Meeting in London today at the third UK-Qatar Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO), UK trade minister Ranil Jayawardena and Qatar’s Minister of Commerce and Industry H.E. Sheikh Mohammed bin Hamad Al-Thani announced two significant agreements to boost bilateral trade and investment.
- Following on from the the launch of negotiations in June on a free trade agreement between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GGC), the Ministers signed two new MOUs that included agreements between the Department for International Trade (DIT) and Qatar’s Investment Promotion Agency to collaborate and tackle market access issues on both sides to grow trade in a range of priority sectors, including healthcare and life sciences, education, and food and drink.
- UK Export Finance (UKEF) also signed a memorandum with Qatar Development Bank to boost efforts between UK and Qatari companies in sharing expertise on export finance, insurance products and cooperation on projects which involve both UK and Qatari goods and services.
Minister Jayawardena, said:
"Qatar is an important trade and investment partner for Britain. I believe we should nurture and maximise the strength of our relationship to make our economies more resilient and prosperous.
We are committed to taking steps to further deepen the trade and investment relationship we share with Qatar, and today’s JETCO signals our ambition through two significant agreements."
The next meeting of the JETCO will be organised by the State of Qatar’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry and will be held in Doha in 2023.