The Prime Minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati, received a delegation headed by the President of the Union of Arab Chambers and the President of the Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Samir Abdullah Nass. Along with the participation of Lebanese and Arab businessmen from the Arab federations participating in the 28th session of the Arab Economic Forum, which was held at the Phenicia Hotel on 12-22-2022.
The Chairman of Al-Iktissad Wal Aamal Group, Raouf Abu Zaki, initiated the meeting, thanking President Mikati for his care and attention. Confirming the return of the Al-Iktissad Wal Aamal Group to hold conferences in Lebanon, as the group has 3 conferences in the first half of next year.
For his part, the President of the Bahrain Chamber and the President of the Union of Arab Chambers, Samir Nass, stressed in his speech that "All Arabs want to return to Lebanon and invest in it, but at the same time they demand that the obstacles that hinder this return be overcome, the most important of which is the restoration of confidence."
President Mikati pointed out "The conferences are essential in supporting economic and investment activity, not only in the importance of their content but also in the relations and discussions that arise during them and on their sidelines." He stressed, "Despite the difficult situation, Lebanon will be one of the best investment destinations, given the prospects for encouraging growth in the coming years, which comes after the economic downturn since 2019."
"There is growth in trade that is mainly funded by the funds in the country," he said. Pointing out, "There are investment opportunities in all sectors at attractive prices." Considering that "if we put politics aside, we can, through economic reform and by avoiding the mistakes of the past, make a fresh start", pointing out that "the project to find a solution for depositors' money has become mature and the remaining obstacles, most of which are political, can be overcome." He explained, "This project is for small depositors, who make up 88 percent of depositors. As for 12 percent, we proposed a solution, a deposit recovery fund to which depositors, banks and the state contribute. This is a formula that can be reached in a short period."
Mikati considered, "The solution in Lebanon is not difficult, but we need to consolidate political stability, which begins with the election of a new president of the republic and regular work in the constitutional institutions, after which we can return abroad to attract investments and aid." Pointing out that "the exchange rate can be adjusted in Lebanon because the resources of foreign currencies are sufficient to do so because we cannot waste foreign currencies so that they do not leak abroad, especially since a significant part of the imports goes abroad."
Mikati called for "implementing a mechanism that allows banks to start their work again through clean budgets and new mechanisms, which are certainly subject to political consensus."
The Iraqi side put forward the idea of increasing intra-trade between Lebanon and Iraq. President Mikati welcomed and said that official and public relations are good between the two countries, and he hoped that these relations would be strengthened quickly.
Mikati pointed out that "Lebanon needs to develop the political formula to reduce the chances of obstruction and to become more motivating to government action so that it becomes difficult to obstruct." Pointing out that "the most important things to start with is the implementation of the Taif Agreement through the formation of the special body for the abolition of political sectarianism, the application of administrative decentralization and a modern electoral law."
Mikati pointed out that "the election of a new president of the republic should be the beginning of the locomotive of solutions if there is an inclusive political will."
Source (Union of Arab Chambers)
