production country; the using of private customs warehouses; updating the customs refund process; the using of the ATA Carnet; the implementation of a new risk management system; industrial exemptions; the implementation of pre-clearance of shipments; and the use of authorised economic operators.
"These efforts had contributed to reducing the transaction costs in all economic sectors, one of the core economic development objectives, and an important part of the initiatives aimed at facilitating trade and investment," he said.
The minister also pointed out that the country's efforts to diversify its import markets, while streamlining procurement rules and import procedures, had allowed Qatar to move on without interruption or delays with major infrastructure projects, despite the challenges in the region.
Realising the role of international trade in achieving its future development goals; he said the country has proceeded to further liberalise its domestic markets to foreign investors across the economy, particularly in knowledge-intensive areas and real estate.
Highlighting that the State had taken many steps to achieve these goals; he said the establishment of the Investment Promotion Agency Qatar aimed at streamlining the sovereign efforts to encourage foreign investment at home.
The strategy of the Investment Promotion Agency is focused on tourism, advanced manufacturing and infrastructure, as well as agriculture and technology development.
On climate change, al-Kuwari said Qatar has taken the issue very "seriously" and in this regard, he highlighted that the country has pledged $100mn for the support of small and developing island-nations and least developed states to deal with the climate change.
He also highlighted that Qatar's tourism development strategy now includes the promotion of eco-friendly activities.