UAE and Algeria discuss measures to strengthen bilateral trade relations

Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori, UAE Minister of Economy, who led the UAE delegation to Algeria, signed the joint statement of the 8^th Joint Committee Meeting between the two countries with His Excellency Karim Joudi, Algerian Minister of Finance,.in the presence of senior officials from both sides.

Mr Al Mansoori has met the Algerian Prime Minister, His Excellency Ahmed Oyehia, at his office. They discussed ways to strengthen bilateral trade relations between the UAE and Algeria and remove obstacles facing investment projects in Algeria. The Algerian Prime Minister praised the development drive in the UAE and its distinguished position on the world map. “The UAE is strategic hub for Algeria as it is a gateway to the Middle East. We will do our best to offer the UAE investors an ideal investment environment in our country,” he added. .

Mr Al Mansoori, said both countries offer strong investment opportunities that should be explored. “The meeting also focused on cooperation in the areas higher education, environment, finance, customs energy, telecommunications and industry,” he added.

The Joint Economic Committee meeting agreed to activate the UAE- Algeria Business Council, to encourage bilateral trade and boost investments between both countries. The Algerian officials suggested to hold the first meeting of the Council during the next half of the year.

The Algerian side presented a proposal for a Memorandum of Understanding to monitor illegal competition practices and another to enhance cooperation in the domain of consumer protection and to combat commercial fraud.

Mr Al Mansoori said: “We agreed to exchange visits and organise common commercial exhibitions and forums and to provide practical mechanisms to remove all obstacles facing trade and exchange of information on legislations and laws related to foreign trade in  both the countries.”

Al Mansoori said the meeting highlighted importance of developing exports of both countries by signing a memorandum of understanding between Algerian National Agency for Foreign Trade Development and Dubai Institution for Exports Development and to activate the signed MoU between the Algerian agency and Abu Dhabi Economic Development Department.  Both sides agreed on points of contact to exchange brochures and information related to exports.

Al Mansoori said that it was agreed to organise special forums on finance in both countries to exchange information on the laws and legislations and investment environment.

The meeting also highlighted cooperation in the field of small and medium businesses. Participants suggested signing an agreement to strengthen this vital sector and evaluate the SME experience of both the countries through business delegations. In the energy sector both sides discussed potential for partnerships in oil exploration and to study the possibility of forming common projects in the field of renewable energy.