Following the official visit by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, to the United Arab Emirates in mid-February 2021, the first constituent meeting of the Working Group of the Republic of North Macedonia and of the United Arab Emirates was held yesterday (12 April 2021), using online platforms.
The goal of the establishment of this expert bilateral working group is to strengthen the economic cooperation, in order to establish and implement all possibilities for investments in the two countries, then to increase the volume of bilateral trade and to encourage the development of tourism.
Members of the Working Group were unanimous in their conclusion that there are great unutilized capacities for cooperation between the two countries, especially in terms of investments in the tourism sector, then in agriculture and in production of food items that could be exported to the United Arab Emirates. There was also interest expressed for investments in the immovable property market, especially in the construction of hotels, apartments and in making other types of investments in this area.
There was interest expressed by the United Arab Emirates for investments in the energy sector, i.e., in renewable energy (wind turbines, solar energy and hydro-power plants).
The Republic of North Macedonia considers the United Arab Emirates as a strategic economic partner for the Region and as a centre for pursuing cooperation with the entire Gulf Region.
Furthermore, the Republic of North Macedonia will participate in the Dubai 2020 EXPO, which will last 6 months, considering this mega event as an opportunity for promotion of and for establishing connections between companies from the Republic of North Macedonia and companies from the United Arab Emirates, including with companies from the entire Middle East Region.
It is expected that in the near future this Working Group, coordinated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will offer concrete projects and proposals for investments in various areas.