German firms explore agricultural investment opportunities in Syria

DAMASCUS, Syria — DAMASCUS — German companies have begun examining investment opportunities in Syria's agricultural sector, pending the resolution of financial and banking transfer obstacles, participants at a bilateral business forum said. A representative of PETKUS MENA, a German firm, said a delegation visited Damascus to introduce modern German agricultural, grain-processing and logistics technology to the Syrian market and to support the local sector. The representative, Khalid Raad, said training programs for Syrian specialists could be arranged in Germany, adding that both sides had an interest in investment and cooperation but that banking access and monetary arrangements still needed to be resolved. The talks took place during the Syrian-German Business Round Table in Damascus, attended by Central Bank of Syria Governor Muhammad Safwat Rislan and a German economic delegation. Participants discussed energy, industry, infrastructure and finance, along with economic recovery and reconstruction. The event is being held at the Semiramis Hotel in Damascus and is organized by the Syrian-German Business Council in cooperation with the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. German companies and official institutions announced they had launched the work to explore agricultural investment after financial barriers related to banking transfers are cleared.