Italy and Turkey have recorded growth in their bilateral trade with Qatar, it was announced yesterday during the comeback announcement of Hospitality Qatar slated at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre (DECC) from November 8 to 11.
Citing data from Qatar's Customs authorities, Italian Trade Agency (ITA) trade commissioner Augusta Smargiassi said Qatar’s imports from Italy’s agri-foods sector “are growing continuously,” reaching €34mn in the first nine months of 2021, or a 1.2% growth over the same period last year.
Qatar’s total imports from Italy between January and September 2021 stood at €853mn, a 26% growth over 2020, making Italy the sixth-largest supplier to Qatar, Smargiassi told Gulf Times on the sidelines of the press conference yesterday.
Also speaking at the event, Turkish ambassador in Doha Dr Mustafa Goksu reported that Qatar-Turkey total trade last year stood at $1.2bn or a 6% growth over 2019. This year, Turkey expects total trade with Qatar to reach $1.5bn having already achieved $1bn in the first eight months of 2021, said Goksu.
Haidar Mshaimesh, general manager of IFP Qatar, said the event will gather over 170 exhibitors from more than 30 countries. More than 70 international stakeholders and about 100 Qatari entities will join, which is the same number of participants during its pre-pandemic edition in 2019.
“Holding Hospitality Qatar two years after its last edition is important at this time as it confirms the success of the hospitality and tourism sector in Qatar in surpassing pandemic-related challenges. Qatar is now moving forward with its preparations as the host of FIFA World Cup in November 2022,” said Mshaimesh.
Highlighting this strong comeback, Mshaimesh added: “IFP Qatar has prepared a comprehensive and interactive programme for this edition in partnership with several government and private stakeholders, most notably the ‘The Countdown Begins’ conference, which will be held in partnership with Qatar Tourism.
“Other programmes include the ‘Destination Pavilion’ sponsored by Qatar Airways, an awards ceremony recognising the best restaurants in Qatar in partnership with talabat, and a barista competition to be held in co-operation with Corona International, as well as live cooking shows with the participation of the best chefs in Qatar. The event will also hold a number of training workshops in various areas and other activities to make this edition exceptional.”
Italian ambassador Alessandro Prunas said, “Italy’s participation will be marked with our own national pavilion led by the ITA. Italy has been participating in the event for successive years to further promote the importance of the hospitality sector in Qatar for Italian companies, and to unlock more opportunities for further development in this sector through exchange of experiences and technologies.”
Goksu said, “Turkey is participating with the largest international pavilion led by the Turkish Ministry of Trade as a testament of the strong trade relations between Turkey and Qatar. Turkey has a long and comprehensive experience in tourism and hospitality as one of the top tourist destinations in the world, and we leverage this to support Qatar’s hospitality sector ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.”
Citing data from Qatar's Customs authorities, Italian Trade Agency (ITA) trade commissioner Augusta Smargiassi said Qatar’s imports from Italy’s agri-foods sector “are growing continuously,” reaching €34mn in the first nine months of 2021, or a 1.2% growth over the same period last year.
Qatar’s total imports from Italy between January and September 2021 stood at €853mn, a 26% growth over 2020, making Italy the sixth-largest supplier to Qatar, Smargiassi told Gulf Times on the sidelines of the press conference yesterday.
Also speaking at the event, Turkish ambassador in Doha Dr Mustafa Goksu reported that Qatar-Turkey total trade last year stood at $1.2bn or a 6% growth over 2019. This year, Turkey expects total trade with Qatar to reach $1.5bn having already achieved $1bn in the first eight months of 2021, said Goksu.
Haidar Mshaimesh, general manager of IFP Qatar, said the event will gather over 170 exhibitors from more than 30 countries. More than 70 international stakeholders and about 100 Qatari entities will join, which is the same number of participants during its pre-pandemic edition in 2019.
“Holding Hospitality Qatar two years after its last edition is important at this time as it confirms the success of the hospitality and tourism sector in Qatar in surpassing pandemic-related challenges. Qatar is now moving forward with its preparations as the host of FIFA World Cup in November 2022,” said Mshaimesh.
Highlighting this strong comeback, Mshaimesh added: “IFP Qatar has prepared a comprehensive and interactive programme for this edition in partnership with several government and private stakeholders, most notably the ‘The Countdown Begins’ conference, which will be held in partnership with Qatar Tourism.
“Other programmes include the ‘Destination Pavilion’ sponsored by Qatar Airways, an awards ceremony recognising the best restaurants in Qatar in partnership with talabat, and a barista competition to be held in co-operation with Corona International, as well as live cooking shows with the participation of the best chefs in Qatar. The event will also hold a number of training workshops in various areas and other activities to make this edition exceptional.”
Italian ambassador Alessandro Prunas said, “Italy’s participation will be marked with our own national pavilion led by the ITA. Italy has been participating in the event for successive years to further promote the importance of the hospitality sector in Qatar for Italian companies, and to unlock more opportunities for further development in this sector through exchange of experiences and technologies.”
Goksu said, “Turkey is participating with the largest international pavilion led by the Turkish Ministry of Trade as a testament of the strong trade relations between Turkey and Qatar. Turkey has a long and comprehensive experience in tourism and hospitality as one of the top tourist destinations in the world, and we leverage this to support Qatar’s hospitality sector ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.”
