Maiga also praised the close relations between Mali and Qatar, stressing the desire to establish strategic relations with Qatar, which he described “as a reliable and active partner.”
Both officials held the meeting at the chamber’s Doha headquarters in the presence of Qatar Chamber board member Dr Mohamed Jawhar al-Mohamed, general manager Saleh bin Hamad al-Sharqi, and Youssef Batiley, the president of Mali Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
During the meeting, Maiga announced the possibility of staging a ‘Qatar-Mali Economic Forum’, which would gather officials from both sides and private sector representatives to review means of enhancing cooperation and potential opportunities.
Maiga said Qatari investors may select from different business opportunities in Mali in the agriculture, livestock, mining, and industrial sectors.
Sheikh Khalifa said Qatar and Mali enjoy strong and close relations with both government leaders exchanging high-level visits. Citing the need to increase bilateral trade volume, Sheikh Khalifa said “there is ample room for improvement” to increase trade volume and expand investment cooperation, noting that Mali is rich with opportunities in many sectors that could attract Qatari investors.
“Qatar is interested to maximise its investments in Africa, which embraces a lot of Qatari investments in many friendly countries in various sectors”, Sheikh Khalifa said, adding that Qatari investors are eager to explore opportunities in Mali’s agriculture, mining, food security, energy, and tourism sectors.
Sheikh Khalifa said the chamber supports and encourages Qatari investors to explore these opportunities and take advantage of the incentives Mali is offering to foreign investors.
He also invited companies in Mali to forge cooperation ties with Qatari companies by establishing joint ventures whether in Qatar or Mali, “especially that Qatar’s market is open and welcomes all investments.”
On the sidelines of the meeting, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by Sheikh Khalifa and Batiley. According to Sheikh Khalifa, he hopes the MoU would open further cooperation opportunities between the private sectors of both countries, which could lead to the establishment of a Qatar-Mali Business Council. Qatar Chamber is looking forward to organising visits to Mali by Qatari businessmen, he added.
Al-Sharqi said the MOU would help strengthen cooperation between the private sectors of both countries, increase mutual visits, and promote the many opportunities in Qatar and Mali. “This constitutes a solid foundation for forging commercial alliances and partnerships between both countries’ businessmen,” he said.
Batiley added that he hopes the MoU would underpin cooperation between companies in Qatar and Mali and enable businessmen to explore opportunities in the infrastructure, livestock, agriculture, and mining sectors.
