The Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Chambers, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, called during his speech at the Sixth Egyptian-Lebanese Business Forum, which was held in Cairo on September 18, 2022, under the patronage of Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, in the presence of the Egyptian Minister of Trade and Industry Ahmed Samir, the head of the Lebanese economic organizations, former Minister Mohamed Choucair, and the head of the Al-Iktissad Wal-Aamal Group, Raouf Abu Zaki, to build a strategic economic alliance between Egypt and Lebanon, due to their enormous capabilities that need optimal exploitation, which constitutes an important base for launching towards global markets, and in a manner that serves the interests of the two brotherly countries and peoples.
Hanafi considered that the forum constitutes a fundamental pillar in the Lebanese-Egyptian economic relations, especially as it constitutes a station for re-evaluating the progress achieved, proposing solutions to obstacles, and defining the procedures required to move forward.
He said: The forum also comes in very complex circumstances in our countries, our region, and the world. We live in a new world and a new era, with which problems and challenges have changed, and consequently, it is imposed on us to search for new solutions and visions and to promote joint action.
He believed that in light of the stifling economic and political crisis that Lebanon is experiencing, and in light of the great economic developments that Egypt has witnessed at the level of modernizing legislation, administrative systems and infrastructure, especially energy, with its pivotal economic role, Egypt is a major polarizing hub for the Lebanese private sector, whose presence in Egypt has doubled a lot in the recent period.
He stressed that there are many potentials and opportunities for developing and maximizing economic relations between Lebanon and Egypt, taking into account the complementary advantages between the two countries, which can be benefited from at various levels.
He stressed that “overcoming non-tariff obstacles greatly contributes to the advancement of mutual trade. But there are also huge opportunities to expand untapped production bases in many areas, the most important of these is the development of logistical and industrial sites in the commercial ports of Egypt and Lebanon in which investment is available for the Egyptian and Lebanese private sectors, and that would constitute Arab projects with a global reach.”
He noted "the importance of what the tools of the Fourth Industrial Revolution provide today, and the creative capabilities of our young generations to strengthen economic relations in line with modern developments."
He stressed that "the development of economic cooperation between Egypt and Lebanon and the expansion that we are witnessing in the Lebanese investment presence in Egypt will not be limited to the relations between Egypt and Lebanon only, but will certainly constitute a promising starting point for the future."
The delegation of the General Secretariat of the Union of Arab Chambers, headed by the Secretary-General of the Union, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, participated in the opening of the 48th session of the Arab Labor Conference, held in Cairo under the auspices of Egyptian President Eid Al-Fattah Al-Sisi, in the presence of Egyptian and Arab ministers, in addition to representatives of the three production parties (governments, business owners, workers), the session focused on advancing the reality of Arab labor in light of the transformations of the technological revolution in the world.
The Labor Committee of the Union of Arab Chambers held a session, chaired by Khalifa Khamis Matar Al Kaabi, on September 17, 2022, on the sidelines of the 48th session of the Arab Labor Conference, which was held in Cairo (Arab Republic of Egypt).
The Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Chambers, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, delivered a speech at the beginning of the meeting in which he welcomed the members of the Arab Chambers and Federations, presenting a detailed analysis of the report of the Director General of the Arab Labor Organization, appreciating the high degree of importance contained in the chapters of the report for Arab business owners, and reviewed the items on the conference's agenda.
The meeting also reviewed the mechanisms of electing a new Director General of the Arab Labor Organization in light of the passage of two terms for the current Director General, and the necessity of adhering to the Charter of the Arab Labor Organization, which does not allow the Director General of the Organization to remain for more than two terms.
Source (Union of Arab Chambers)
