The Embassy of Republic of Iraq in Spain Organises Conference to Enhance Economic Diplomacy

The Embassy of Republic of Iraq in Madrid and the Madrid Chamber of Commerce organised the International Economic Conference between Iraq and Spain with the participation of the Iraqi Ambassador to Spain, Mr. Adel Mustafa Kamel, Mr. Inkhil Asensio, President of the Madrid Chamber of Commerce, Ms. Eva Martins, Director General of the Department of Morocco and the Middle East and the Mediterranean at the Spanish Foreign Ministry, Mr. Pablo Perez, President of the INV Group, and Mr. Manuel Mora, representative of the State Secretariat for Trade, Mr. Hansi Escobar, the Spanish ambassador to Iraq, and from Iraq Mr. Abdul Hussein Al-Anbaki, the Economic Adviser in the Council of Ministers, Mr. Haider Al-Mayali, Director General of the Housing Department at the Ministry of Construction and Housing, Mr. Adel Khudair, Director General of Foreign Economic Relations at the Ministry of Trade, and Dr. Hussein Basem Aliwi, Director of the Unions, Companies and Organizations Department at the Ministry of Industry and Minerals and with the presence of 102 Spanish companies in various specialties.

Mr. Inkhil Asensio President of the Madrid Chamber of Commerce, began his speech at the opening of the conference, stressing that there are promising investment opportunities in Iraq that are consistent with Spain’s approach to internationalize its companies, and that Iraq is rich in its resources and young energies, stating the sectors that Iraq needs, including housing, reconstruction, digitization and rehabilitation and praised the role of the embassy and the ambassador’s relentless endeavor to create this constructive cooperation.

Ambassador Adel Mustafa stressed the strenuous steps that have been made recently between the embassy and the Chamber of Commerce to achieve this meeting and to create and present the available investment opportunities.

Indicating that Iraq possesses important and attractive qualifications, including geographical location, abundance of resources and young human energy, after which comes the Investment Law No. 13 of 2006 and its amendments, which is the best of its kind in terms of the facilities it places in front of the investor, praising the strong bilateral relationship at the political level over seven decades and Spain’s participation in the Global coalition in the war on Da’esh , and King Philip VI’s visit to Iraq and his meeting with the President of the Republic, Mr. Barham Salih, and stated that the fertile ground on the level of the bilateral political relations must be reflected positively on the economic relationship.

Mr. Pablo Perez expressed his welcome to this initiative pointing out that his group offers its security services to companies and institutions as well as the possibility of providing services related to information security.

Meanwhile, Ms. Eva Martin, Director of the Department of Morocco, the Middle East and the Mediterranean at the Spanish Foreign Ministry reviewed the depth of the bilateral relations from 1946, stressing the symbolic importance of Iraq as it includes a wide variety of religions and nationalities, and Spain aspires for its components to live in peace.

Mr. Abdul Hussein Al-Anbaki, the economic advisor in the Council of Ministers stated the privileges that the investor enjoys in Iraq, including those related to the shift towards a market economy and the imposition of customs tariffs to protect the local product, as well as the abundance of labor and the legislative base that protects investors and the capital of funds at the level of the investment law and the Iraqi constitution .

Mr. Manuel Mora representative of the State Secretariat for Trade, reviewed the trade balance between the two countries and the nature of exports and imports between them, pointing to the importance of diversification in products as well as the importance of legislating the investor protection law.

The Spanish Ambassador to Baghdad, Hansi Escobar, confirmed that the situation in Iraq is heading towards complete stability, which encourages investment , and that Prime Minister Mr. Mustafa Al-Kadhim’s government is moving forward towards achieving comprehensive reforms in the country, thanking the Iraqi embassy in Madrid for its initiative and organizational effort in the success of this conference.