Turkey’s First Lady H E Emine Erdogan, Qatari Businesswomen Association’s (QBWA) Vice-President Aisha Al Fardan, with other QBWA members in Doha, recently.
Doha: The Qatari Businesswomen Association (QBWA) has organised the Qatari-Turkish High-Level Women Event recently, in honour of the visit of Turkey’s First Lady H E Emine Erdogan, who was accompanying the President of the Turkish Republic H E Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during his official visit to Qatar. The Turkish President’s visit to the country was aimed at discussing ways to enhance economic and investment relations between both countries and ways to support and develop them to include all sectors.
At the beginning of the meeting, QBWA’s Vice-President Aisha Al Fardan welcomed First Lady Erdogan and all the guests. In a speech, Al Fardan spoke about the strategic relations between the two countries, which witnessed great development at various levels under the auspices of its leaders, as well as areas of cooperation which included all political and economic sectors.
Al Fardan added: “The two economies have become more significant trading partners for each other, and this is evidenced by the total volume of the bilateral trade of both countries. QBWA was keen to hold this event today to build bridges of communication and strengthen the bonds of brotherhood and friendship between the women in both countries, as women play a key role in all political, economic and social fields, and have become responsible alongside men, of developing the society and achieving sustainable development. And we in the Qatari Businesswomen Association are working hard to build this platform, which has become a main link between the most important local and international partners and businesswomen in Qatar, and we are always keen to work with our partners around the world to create new opportunities for everyone”.
During the event, First Lady Erdogan expressed her happiness with the warm welcome she received during her visit, and pointed to the deep-rooted friendship between Qatar and Turkey. She stressed that the mutual dialogue between both countries was gaining momentum each day.
“I would like to express my gratitude to the Qatari Businesswomen Association for organising this event, and I hope it provides us with an opportunity to create new areas of cooperation,” she said during her speech.
She went on to reiterate the investment opportunities available in Turkey including tourism, machinery, agriculture, food, and information and communication technology. She added that Turkey also has strong sectors in real estate, pharmaceuticals, hotels, restaurants and fashion, areas which may attract many Qatari businesswomen who are looking for investment and cooperation opportunities.
Further speaking about sustainable development, the First Lady said: “When we say development today, the first thing that comes to our mind is the empowerment of women. There is a direct relationship between sustainable development and the economic and social empowerment of women. With the increase in the number of socially and economically advanced women, we are witnessing multiple dimensional transformations from our social structure to production systems”.
She added that the Investment Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey, which was established by the President in 2006, is of great importance in facilitating the investment process, and the President directly manages it. The office has several representatives around the world, and is represented in the State of Qatar by Elif Sukkar. The investment office is located in the Qatar Financial Centre and facilitates all procedures for Qatari investors.
First Lady Erdogan also extended an invitation to the QBWA to visit Turkey and exchange experiences with their Turkish counterparts, explore new investment opportunities and study potential projects, ideas and proposals that would provide an added value to the national economy and raise the level of economic cooperation aligned with the aspirations of the Qatari and Turkish people.
During the meeting, QBWA Board Member Awatef Al Dafaa also emphasised that Qatari women have made a clear imprint in all business aspects and have become a key player in both the public and private institutions. She highlighted that females are now a component in every entity, company or ministry in the country. “She has proven her presence and effectiveness in all the positions she tackled at a time when the State provided, as much as possible, a working environment that suits the family role of Qatari women and works to encourage equality and bridge the gender gap. Qatari women were able during the last period to remarkably achieve balance in the equation of family, leadership and entrepreneurship,” she added.
Participants during the event noted the pioneering role played by H H Sheikha Moza bint Nasser in the field of developing the human value of women, and stressed that she paid great attention to highlighting the role of Qatari women and motivating them to improve their social status and participate in public life.
