“Croatia’s food and defence industries are already present in this market, and now is the time to step up with other sectors as well, such as IT, industry, robots and infrastructure. Today's cooperation agreement must be implemented, and our chambers will play a key role in that,” said vice-president of the Croatian Chamber of Commerce (HGK) for international affairs and EU Ivan Barbarić, opening an economic forum in Dubai where he announced the establishment of the HGK's office in the UAE, reports Poslovni.hr on November 12, 2018.
Arab partners have demonstrated great interest in Croatian robots which will help them learn robotics. “I am convinced that in the period ahead, STEMI robots will teach people from UAE how to program, create 3D-models and their own mobile apps. I had a series of very specific conversations, which is why I am confident about the realisation of these business opportunities,” said Slobodan Velikić from STEMI.
Colliers International Croatia has been working on attracting investors from Dubai and Abu Dhabi for the last year and a half. “Some of the largest investors and developers, such as Damac and Emaar, have visited Croatia and recognised its potential. As a result of our efforts, we are in active negotiations and we expect to close several projects in the coastal areas and Zagreb,” said Vedrana Likan.
Atiq Nassib, vice-president of the Dubai Trade and Industry Chamber, said that the forum is the beginning of more successful and deeper cooperation between Croatia and the UAE. "We have fantastic relations with the Croatian government and we are grateful for its great support in the Expo 2020 organization. I am also pleased to see that the number of tourists from Croatia has increased to 14,000. We are businesspeople by nature and we are interested in business. We want to develop the agriculture and food industry, transportation, education. You are an interesting partner and we need to work together,” said Nassib.
Croatian Ambassador based in Egypt Tomislav Bošnjak announced the opening of the Croatian consulate in Dubai and stressed that Croatia has the capacity to participate in the development of the UAE. He pointed out that the two peoples agree in many ways and share the same values.
In addition to taking part in the economic forum, the economic delegation will also visit the international exhibition and the annual conference on oil and gas and energy ADIPEC 2018, where Croatian companies are participating.
The UAE boasts the most diverse and most open economy of the Middle East, political stability, diversified economy, favourable business climate and financial strength.
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