Qatar is on fire (and in a very good way)! As one of the wealthiest Arab countries, it has gracefully offered 40,000 jobs for Ugandans on top of the 3,000 already employed in their overseas investments. Qatar has also recently signed 5 trade agreements with India on December 3, 2016.
Curiously, the deal was not initiated by Uganda and Qatar's highest state representatives. In fact, this 'beta-testing' of trade deals were formally commenced between Qatar's labor and administrative minister and its Ugandan counterpart. Dr. Eissa Al-Naimi (Qatar) and Mr. Hajjat Mukwaya (Uganda) smoothed over the details of the agreement in Doha as witnessed by the Ugandan ambassador, Dr. Rashid Ssemudu.
An article published by New Vision Co. underscores how this agreement will pave the way for a more lucrative entry of Qatari investments in Uganda. It is important to take note that although Qatar proves a promising partner to Uganda's fledgling economy, they were only the third Arab nation following Saudi Arabia and Jordan consecutively.
While the Emir of Qatar's scheduled meeting with the Ugandan president is decked for early 2017, Sheik Abdullah ibn Nasser ibn Khalifa Al Thani has already concluded 5 trade agreements with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his visit to New Delhi two days prior.
Earlier today, held fruitful talks on further improving India-Qatar ties with Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa al-Thani. pic.twitter.com/E0Y1g1Be3D
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 3, 2016
The report published by The Hindu News describes how these deals highlight several key aspects of their existing bilateral trade relations. The two leaders agreed to step beyond the confines of 'buyer-seller relations' and encompass other concerns such as cybercrime, business and tourist visa, and improvements on existing wholesale investments (e.g. urea).
Without a doubt, Qatar has pretty much outdone itself before the end of this year. These developments will especially benefit Uganda who, according to Jobs & Hire, has lost a visible portion of manpower niche since the withdrawal of UK-based bank called Barclay's.
