Media reports from Yemen
December 21, 2008 by iifexpress
From Yemen Observer:
President of Yemen HE Ali Abdullah Saleh
The conference on industry, titled
“Industry is the future of Yemen” will begin in Hadramout on Monday,
said Omar Bajarsh, Chairman of the Hadramout Chamber of Commerce and
Industry. The conference will be attended by concerned bodies from the
Yemeni government, Gulf companies and representatives from Malaysia,
including the guest of honor former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr.
Mahathir Mohammad.
He confirmed that all preparations for
the conference have been concluded, in particular the accompanying
exhibition of Yemeni products and Malaysian companies specializing in
manufacturing. The goal is to display high-quality local products in
order to build domestic confidence in Yemeni-made goods, and to
increase their international profile.
Malaysian participation in this
conference will be especially important as the country was able to
successfully transform itself from a developing agricultural economy
like Yemen into an advanced industrial country.
The goal of the conference is to search
for strategic alternatives for the future of the Yemeni economy –
particularly in the industrial sector. It will focus on preparing clear
strategies for developing this sector as well as promoting industrial
zones.
Prime Minister of Yemen Rt Hon. Ali Mujawar
This conference is seeking to promote
the slogan” Made in Yemen”, and will be organized by the Hadramout
Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Ministry of Industry and Trade
and the Yemeni Businessmen Club. “GSP pays particular attention to
industry. This conference will give GSP an opportunity to introduce
government guidelines for the revitalization of this sector by
reviewing the legislation through new laws, as well as to present a
strategy of industrial development and review mechanisms for joint work
with private sectors,” Dr. Yahya Mutawakil, Minister of Industry and
Trade told the 26 September newspaper that a contract between the
Industry and Commerce office in Hadramout and Malaysia will be signed
during the conference.
Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Jordan and Egypt, in
addition to Britain, America and South Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia and
India will participate, totaling between 150 to 200, in addition to 600
participants from Yemen,” stated Badr Ba Salama the General Director of
the Industry and Trade of Hadramout. The presence of such a large
number of foreign representatives will help to raise Yemen’s profile on
the world stage, and ideally attract further foreign investment.
“The Malaysian Chamber of Commerce will
sign an agreement with local authorities in Hadramout to establish a
luxury five-star tourist hotel, as well as another agreement between
the Malaysian SERME and a Yemeni company to found a center for the
fisheries industry in Mukalla,” added Ba Salama. The government has
prepared a busy schedule for the visit of former Malaysian Prime
Minister Dr. Mahathir
Former Prime Minister of Malaysia, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad
Mohammed, who will arrive in Mukalla
Sunday. During the conference, Malaysia’s experience in industrial
development will be discussed as well as steps Yemen can take to take
advantage of it .
Ten interactive sessions will be held
during the conference. The meetings focus on the development of Yemeni
industry, and trends in industrial development strategy and industrial
infrastructure, and small and medium industries, finance and industrial
investment. The closing meeting, which will be opened by the
government, will display the recommendations of the conference, which
will become a guiding document for the development of the industrial
sector in Yemen.
Yemeni-Malaysian investment symposium to be organized
Dec 20, 2008
General Investment Authority (GIA) will
organize next Saturday a Yemeni-Malaysian Symposium concerning
investment in Yemen. GIA Chairman Salah al-Atar said that about 40
Malaysian companies would take part in the symposium that aims to
introduce investment opportunities in Yemen to Malaysian businessmen in
various sectors. Al-Atar pointed out that several papers would be
presented during the symposium on the advantages and opportunities for
investment in Yemen by GIA, Ministries of Industry and Trade, Public
Works and Roads, Fisheries Wealth, Oil and Mineral, Tourism and
Agriculture. A number of ministers, diplomats, Yemeni businessman and
concerned bodies will participate in the symposium, he added.
By: Faisal Darem, Dec 20, 2008
The “Industry … The Future of Yemen” conference will be held in
Mukallah Hadhramaut from December 22-23, 2008, said Omar Bajarsh,
Chairman of the Hadramout Chamber of Commerce and Industry. This
conference is seeking to promote the slogan” Made in Yemen”, and will
be organized by the Hadramout Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the
Ministry of Industry and Trade and Yemeni Businessmen Club. He
confirmed that all preparations for the conference have been concluded,
in particular the accompanying exhibition of Yemeni products and
Malaysian companies specialized in manufacturing. Bajarsh said more
than 150 businessmen from outside of Yemen have confirmed their
participation in the conference.
The conference’s goal is to search for
strategic alternatives for the future of the Yemeni economy-
particularly in the industrial sector. It will focus on preparing clear
strategies for developing this sector as well as promoting industrial
zones. Bajarsh said this conference will benefit from the experience of
former Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohammad who will be in
attendance along with several other well-known Malaysian businessmen.
Malaysian experience in this field has
converted the country from a developing and agricultural economy into
an advanced industrial economy, Bajarsh said. He indicated that there
were a number of similarities between Yemen and Malaysia before it
became an advanced industrial economy. The outcome of the conference
may create an industrial strategy, improve existing industrial
legislation, and attract the attention of the government and private
sector to this vital sector- especially due to its importance in
development.
For his part, Minister of Industry and
Trade, Yahya al-Mutawakel pointed to the importance of creating
confidence in local products, especially in light of trade
liberalization and competition. He noted that these are challenges for
the industrial sector, and so it must become competitive and gain the
confidence of consumers without the need for protection.
He said that this conference will
review many of the problems and obstacles facing the growth of
industries, and seek to identify policies and factors for developing
this essential sector. The industrial sector formed 5.14 percent of
gross domestic product (GDP), and accommodated 3 .8 percent of the
total labor force by the end of last year, al-Mutawakel said.
