NAIROBI, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- Oman and Kenya trade lobbies on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to boost trade cooperation between the two nations.
Qais Mohammed Al Yousef, chairman of Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told journalists in Nairobi that the MOU which runs for three years will enhance the understanding of economic opportunities that are present in both countries.
"The overall aim is to boost bilateral trade and investment levels which are currently below potential," Al Yousef said during the opening ceremony of the first edition of the Oman Product Expo.
The four-day event brought over 100 firms from the gulf state to showcase their goods in the energy, food engineering and health sectors.
Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry has already signed MOU with other African countries such as Tanzania and Ethiopia.
Al Yousef said that the MOU will form the basis of dialogue between the interaction of the business communities in Oman and Kenya.
He added that the MOU will enhance knowledge sharing on market intelligence in the two respective markets.
He noted that Omani firms also hope to use the MOU with their Kenyan counterparts to expand their operations into the African continent.
The chairman said that Kenya is an ideal partner because it has attracted many multinational firms to set up their regional headquarters.
For his part, James Mureu, Vice Chairman of Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that the agreement is the beginning of enhancing and understanding of the opportunities that are present in both nations.
Mureu said that both businesses in Kenya and Oman are keen to explore each other's domestic markets.
He added that Kenya will use Oman as a gateway to enter into the gulf region while Oman will leverage on its close ties with Kenya to expand into the African region.
