Plan unveiled to bridge business with the world

The Saudi Chapter of the International Chamber of Commerce unveiled yesterday a comprehensive plan for the current year to bridge Saudi Arabian businesses with countries in other parts of the world.
The Saudi Chapter is affiliated to the ICC founded in 1919 under the leadership of its first president Etienne Clementel, a former French minister of commerce. Since that time the international secretariat of the organization has been located in Paris, France.
“We have adopted a number of initiatives and recommendations that aim to activate its local, regional and international role as a key channel to link Saudi businesses with global trade events through the International Chamber of Commerce headquartered in Paris,” ICC Chairman of the local chapter Abdullah Al-Ammar said yesterday.
These initiatives, Al-Ammar said will form the chamber’s agenda for the current year to restructure the procedures and mechanisms of the chamber to meet the current new developments and economic challenges.
He recalled that the chamber has decided through an extensive meeting with its board of directors to enable its members to participate in local and international events.
Saudi Arabia will be represented at the World Chambers Federation Congress (WCF), which will be hosted by Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry in April of this year.
By maximizing the participation of ICC members in local and global event, he said Saudi Arabia will strengthen trade relations with other countries around the globe.
Al-Ammar also revealed that the chamber is set to launch an initiative which entails Gulf coordination for the International Chamber of Commerce in the GCC, which would unify the stance of GCC countries to help them achieve their goals in global trade policies.
Recently, the ICC appreciated the recent signing of a memorandum of understanding with Saudi customs to implement the temporary admission system (ATA Carnet System), which is implemented in over 72 countries around the world. The Kingdom signed the accord on May 4, 2011.
The ATA Carnet is an international Customs document which allows the temporary importation of commercial samples, professional equipment or goods going to either a trade fair or exhibition to countries which are part of the ATA Carnet system. Without an ATA Carnet it would be necessary to go through each country's Customs procedures for the temporary admission of goods, i.e. lodging a temporary import bond.
The ATA Carnet simplifies the custom formalities by allowing a single document to be used for clearing goods through Customs in the countries that are part of the ATA Carnet system. An ATA Carnet is valid for one year and allows for movement of the goods shown on the Carnet as many times as required during the 12 months to any of the destinations applied for.
Al-Ammar said the members of the meeting also expressed their congratulations to the ICC Vice Chairman Montaser Al-Mohammed for his nomination to the position of general coordinator of MENA countries for regional consultation group meetings.
ICC-Saudi Executive Director Mohammed Al-Ghazzawi told Arab News yesterday that the chamber discussed issues such as the annual budget, developing new resources, revenues for training, workshops and publications.
He also explained that three specialized committees have been formed, which included the trade and investments committee, the transport committee, and the banking committee; in addition to the arbitration committee which was formed last year.
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