The United Arab Emirates and Hungary have signed an economic cooperation agreement aimed at stimulating trade and investment flows between the two nations in priority sectors of mutual interest.

The agreement was signed in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, by Dr Thani Bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, and Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary. The UAE’s Ambassador to Hungary, Saud Hamad Al-Shamsi, attended the signing ceremony.

The UAE-Hungary economic cooperation agreement aims to deepen bilateral ties between the two nations and drive mutual growth across key sectors including industry, commerce, investment, tourism, logistics, infrastructure, and real estate. The agreement also aims to boost non-oil trade, which has seen a significant increase in recent years. In 2023, non-oil trade increased by 23.1 per cent to over $1.127 billion - a threefold rise from $409 million in 2019.

Al Zeyoudi said the agreement sets the stage for increased trade and investment by leveraging the two nations’ combined economic potential.

Al Zeyoudi stated, “The UAE and Hungary’s economic ties continue to strengthen, building on our shared objective of achieving sustainable economic growth by stimulating trade and investment flows between our two friendly nations. We are creating opportunities for our private sectors to increase collaboration and build partnerships in various areas that will be pivotal to economic diversification, while also facilitating and incentivising future-focused private enterprises and emerging industries to grow within and beyond our borders.”

For his part, Szijjártó said, “The United Arab Emirates is a principal trade partner in the Arab region for Hungary, and we look forward to elevating our bilateral relations to new heights across various developmental fields with today’s signing. The economic cooperation agreement is a significant step in our journey of constructive collaboration, as it establishes specific frameworks and vital programs for developing bilateral cooperation in priority sectors. This will enhance our bilateral partnership in the coming years, leading to more diverse, robust, and sustainable economic and commercial relations.” As per the agreement, a joint committee will be established to facilitate and oversee economic engagement between the two countries, developing mutually beneficial programs and initiatives in line with the agreement, while also establishing a mechanism to oversee their successful implementation.

The signing builds on the cooperation programme agreed between the two countries in 2022, which prioritised 9 key sectors including trade, investment, talent attraction and small and medium-sized enterprises, water resource management, energy and renewable energy, tourism and culture, logistics and supply, research and technology, space and education.

Dr Thani Bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi recently headed a high-level UAE delegation to Bern and Basel, Switzerland, where he met senior government officials and private-sector leaders to strengthen economic collaboration and foster investment flows between the two nations. The visit sought to build on growing UAE-Swiss ties, which in 2023 saw non-oil trade reach a total value of $22.3 billion – a 41.2 percent increase on 2022.

His Excellency was joined in Switzerland by HE Hissa Abdulla Al Otaiba, UAE Ambassador to the Swiss Confederation, Dr Fatema Mohamed Al Kaabi, Director General of the Emirates Drug Establishment, HE Rashed Abdulkarim Al Blooshi, Undersecretary at the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, HE Juma Mohamed Al Kait, Assistant Undersecretary for International Trade at the Ministry of Economy, HE Tariq Yaqoob Al Hashmi, Assistant Undersecretary of Advanced Technology at the Ministry of Industry and Advanced Technology, HE Ahmed Khalifa Al Qubaisi, Chief Executive Officer for the Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and HE Jamal Saif Al Jarwan Al Shamsi, Secretary General of the UAE Investors Council.

During the visit, His Excellency Al Zeyoudi held talks with Helene Budliger Artieda, Switzerland’s State Secretary for Economic Affairs, during which the two sides commended the growing bilateral trade exchange. They then helped open the Swiss-UAE Economic Forum, which was held in Bern and gathered representatives of leading companies and investors from both nations to explore high-potential investment and partnership opportunities.

Al Zeyoudi’s also used the occasion to celebrate 50 years of diplomatic ties between the UAE and Switzerland, which he said reflects a united vision of mutual economic prosperity. He said: “Switzerland is a valued trade and investment partner to the UAE, and the leading European destination for our non-oil trade exports and fourth globally with a value of US$9.55 billion in 2023. Our bilateral trade exceeded $22.3 billion in 2023, which represents an increase of 41.2 percent over 2022 and underlines the degree of synergy between our economies.”