The fourth Greek-Arab economic forum, held on 3-4 June 2015, concluded its events in Athens in the presence of Arab and Greek ministers. More than 500 Arab and Greek businessmen attended the conference organised by the Arab-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce and Development. The Jordanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry was a main partner, and the forum was sponsored by the Association of Greek Contracting Companies and a number of other Greek company sponsors. The forum was held under the slogan “35 years of successful partnership”, synchronising with the 35th anniversary of the foundation of the Arab-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce and Development. The discussions at the forum focused on three main subjects. First, investment in the Greek and Arab worlds broken up into three sessions that covered the relevant investment atmosphere and available opportunities in Jordan. Greece and the Arab world. The second discussed renewable energy from the viewpoint of the Arab and Greek experiences, and the third concerned infrastructure and construction. All the speakers admitted that the forum was vital since it took place at a time when Greece was going through a very critical economic situation. The speakers stressed the importance of exploiting and seeking benefit from all the cooperation and joint investment opportunities, mentioning that the current commercial exchanges between Arab countries and Greece did not equal the excellent political relations between both sides and so should be enhanced and developed.
The forum speakers presented the investment and commercial opportunities available in their countries. The Jordanian delegation, which included Transport Minister Lina Shabeeb and Nael al-Kabareti, chairman of the Jordanian Chamber of Commerce, talked about the business and investment environment in Jordan and presented investment and economic openings in strategic sectors such as renewable energy, tourism, infrastructure, water and medical tourism.
On the sidelines of the forum was an exhibition giving Arab embassies and companies space to display their handmade and traditional products and services. This exhibition attracted great attention and was visited by the majority of the forum participants. One hall was devoted to bilateral meetings of the prime Arab and Greek participants, which took place in addition to the formal meetings between the Arab ministers and their Greek counterparts to discuss cooperation issues.
