Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia plan to improve economic co-op
By Nigar Orujova
Azerbaijani and Arabian entrepreneurs need to expand mutual relations.
Shahin Mustafayev, Azerbaijan’s Economy and Industry Minister, made the remark at the Azerbaijani-Saudi Arabian business forum in Baku on May 15.
He stressed that the relations between the two countries are at a high level, particularly in the political sphere. "Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Saudi Arabia in April 2015 can be called as the best index of relations between the countries," he said.
Mustafayev noted the need to enhance the economic cooperation level up to the political one, saying that the trade turnover between the countries does not correspond to the level of relations between the two countries.
"In this regard, it is important to expand relations between our entrepreneurs," he said.
Mustafayev went on to add that Azerbaijan is an attractive country for making investments. This is stipulated by a number of factors, including political and macroeconomic stability.
Mustafayev also stressed on the need to establish a legal framework between the two countries.
"Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia can cooperate in the fields of agriculture, ICT, industry and alternative energy. In these areas we have concrete projects. We invite Saudi Arabian businessmen’s to cooperation,” he said.
He also spoke about the possibilities of making joint investments in third countries.
Saudi Arabia will hold another joint business forum with Azerbaijan this November, Mustafayev said.
"We have already reached a preliminary agreement on holding another business forum in Saudi Arabia in November," he said.
The current business forum between the two countries is the second of the kind to be held, he said. The first business forum was held in December 2013 as part of the intergovernmental commission.
The agreements reached as part of the current business forum will be a basis for signing new agreements in Saudi Arabia in November, he said.
The business forum supported by the Economy and Industry Ministry brings together the representatives of over 100 companies of Saudi Arabia.
The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia amounted to $14.66 million as of 2014, which is two times less compared to 2013, the Azerbaijani State Statistics Committee reported. Some $14.5 million accounted for the imports of Saudi Arabian goods to Azerbaijan last year.
Saudi Arabia is interested in increasing its trade turnover with Azerbaijan, said Tawfiq bin Fawzan Al Rabiah, the minister of commerce and industry of Saudi Arabia.
"Despite the fact that Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia signed an intergovernmental agreement on elimination of double taxation and protection of investments, trade turnover between our countries is very low and we are here to change the situation," said Al Rabiah.
During his speech, the minister expressed confidence that further meetings, in particular the joint business forum to be held in November in Saudi Arabia, will serve as a platform for further cooperation between the two countries.
"We are ready to accept all the Azerbaijani businessmen to take part in a business forum in Saudi Arabia. Their visit will be very useful, as we will hold useful meetings, we will work in areas of interest to us, which will lead to further expansion of relations between our countries," he stressed.
Saudi Arabia is interested in investing in the development of the agrarian sector in Azerbaijan, said Saleh al-Abdad, the representative of the Saudi Fund for Development.
He said that the fund is ready to finance the agricultural sector of the country through Azerbaijani banks. “We are already working in this field with Amrahbank and ready to provide loans for the financing of the agrarian sector to any bank interested in this,” he said, refusing to name the more accurate data.
Amrahbank is the first bank in Azerbaijan, with which the Saudi Fund for Development signed a loan agreement on the allocation of $4 million to finance trade operations in November 2012. Until then, the Saudi Fund carried out projects on the basis of state guarantees, provided loans to support infrastructure projects as well as projects in the social sphere.
Saleh al-Abdad said that the fund is also ready to finance Azerbaijani companies engaged in the import of products produced in Saudi Arabia.
“This is the main direction of activity of our foundation,” he said . “We want to increase the export of our products to many countries, including Azerbaijan.”
The share of agriculture and processing in total loan portfolio of Azerbaijani banks as of April 1, 2015 amounted to 4.5 percent (932.3 million manats).
During the Baku visit, the Saudi delegation was also received by President Ilham Aliyev. The president noted that bilateral relations between Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia are based on the close and friendly relations and cooperation between the two countries is at a high level.
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Nigar Orujova is AzerNews’s staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @o_nigar
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