Countries from Cuba to Portugal make investment pitch in Dubai

Countries from Cuba to Portugal make investment pitch in Dubai
Cuban officials attend the Annual Investment Meeting for the first time
Published: 17:28 April 12, 2016
Siddesh Suresh Mayenkar, Senior Reporter

Dubai:

Countries from Portugal to Cuba among others made investment pitches at
Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) on Tuesday.

While Cuba sought investments in exploration of natural resources,
mining even as it shifts its foreign policy on investment after the
removal of sanctions, Portugal welcomed start-ups promising
entrepreneurs of a good quality life.

"We have set up a company to promote infrastructure. We are working on
construction of ports and various other contracts," Antonio Luis
Carricarte, vice-minister of foreign trade and investments, Cuba, told
delegates at the AIM, adding that in 2015 the country had 326 running
projects.

The Cuba's National Assembly recently passed a new foreign investment
law that halved the profits tax from 30 to 15 per cent and exempted
investors from paying it for eight years, among other provisions, to
bring back foreign investments in a country that was cut off from the US
investments due to a trade embargo.

Cuba needs to attract $2 billion (Dh7.34 billion) to $2.5 billion in
foreign direct investments (FDI) per year to reach its economic growth
target of 7 per cent, the country's minister for foreign trade and
investment, Rodrigo Malmierca, was quoted as saying.

"We want investments in energy, we need to install 2,000 mega watts of
power capacity, which may include bio-power and that would be linked to
sugar mills, and also hydro power stations. It's a huge task and we are
calling for investments in these sectors," Carricarte said. Meanwhile,
other officials from Mauritania, Namibia, Sri Lanka also made their
investment pitches at the conference.

Startup Portugal

"We want to attract the next big companies. We want to attract cutting
edge sectors to Portugal. We would do that by regulations and changing
laws," said Joao Vasconceios, secretary of state of industry, Portugal.

Portugal wants to be the first country in Europe to get driverless cars,
to regulate drones, and the country is formulating a policy similar to
its peers in the United States and the United Kingdom.

In March 2016, the country launched Startup Portugal, a national public
strategy to foster entrepreneurship.

"We are still studying the policy and we are doing a benchmark with
other countries worldwide," Vasconceios said. adding "the future of
economy is based on knowledge and creativity, investors are no more
attracted by tax incentives or anything like that. There are new kind of
companies that want creativity and best eco-system and these are
companies that governments must focus on to be the part of in the 21st
century economy."

Source: Countries from Cuba to Portugal make investment pitch in Dubai |
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