DOHA: The Qatari Businessmen Association (QBA) hosted a German economic delegation led by H E Dr. Jörg Kukies, the German Minister of Finance, accompanied by senior representatives from major German companies in the energy and financial sectors.

The meeting aimed to strengthen economic and trade relations between Qatar and Germany and to explore cooperation opportunities in priority sectors, including finance, advanced industries, technology, innovation, digital transformation, renewable energy, logistics, trade, and investment.

From QBA, the meeting was attended by Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, QBA Chairman, along with QBA board members Sherida Al Kaabi and Saud Al Mana. Other attendees included QBA members Sheikh Mohammed bin Faisal Al Thani, Omar Hussain Alfardan, Khalid Al Mannai, Youssef Jassem Darwish, Maqbool Habib Khalfan, Abdul Rahman Darwish, Youssef Al Mahmoud, Dr. Mohamed Althaf, and Hakan Ozdemir, in addition to Sarah Abdullah, Deputy General Manager.

From the German side, the meeting was attended by H E Heiko Thomas, State Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, H E Lothar Freischlader, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Qatar, and representatives from the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Qatar.

At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Jörg Kukies highlighted the productive meetings he had with Qatar’s Minister of Finance and Minister of Energy, praising the significant economic development Qatar has experienced over the past decade. He noted Qatar’s substantial investments in infrastructure and its readiness to diversify its economy. Dr. Kukies emphasised the importance of economic cooperation between the two countries, stating that Qatari investments in Germany are crucial for economic growth and job creation.

Dr. Kukies pointed out that Germany is the largest economy in Europe and serves as a gateway to approximately 450 million consumers. He also highlighted Germany’s upcoming program to coordinate between major German companies and banks to establish a strong financial center to promote Germany and support startups, with the government aiming to invest around 12 billion euros in these companies by 2030.

Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani welcomed the delegation and said that trade and investment relations between Qatar and Germany are witnessing rapid growth, driven by a shared vision to enhance economic and trade cooperation and create new partnership opportunities between the business communities of both countries.

He further commented that Qatar’s third strategy clearly aims at the transition to a digital economy and attract cumulative foreign investments in various fields, reaching up to $100bn by 2030. This can be discussed with German companies that own giant enterprises in various fields. Sheikh Faisal in his note, welcomed German companies to Qatar, stating that the country is prepared and open to receiving German investments, whether independently or in partnership with Qatari businessmen.