PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia and Saudi Arabia today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in the field of trade and investment to promote cooperation.
The MoU involves five key areas, namely healthcare, construction, education, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and the Halal industry.
The MoU was signed by Minister of International Trade and Industry (MITI) Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed and Saudi Arabia State Minister Dr Ibrahim Abdulaziz Al-Assaf, on behalf of the country’s Ministry of Commerce and Investment.
In a statement today, MITI said the cooperation between the two governments as outlined under the MoU will cover exchange of information and experience, visits involving experts and professionals as well as hosting seminars and meeting sessions to further promote opportunities available in the respective countries.
The two countries have also agreed to form a working committee under the Malaysia-Saudi Arabia Joint Commission Meeting tasked with identifying and improving understanding on trade and investment issues related to both countries as well as develop cooperation programmes to further enhance economic ties.
On the formation of the working group, Mustapa said this is a step forward that is expected to lead to more trade between the two countries and further diversification in imports and exports.
“Among the key areas which we hope to benefit from more diversified trade include services, digital economy and tourism sector. Our officials will be tasked with going into details on what products and services could be further promoted,” he said.
Apart from the MoU signed on economic cooperation, two other MoUs were signed between Malaysia and Saudi Arabia to further strengthen the areas of human resources and education in both countries.
The MoU signings were witnessed by Saudi Arabian ruler King Salman Abdulaziz Al-Saud and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, at Seri Perdana today.