Qatar Development Bank (QDB), through its export arm, Tasdeer, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation with Dubai Exports to facilitate business transactions, promote trade, and foster opportunities for greater commerce between the two countries. QDB said the signing ceremony was held on the sidelines of the recently-held Index Design Series 2017 held in Dubai. This year, QDB participated at Index Design Series 2017 along with nine Qatari companies involved across various fields of designing. The MoU was signed by QDB’s executive director of export development and promotion Hassan Khalifa al-Mansoori and Dubai Exports CEO Saed al-Awadi in the presence of officials from both organisations and participating exhibitors. The agreement aims at supporting trade between exporters in Qatar and the UAE, and enhancing trade and business opportunities between entrepreneurs from the two countries, including manufacturers, exporters, traders, and service providers. QDB said a “key aspect” of the cooperation includes encouraging companies to develop investment relations through joint bilateral trade meetings. Through the MoU, both QDB and Dubai Exports “will help introduce their country’s respective companies to one another and facilitate, when and where possible, their capacity to network with members of each other’s business communities.” This endeavour is aimed to initiate an independent line of communication between the two parties and will be accomplished through the organisation of joint commercial promotion activities, including trade fairs, trade delegations, training courses, and dialogue forums. Al-Mansoori said: “With every passing day, we build new roads across that business communities of the Gulf Cooperation Council may traverse without hindrance to work together. “Through our agreement to cooperate with Dubai Exports, we have taken a qualitative leap forward in supporting Qatari exporters and importers, facilitating their trade and strengthening them by opening new markets in various fields at local and regional levels.” He added, “We expect this agreement to bring about a significant growth in business traffic between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and entrepreneurs in Qatar and the UAE. “This objective is also in line with Qatar Development Bank’s plans to promote Brand Qatar as well as encourage greater plurality of business ventures in the private sector and achieve diversity in the local export economy.” Since its launch in 2011, QDB said, Tasdeer has been at the forefront of developing Qatar’s export strategy for local SMEs. It also provides a wide range of information to SMEs, including country-specific case studies, analytics, and business directories.