Saudi Arabia: A joint Saudi-Croatian business council is on track to be established in an attempt to tap new areas of economic cooperation between the two countries, Saudi Press Agency reported.

To be recognized under the Federation of Saudi Chambers umbrella, the new business council will also be concerned with financing continuous interaction between the business sectors of both countries.

The decision came during a meeting involving the former President of Croatia, Colinda Grabar, and her accompanying delegation, with Saudi business owners at the headquarters of the Federation of Saudi Chambers in Riyadh.

During the meeting, Grabar expressed her country's desire to sign an economic cooperation agreement with the Kingdom to expand the areas of trade and investment cooperation.

Under the terms of the new agreement, both countries will work hand in hand to explore the prospects for partnership between the two countries as well as the opportunities available in the sectors of renewable energy, transport, infrastructure, tourism, and real estate.

To support this, the former president called for greater participation between Saudi and Croatian firms in a way that contributes to raising the level of economic relations between the two countries.

On the other hand, the head of the Federation of Saudi Chambers Hassan bin Mujib Al-Huwaizi stressed during the meeting that Croatian companies have several investment opportunities in the Kingdom in the sectors targeted in Vision 2030, especially renewable energy, tourism, and real estate.

This comes as the volume of trade exchange between the two countries surged 198 percent to reach SR533 million ($142 million) in 2021.

Al-Huwaizi called for finding new cooperation mechanisms that contribute to stimulating investment opportunities between the two countries.

Earlier this month, Saudi Arabia also discussed ways to strengthen economic cooperation with several European countries during its participation in the ministerial meeting of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. 

The international meeting – which took place in Paris, France – discussed the role of responsible business behavior in the global economy, and the contribution of the private sector to economic growth. 

During the meeting, the Kingdom’s Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Al-Ibrahim examined ways to propel financial sustainability and digitization.