Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) and Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) have discussed means of joint coordination to open a representative office for the KNCCI in the emirate, to enhance bilateral relations and support business communities in the two countries.

This came during a meeting between SCCI and a high-profile delegation from KNCCI led by its President Richard Ngatia. A group of Kenyan businessmen operating in the food industry among other sectors was also part of the delegation. The delegation was received by Abdullah Sultan Al Owais, Chairman, SCCI, in the presence of a number of officials.

While welcoming the delegation, Al Owais underlined that Sharjah Chamber is keen to provide all the support for opening the Kenyan office, noting that this step would help underpin the strong relations between Sharjah and Kenya.

He pointed out that the companies operating in Sharjah could play a pivotal role in enhancing the bilateral economic cooperation by making use of the enormous opportunities for investment in Kenya, especially in the agriculture, infrastructure, and energy sectors. The visits conducted by the Chamber to Nairobi over the past years aimed to maintain Sharjah’s position as a gateway to Africa for regional and global markets and enhance the emirate’s presence in the emerging markets in Africa, he added.

Ngatia stressed his country’s willingness to ramp up economic cooperation and sign various business partnerships. Opening a representative office in Sharjah would help to get the most out of the lucrative opportunities for investment in the UAE and Sharjah, especially in industry, commerce, tourism sectors, logistics, and financial services, he stated.

The volume of non-oil trade exchange between the UAE and Africa amounted to US$50 billion in 2019, while the volume of non-oil trade exchange between the UAE and Kenya reached about $2.7 billion in the