Qatar has been studiously investing in some marquee companies around the world in the last few years through Qatar Investment Authority. Doha has been careful to diversify its investments over a spread of sectors in different geographical locations.
Qatar is a long term investor and is not looking for a quick profit. This strategy helps build a strong partnership with the companies and also the country where they are located. As a long term investor, Doha is interested in the holistic growth of the firm, the community it is based in and in turn the country they belong to.
This helps build friendly and strategic relations between the states and is evident from the close relations Qatar shares with Germany.
Qatar has already announced that it will invest an additional ¤10bn in Germany in the next five years, which will make it the largest Arab investor in Germany with a total investment of ¤35bn.
The sixth session of Qatari-German Joint Commission on Economic, Trade and Technical cooperation was held recently in Berlin and top officials from both the countries discussed ways to promote bilateral economic and trade relations.
Over 300 German companies operate in Qatar and play a very important role in the development of the country across vital industries including the manufacturing, services, telecommunications, transport and infrastructure sectors, among others. Companies like Siemens has been at the forefront helping Qatar turn into a knowledge-based economy. They are also playing an important role in World Cup 2022 projects and their presence will only get stronger as more projects come online as the World Cup approaches.
Qatar has significant investment in some top German marquee firms like Volkswagen, Deutsche Bank, Siemens, Hochtief and more through QIA, which spans various sectors including automotive, telecommunications, hospitality, and banking among others. With the additional investment to the tune of ¤10m in the next five years will make Qatar one of the key allies of Germany from the Arab world and this will only cement the stronger ties further.
The 9th Qatar Business and Investment Forum held in Berlin during September 2018, under the patronage of the Amir H H Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani was a landmark event showing Qatar’s conviction in German economy.
Qatar-German relations shows how countries can mutually benefit from each other’s growth and build a robust relationship build on mutual trust and shared vision.