From Yemen News Agency (Saba):
Yemen renews call for Malaysian investment
[20 December 2008]
SANA’A, Dec. 20 (Saba)- Prime Minister Ali Mujawar renewed called for
Malaysian investments for promoting Yemen’s development. Opening the
Yemeni-Malaysian symposium on investments held here on Saturday,
Mujawar affirmed that Malaysian investments would get all support, care
and facilitations via the one-stop-shop system. Mujawar, who described
the Yemeni-Malaysian economic relations as historical, hoped setting
joint investments in
He noted that this symposium, organized by Yemeni Investment Authority,
is a practical step for studying available investments opportunities. A
number of Ministers and businessmen and representatives of more than 40
Malaysian companies attended the symposium. The symposium discussed a
number of work papers presented by ministry of trade and industry,
public works and roads, fishery wealth, oil and minerals, tourism and
of agricultural and irrigation as well as by the General Investment
Authority (GIA).
Chairman of GIA Salah al-Attar said the
symposium would enhance and improve investment relations between Yemen
and Malaysia. He considered it as a chance for Malaysian investors to
know better environment investments in Yemen in different fields,
namely in infrastructure. He indicated the government’s efforts in
conditioning investment environment via taking a number of reforms
including reviewing related laws, activating trade courts and promoting
industrial zones in different governorates. He asserted that the GIA
would focus on easing measures to investors.
For their part, Head of Malaysian
Chamber Ali al-Attas and Malaysian ambassador in Sana’a Abdulsamad bin
Othman affirmed that the symposium is a chance for Malaysian
businessmen to acquaint themselves with available investment
opportunities in Yemen. They would also know fields they want to invest
in. They indicated that the Malaysian Government encourages investments
in promising markets including Yemen and creating real trade
partnership with Yemen. Then work session between businessmen from the
two countries for studying setting up partnership between their two
private sectors held.
Establishing Yemeni-Malaysian businessmen council significant: Premier says
[20 December 2008]
SANA’A, Dec. 20 (Saba) – Prime Minister
Ali Mujawar emphasized on Saturday the significance of establishing a
Yemeni-Malaysian businessmen council to coordinate economic efforts
between both countries. During his meeting with the Malaysian Malay
Chamber of Commerce’s President Ali al-Aattas, Mujawar highlighted the
potential means for developing economic and investment partnership
between Yemen and Malaysia.
The meeting also discussed ways to
enhance cooperation relations in various services, productivity and
investment sectors as well as increasing volume of future trade
exchange between the two countries. The recent preparations for the
Malaysian cultural festival in Yemen to be held in the 2nd half of 2009
were dealt with during the meeting. Al-Alattas made clear that the
festival would be held yearly in both Sana’a and Kuala Lumpur. He
talked about the Malaysian Chamber of Commerce’s plan to improve trade
and investment relations between the two countries.
Yemeni, Malaysian Commerce Chambers to sign cooperation agreements
[18 December 2008]
SANA’A, Dec. 18 (Saba) – A number of
cooperation agreements will be signed by both Yemeni and Malaysian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Minister of Industry and Trade Yahya
al-Mutawakel told the state-run 26sep.net. Al-Mutawakel said that on
the sidelines of the conference of “Industry is Yemen’s Future”, to be
kicked off in Mukalla city of Hadramout governorate next Monday, the
government would sign an agreement with a Malaysian company to draw a
strategy on the economic development in Yemen.
Al-Mutawakel added that the conference
is a significant chance to highlight the government’s trends to
activate the vital sector. Director General of Chamber of Commerce and
Industry Badr Ba-Salmah at Hadramout told the website the Hadramout’s
local authority would sign with Malaysian Chamber of Commerce and
Industry an agreement to establish a five-star hotel in addition to
another agreement to establish complex for fishing industries between
Yemeni and Malaysian private sectors.
Head of Hadramout’s Chamber of Commerce
and Industry Omar Ba-Jarsh final arrangements for the conference have
been tied up, noting that on the sidelines of the conference several
events, meetings and exhibitions would be held with a participation of
45 companies, 19 of which are Malaysian.
More than 600 participants from
different from Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt,
Britain, United States, South Africa, Malaysia, Indonesia and India
will take part in the conference. It is expected that Former Malaysian
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who will participate in the
conference, is to arrive in Mukalla city next Sunday. Mohamad will hold
several meetings with senior officials of the government and Yemeni
businessmen. He will pay a visit to Aden Free Zone and will deliver a
lecture in Aden University, according to the website.
PM welcomes Malaysian investments in Yemen
[17 December 2008]
SANA’A, Dec. 17 (Saba)-Prime Minister
Ali Mujawar welcomed on Wednesday Malaysian investments in different
sectors in Yemen. During his meeting with the Malaysian ambassador to
Sana’a Abdul-Samad bin Othman, Mujawar highlighted Yemeni -Malaysian
bilateral relations in field of economy and investment, welcoming the
Malaysian investments in the country.
He pointed out to the coming seminar on
Yemeni-Malaysian investment which will be staged in Sana’a next
Saturday as well as significant participation of the Malaysian side in
the conference of industries that will be held in Hadramout governorate
next Monday. For his part, the Malaysian diplomat affirmed concern of
Malaysia to boost its ties and cooperation with Yemen, pointing out to
the support of his country for efforts of rebuilding affected areas in
Hadramout and al-Maharah governorates, which were hit by flooding last
October. He said that the Malaysian government allocated 100,000 dollar
to support these efforts.
