HE Edgar Doerig, Swiss Ambassador to Qatar, QBA Board Member Sherida Al Kaabi with other QBA members and Swiss delegation during the meeting in Doha recently.
Doha: The Qatari Businessmen Association (QBA) organized a business lunch in honor of the visit of a delegation of Swiss companies and hospitals specializing in medical tourism and medical services, led by HE Edgar Doerig , Swiss Ambassador to Qatar.
The meeting was attended by QBA Board Member Sherida Al Kaabi and QBA Members: Omar Al Fardan, Khalid Al Mannai, Maqbool Habib Khalfan, Nabil Abu Issa, Sheikh Khalid bin Nawaf Al Thani, Managing Director of Nasser Bin Khaled Holding Company, Abdullah Al Kubaisi, Dhafer Halawa and Rashid Al Mansouri, CEO of Aamal Holding Group, as well as Sarah Abdullah, Deputy Managing Director of QBA.
At the start of the meeting, Al Kaabi welcomed the Swiss delegation and spoke about the depth of the bilateral relations between the two countries.
Al Kaabi highlighted the significant tourism and investment opportunities in both countries, noting that while Switzerland is a major tourist destination for Qataris and Gulf residents, Qatar is set to host an exceptional version of the World Cup, where the country will host the Swiss. supporters and tourists.
For his part, the Swiss Ambassador pointed out that there are promising opportunities to strengthen Qatari-Swiss cooperation in various sectors, especially tourism and medical tourism. Doerig also said that the trade volume between Qatar and Switzerland increased by 92% to over QR 5 billion in 2021 from QR 2.6 billion in 2020.
The ambassador added that the qualification of the Swiss national team for the FIFA World Cup 2022 will increase the interest of Swiss tourists to visit Qatar.
Also speaking at the event, Al Fardan said that after the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the Qatari Businessmen’s Association are increasingly interested in the health sector and businesses. health technology; and that relations with Switzerland are developing in many fields, including tourism, in particular medical care, which opens up prospects for even closer cooperation between the private sector of the two countries.
Doerig also pointed out that the Qatari market is becoming increasingly important for Switzerland and that Qatar is Switzerland’s third largest market in the Middle East and North Africa. He added that there was an increase in the number of tourists from Switzerland to Qatar, stressing that there were significant investment opportunities and that the World Cup gave positive signals for the region.
The Ambassador added: “We are optimistic because there are investments for Katara Hospitality which are important benchmarks for Qatari investments in Switzerland, which are in three luxury hotels belonging to the largest luxury hotel group in Switzerland. , and this is a very important development, and I expect there will be increased investment in both countries.”
Doerig added that next year the two countries will celebrate 50 years of establishing diplomatic relations, “which means that after the World Cup we will have many events such as car shows between Geneva and Doha. , in addition to promoting investment in various sectors such as hospitality and real estate”.
