The Belgium Jeddah Business forum was opened with the lecture of Ziyad Bassem, the vice chairman at Jeddah Chamber of Commerce on the occasion of the visit of Princess Astrid of Belgium to Jeddah on Tuesday.

The business and trade forum was sponsored by Princess Astrid of Belgium and the JCCI with the aim to strengthen the trade and economic relations between the two countries.

Ziyad Bassam welcomed the princess and the delegation and said that they hoped this visit would lead to a mutual cooperation between the two countries.

“The cooperation in business between Saudi Arabia and Belgium in the trade balance sheet in favor of Saudi Arabia was worth $3.8 billion in 2012, where Belgium ranked 19th among the big investors but there is still a need for extra input by extending cooperation,” he said.

Dr. Nahed Taher executive chief of Gulf One Investment bank introduced the Saudi economy and investment opportunities in the Kingdom.

She explained that the Saudi economy is sustainable and that there are many areas where investors can be involved.

“The industrial sector has large profits where there is a need to collaborate with public and private partnerships,” she said. “The Kingdom holds 62 percent of the world’s capacity for infrastructural development and the total infrastructure required in the GCC by 2020 will amount to $1,500 billion,” she added.

She further said that as Saudi Arabia is now moving toward a green economy, the major sectors that have opportunities for investment are pharmaceuticals, health care, energy based industries, electricity power including nuclear and renewable energy, water and waste water, financial and professional services, education, training and human capital development, mass transport infrastructure including new rail, metro and bus links, environment, defense and security.

Celine Fremault, Belgium’s minister of economy, said the two countries are coming together to promote a very high level of international trade between Saudi Arabia and Belgium.

“The European Union is the first trade partner of the Kingdom with Belgium having secured 6th position in EU trade. Belgium rates Saudi Arabia in 7th position among other countries. The Belgium mission first visited Saudi Arabia in 2006, a visit which proved very successful and this year, the figures are even higher with more than 50 companies participating in the delegation and where the contribution made both ways will serve on a professional basis for long-term cooperation,” she said.

She also said that one of the aims and features of this mission was to introduce the large companies into the Saudi market bringing with them small and medium (SME) entrepreneurs who would advertise the Belgium market and opportunities for investments.

Pieter Timmermans, the CEO of the Federation of Enterprises listed 7 reasons for Saudis to come and invest in Belgium. “Belgium is the heart of Europe, it has excellent infrastructure, it is a center of knowledge and innovations, it has a high quality labor force, an attractive tax regime, an open economy and it is a great place to visit,” he said.

Speaking on behalf of Princess Astrid, Liliana Casagrande, the personal journalist of the princess, said that Princess Astrid was very pleased that Saudi Arabia had accepted her as head of the Belgium delegation for economic relations, which shows that there is a kind of progress regarding women in the country.