French chamber boosts key Bahrain-France ties

French Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Bahrain (FCCIB) is a new development in our bilateral relations with the Kingdom, French Ambassador Bernard Regnauld-Fabre said.

He was speaking to DT News on the sidelines of the FCCIB Business Networking Kick-off Luncheon here yesterday.

“We are a step forward compared to the business club we used to have before. This is the institution to generate business for the business community,” the French Ambassador said.

Regnauld-Fabre said that the chamber would be one-year- old in April and it was gaining importance.

“This year we will see the institution fully functional,” he said. FCCIB is all over the world, but is fourth in the GCC after Dubai, Kuwait and Abu Dhabi.

Meanwhile, FCCIB Chairman Jean-Christophe Durand said that this was their first networking lunch, while their launching event took place in December and Industry Minister was the patron.

He said it was an important platform where they could meet all the members and explain to them what they had done and what they intended to do in future and also to bring new members into the chamber.

He remarked that the French chamber was aiming to boost business and investment between France and Bahrain.

“We are planning to have Bahrain Road Show in Paris with the Bahrain chamber to be able to build partnership between the French and Bahraini companies,” he said, adding that their main focus was to attract French companies to Bahrain for trade and investment and vice versa.

Durand said France was one of the largest countries in Europe and they could bring a lot of added value to Bahrain. 

FCCIB Executive Director Rim Jalali said that the Bahraini economy would get boost through interaction between the French and Bahraini businessmen.  She said that they were already in touch with the Economic Development Board (EDB) of Bahrain to define areas of cooperation between the two countries. 

Managing Director MSCEB Mohamed Salahuddin told DT News that the French chamber was going to bring business community of both the countries together where they could exchange views and share ideas.

He said that he was always encouraging the Bahraini businessmen to get involved with the international companies, as it would broaden their horizon.

Salahuddin said that there were a lot Bahrainis who were already members of this chamber. 

He said that he was not afraid of the slump in oil prices, but optimistic enough as the private sector was very much alive in Bahrain.