There are no political, legal or economic obstacles in the way of Arabic-Hungarian business relations, the Prime Minister said on Monday at the first Arabic-Hungarian Forum, at which approximately 200 businessmen, diplomats and politicians from 16 Arab countries took part. At the meeting, 87 priority investment projects worth 1.94 billion euros were presented to the participants.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary has excellent opportunities, serious growth potential and a level of infrastructural development and skilled labour comparable to that of Western Europe, adding that if Arab businessmen recognise the shift in Europe’s economy and create concrete business relations with Hungary, then in 5-10 years they will look back on this decision as one of the best they have ever made.
Prime Minister Orbán said that already in 1998-2002, during his first term, he attempted to strengthen Arab business ties with Hungary, but his term in office was over before he had succeeded n making significant headway. In 2010, however, cooperation began once again. He said that an important element of the new Hungarian economic policy is to open up industry, agriculture and tourism, and in this relation "the Arab world presents itself immediately".
At the same time, the Arab world presents Hungary with markets, and with optimal cooperation, investments with strong capital content, the Prime Minister stated.
He emphasised that cooperation in the energy sector, environment and agriculture as well as in the healthcare industry was going well. However, he added that bilateral trade, which stood at 3 billion US dollars in 2011, was significantly behind its real potential. Prime Minister Orbán said that in the upcoming months he is due to sign intergovernmental cooperation agreements on student exchanges with several Arab countries.
He added that Hungary "knows its place" in the world economy and will not make offers that are unrealistic for a country with a population of ten million. He noted that Europe must find the best answers to the new challenges it faces using new tools and economic models or otherwise Europe could be "the big loser of the next twenty years".
The two-day Arab-Hungarian Economic Forum has been organised by the Hungarian Investment and Trade Agency HITA and the General Union of Arab Chambers (GUCCIAAC).
Of the projects presented, 35 involve tourism, 17 concern renewable and green energies, 14 include electronics, IT and communication technologies, 11 cover life sciences and the food industry, and 10 are in the field of agriculture and the food industry.
(Prime Minister’s Office)
