https://arab.news/7n9nn
RIYADH: Business ties between Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, and France were the central focus of a special meeting held in the Kingdom attended by company executives and government figures.
Organized by the Lebanese embassy in Saudi Arabia, the Riyadh-based event incorporated a delegation of various companies from several sectors, including IT, telecommunications, and healthcare.
In a speech, Lebanon’s Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Fawzi Kabbara, said the presence of such firms, including Beirut-based companies Kawas Consulting, Man Enterprise, and Medischool, underlined the deep-rooted economic and commercial ties that exist between his country, the Kingdom, and France.
He added: “This event serves as a platform to showcase the innovative products, services, and expertise that these companies offer.
“Our objective is to introduce French-Lebanese companies to the main actors of the Saudi business community and to facilitate the establishment of significant links and collaborations between the two parties.”
Speaking to Arab News, President of CCI France Liban Maxence Duault, told Arab News of the importance of understanding the rapidly evolving Saudi ecosystem before establishing long-term partnerships.
He stressed the need for instilling sustainable business practices and suggested that fostering positive developments in the Lebanese market would help support the formal economy.
“The objective of the Chamber of Commerce in Lebanon is simply that of building, building economic relations, creating business for the benefit of Franco-Lebanese companies that are currently suffering and finding themselves in a crisis situation,” Duault added.
One firm to be represented at the meeting was consulting and financial advisory company Symphony Business and Finance Consulting Sarl.
Elisabeth Prigent Olaussen, director of strategy and business development at the Beirut-based firm, told Arab News her firm had specialist expertise in the insurance sector, which she was keen to bring to Saudi Arabia.
“There are huge real estate development projects (in the Kingdom), magnificent infrastructure projects. For us who have this activity in fact to intervene in the event of disasters, an expansion such as this fully justifies our arrival on the market to assist in case of disaster,” she said.
According to Marie Harfouche, founder and managing director of Travel Story, the Kingdom is very much the place to be when it comes to expansion in her sector.
She told Arab News: “As a member and a major player in the travel and tourism industry, I started in Beirut, then in the UAE. I think everything that’s happening today is in Saudi Arabia, and Saudi Arabia is also making changes. I am open to any type of partnership, whether at the individual level or as part of a larger group with an investor, a Saudi partner.”
The meeting was not purely focused on non-Saudi companies looking for opportunities in the Kingdom. There were also executives present seeking to bring French and Lebanese firms into their projects.
Ronald Michel Gharib, chief financial officer of transportation company RATP Dev, said: “We are present at this event to make contacts with French institutions and Lebanese companies that can be useful to our projects.
“We are metro and bus operators and we anticipate very great opportunities along AlUla and Riyadh and all the investments that are coming into the Kingdom. All the business opportunities that interest us mainly concern transport services.”
Gharib also highlighted that the company is actively involved in mobility solutions and engaged in technology integration for innovative transport systems.
He added: “We meet with universities and training centers to develop our resources and determine our training needs. We are here at this event because we are planning more partnerships with contractors, subcontractors, wherever they can help us improve our supply chain.”