GulfInvest 2009 to begin this Thursday 

(MENAFN Press) Under the patronage of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, the Second Meeting of Gulf Investors in Morocco will begin on Thursday 19 November 2009, at Skhirat (Palais International des Congrès Mohammed VI).

The meeting has been arranged by the Arab Gulf Agency for Media and Communication and the Arab Industrial Development and Mining Organization, in collaboration with the Prefecture of Skhirat Temara, to prospect investment opportunities in the Kingdom of Morocco, and will be held in partnership with Office Cherifien Des Phosphates, Office National Des Aéroports, Moroccan Agency for Agricultural Development, Agricultural Lending in Morocco, Borouj Securities, United Entertainment and Tourism Company, Oxford Business Group, Qatar Airways and The First Investor company.

Economic, commercial and investment organizations, GCC and Moroccan experts, academics and researchers will all participate in the meeting to discuss the impact and repercussions of the global economic and financial crisis on the GCC and Moroccan economies.

Dr Mohammad Bin Yusuf, Director General of Arab Industrial Development and Mining Organization, will give a presentation on the role of investment in the industrial sector in mitigating the impact of the global economic and financial crisis. Dr Lahcen Achy, the Middle East specialist and international advisor to Carnegie Centre for Strategic Studies, Dr Fathallh Oualaou, Rabat Mayor, and Dr Habib El Malki, Director General of Centre Marocain de Conjoncture, will give input on the role of investment in overcoming the adverse consequences of the economic crisis, the importance of learning lessons and examples for the future, and how GCC countries can address the impacts of the economic crisis, respectively. Morocco will be introduced as an alternative for GCC investments that have faced several difficulties in Europe and the United States of America.

H.E. Mr Ali Bin Saeed Al-Sharhan, President of the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID), will preside over the sectoral session on investment in agriculture and food industries, while H.E. Abbas Ali Naqi will chair the sectoral session on investment in energy and minerals. Mrs Rabiah Al-Alamah, Managing Director of the American Chamber of Commerce, will chair the sectoral session on investment in the new technologies sector and industry. Regional investment centres will provide promising investment opportunities all over the Kingdom of Morocco, and financial organizations and investment funds will present new prospects for GCC investment in Morocco.

The event will also honour the GCC's leading businessmen for 2009, to motivate them to invest in Morocco and open new horizons of partnership and cooperation with Moroccan businessmen. A trade show for projects undertaken by GCC and Moroccan companies will be held to create a space for networking, as well as research and implement mutual GCC and Moroccan investments, to further enhance economic and commercial cooperation.

GULFINVEST is an initiative launched by the Arab Gulf Agency for Media and Communication, an independent agency specialized in GCC economics. Established in January 2007, the Agency seeks to organize conferences and economic and investment events to strengthen economic and commercial ties between Morocco and GCC countries. Through launching the GULFINVEST initiative, it aims to create a regular networking space for Moroccan and GCC businessmen, presenting investment opportunities for both sides, promoting private partnerships, establishing mixed Moroccan and GCC companies and supporting GCC economic presence in the Kingdom of Morocco.