Business and economic forum in Tehran to introduce investment opportunities in Syria to Iranian companies kicked off

The forum of trade and economic opportunities with Syria kicked off on Tuesday in Tehran at the headquarters of the Trade Development Organization in the Iranian capital.

The forum aims at introducing the Iranian private sector companies to the investment opportunities available in Syria and increasing their presence in the next stage to rehabilitate the productive sectors and build economic partnerships with the Syrian private sector in order to achieve economic integration between the two countries and strengthen cooperation.

The forum also aimed at expanding  the fields of trade exchange and facilitate procedures at the level of bank transfers and transport lines between the two governments and concerned parties which in turn would contribute to the flow of goods and commodities to the two countries to face the effects of the US embargo and unfair sanctions on them.

The Syrian Ambassador to Iran, Dr. Adnan Mahmoud, said in a speech during the forum that Syria is ready to provide assistance and incentives to the Iranian companies in the public and private sectors to invest in joint reconstruction projects.  The public and private sector companies in Iran can invest in most areas in Syria as the circumstances are available and suitable to start implementing the infrastructure ventures, the Ambassador stated.  

Ambassador Mahmoud pointed to the strategic agreement between the two countries on investments and joint cooperation. “There are a lot of investment opportunities in all fields, including the construction of housing units, setting up of infrastructure projects, rehabilitation of factories, securing raw materials, as well as activating free trade between the two countries”, he said.

“To solve the problem of financial exchanges, the governments of the two countries have signed a memorandum of understanding between the Central Bank of the two countries concerning the opening of branches of their banks and the establishment of a joint bank” Ambassador Mahmoud added, noting that the establishment of a sea and land company to transport goods has also been prioritized by the two governments.

For his part, Deputy Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade and Head of the Iranian Trade Development Organization Hamid Zadboom said that there are great opportunities for cooperation and raising the volume of trade and investment exchange between the two countries and that Iranian companies in the private and public sectors are fully prepared to work with the Syrian side in the next stage in various commercial, economic, investment and productivity sectors.

He pointed to the long-term economic cooperation agreement signed between the two countries and the need to work hard to achieve results reflected positively on them. “There are currently 88 agricultural and industrial goods which are excluded from the Free Trade Agreement between the two countries and we are working to reduce the number of these goods”, he added.

For his part, Chairman of the Iranian-Syrian Joint Chamber of Commerce Kiwan Kashefi stressed the importance of the forum in  getting acquainted with the potential of the two countries, underlining the importance of the private sector in developing and strengthening trade relations and raising the volume of trade exchange between the two countries.

“There are wide scopes of work, cooperation and joint investment in Syria,” he added, referring to the necessary facilities provided for investment.

Officials from the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Minerals, the Iranian Trade Development Organization and the Syrian-Iranian Joint Chamber of Commerce.

Inas Abdulkareem