Saudi company eyes investing in Azerbaijan

By Azernews

By Leman Mammadova

The increasing investments by Saudi Arabia in Azerbaijan's economy will contribute to the development of high quality entrepreneurship activity in the country.

Saudi Arabian company Global Project Development proposes cooperation to National Confederation of Entrepreneurs’ (Employers’) Organizations of Azerbaijan.

The Confederation has held a meeting with Badear Bhaishan Al Mutairi and Abdul Mohsen Al Shoaibi, directors and co-founders of Global Project Development.

Vugar Zeynalov, Vice President of the Confederation, noted that it is a big network of entrepreneurs in Azerbaijan.

He said that presently, there are 32 representations of the Confederation in the regions of Azerbaijan, and 18 representations in foreign countries.

Al Mutairi, in turn, stressed that Global Project Development intends to invest in Azerbaijan and has potential opportunities for it.

“We have a big investor block and would like to know about your country's investment climate,” he said, adding that the company is ready to support the promotion of Azerbaijani companies in Saudi Arabia.

He further spoke about plans for investing in energy, real estate and agriculture.

The guest emphasized that Global Project Development is open to companies working in these areas of investment.

Al Shoaibi, in turn, noted that the company needs the Confederation’s assistance to find companies for investment.

The Confederation representatives agreed with this proposal and offered to formalize joint cooperation.

Development of entrepreneurship is important for a country’s socio-economic growth. Thus, Azerbaijan makes maximum efforts to enhance the entrepreneurial activity.

Recently, new categories of entrepreneurship have been approved in Azerbaijan. Previously, the categories of entrepreneurs in the country included small, medium and large enterprises. The new category includes micro businesses - companies with a staff of one to ten people and an annual income of up to 200,000 manats ($117,300).

The development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) leads to the growth of entrepreneurship, which is one of the priority directions of Azerbaijan’s economic policy.

In this regard, Agency for the Development of SMEs of Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) closely cooperate.

The diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1992. Over the past years, the bilateral economic relations have strengthened and expanded with the increased interest in investment.

Azerbaijan’s trade turnover with Saudi Arabia amounted to 30.9 million manats ($18.12 million) in 2018, according to the State Customs Committee of Azerbaijan. About 24.3 million manats ($14.25 million) accounted for the import of Saudi products in Azerbaijan.