DOHA: Qatar plans to spend an astronomical $150bn on infrastructure development over the next five years, the Minister of Economy and Finance said yesterday.
H E Yousef Hussein Kamal said that the spending in the non-oil sectors will vary from $120bn to $140bn over the next five years while the oil and gas sector would attract a spending of $30bn to $40bn during the said period.
The Minister was addressing a Qatar - Spain Business Forum here yesterday which concludes tomorrow, Qatar News Agency reported.
He added that the Spanish-Qatari relations have witnessed a boost after the last visit of the Emir H H Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, paid to Spain last April, and called on the Spanish companies to enter and invest in the Qatari market.
More than 100 Spanish companies were here to meet 120 Qatari businessmen at the Spain-Qatar business meeting held at the Grand Hyatt yesterday.
They reached strategic investment alliances and identified business cooperation opportunities during the meeting.
The meeting was attended by Sheikh Nawaf bin Nasser Al Thani, Board member of the Qatar Business Association, Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammad Al Thani, President of Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Minister Hussein Kamal from the Qatari side.
The Spanish team included Fernando Salazar, Vice President of the Spanish Institute of Foreign Trade, the Spanish Ambassador to Qatar Juan Jose' Santos and Miguel Sebastian, the Spanish Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade. Miguel Sebastian, the Spanish Minister of Industry, Tourism and Trade, expressed his gratitude to the Emir, whose visit to Spain in April this year marked the beginning of a much stronger cooperation between the two countries.
He described the visit of the Emir to Spain as historic and fruitful for both countries. He pointed out that Qatar currently tops the world in economic growth with GDP rising about six times over the last six years.
Sebastian further said that this large amount of Spanish companies attending the forum to look for investment opportunities in a number of projects including infrastructure, transportation, engineering, rail, water, and the services sector.
He praised the recent memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Qatar and Spain with a view to cooperating in the field of infrastructure, calling on the Spanish and Qatari companies for cooperation in a number of areas that need advanced technology. "The growing interest of Spanish companies in having a permanent presence in Qatar is well reflected by the delegation that has come from Spain to attend this bilateral meeting," said Sebastian.
"There are a lot of opportunities in Qatar because we import everything except oil and gas, so we need you to be here," the Minister said.
The Spanish community in Doha has doubled in just two years, from 400 to 800.
"We want to share our capabilities with Qatar; it is not just a commercial approach because our companies are here to stay," Sebastian said. In remarks on the sidelines of the forum, the Spanish minister stressed that Qatar is a major provider of gas to his country, where it is the third largest exporter to Spain, adding that Spain is seeking to bring about more balance to the balance of trade with Qatar, by increasing exports to Qatar.
He said Qatar is an ideal place for the Spanish companies to invest in , especially in light of Qatar''s win for hosting the World Cup 2022 and the National Vision 2030, praising the performance of Spanish companies especially in infrastructure, energy and the environment sectors.
© The Peninsula 2011
