Italy takes lead in Project/Hospitality Qatar

Italy is taking the lead among the international participants at the combined Project/Hospitality Qatar, which will begin next week, with it coming up with two pavilions, together bringing in about 30 companies."The year 2022 will not only be the year of the historic and unforgettable World Cup, but also a wonderful year for the bilateral relations of the two countries, as it will witness the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the opening of the Italian Embassy in Doha," Alessandro Prunas, ambassador of Italy to Qatar, told a meeting yesterday to announce the schedule of the mega exhibition at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Centre.In the past ten years, Qatar's economic partnership with Italy has grown by leaps and bounds, making it one of the most important destinations for Qatari investment.He highlighted the role of Italian companies in the growth story of Qatar, especially in the World Cup projects, particularly in the areas of transport and infrastructure, such as the Doha Metro and Al Bayt Stadium, which were built through a joint venture between Italian and Qatari companies.In 2021, the total trade between Italy and Qatar reached €3.27bn, increasing by 76%, which is "quite significant", he said, adding Italy was the sixth largest trade partner of Qatar.In the first three months of this year, Italy became the fourth trading partner of Qatar, he said, highlighting the growing importance of the European country to Doha.Augusta Smargiassi, trade commissioner, Italian Trade Agency, said the country is putting up two pavilions – one for Project Qatar and other one for Hospitality Qatar. She said as many as 12 Italian companies are taking part in Project Qatar and 16 food and beverages (F&B) companies in Hospitality Qatar."Going by the trade statistics of the first three months of this year, Italy's prominence in the Qatari market is growing," she said, highlighting that F&B trade between the countries Qatar increased by 54% year-on-year and the construction sector by 22%.The Italian Trade Agency (ITA) in Doha had entered into an agreement with LuLu Hypermarket for the sourcing of exports from Coldiretti, Italy’s national association of farmers representing 500,000 producers.Qatar, the world’s biggest supplier of liquefied natural gas (LNG), recently welcomed Italy’s plans to boost energy ties between both countries, seemingly an offshoot of Europe devising strategies to diversify away from Russian gas.In February this year, the first strategic dialogue between Qatar and Italy was held in Rome, under the chairmanship of HE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation of Italy Luigi Di Maio.