SCIC signs new MOU with QIA as part of Prime Minister's Qatar visit

October 30, 2024, SCIC's delegation met and worked with Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) at QIA headquarters in Doha, as part of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's official visit to Qatar.

SCIC was represented by Mr. Nguyen Chi Thanh, Chairman of the Board of Members, Mr. Le Thanh Tuan, Deputy General Director, and delegation members. QIA was represented by Mr. Faisal bin Thani Al Thani, Chief Investment Officer, and colleagues. During this meeting, SCIC and QIA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on investment cooperation.

According to the signed MOU, SCIC and QIA will jointly seek cooperation opportunities including: investment in projects of mutual interest; investment in suitable enterprises within SCIC's divestment portfolio; and research and implementation of joint investment mechanisms between the parties.

SCIC delegation presents souvenirs to QIA delegation

Following the signing ceremony, SCIC and QIA exchanged and updated information about both organizations' recent activities and the economic and political situation in Qatar and Viet Nam. Chairman Nguyen Chi Thanh shared that Viet Nam increasingly needs to attract investment in infrastructure projects to maintain annual growth rates. With a stable political system and significant economic development potential, Viet Nam is an ideal market for investors like QIA to approach and explore. Chairman Thanh also shared with QIA the duties and functions of SCIC, as well as SCIC’s Development Strategy approved by the Prime Minister aimed at investment and international investment attraction, serving socio-economic development, and contributing to upgrading Viet Nam's market from frontier to emerging market status. Projects under SCIC's investment research include infrastructure, road transportation, pharmaceuticals, information technology, data centers, etc. SCIC hopes QIA will collaborate with SCIC to research these sectors in Viet Nam.

In response, Mr. Faisal bin Thani Al Thani said that as a financial investor, QIA is bullish about the Vietnamese market and agrees to study the aforementioned project sectors with SCIC along with other local businesses and partners. QIA focuses on healthcare, infrastructure, and real estate for investment activities, but is also ready to seize any opportunity to better understand and deepen cooperation in the Vietnamese market. Mr. Faisal also shared QIA's recent management restructuring, forming more subsidiary funds and enterprises to work with increasingly diverse markets, local contractors, and investors. Through this approach, QIA also hopes to gain opportunities to cooperate in more difficult-to-penetrate markets like Laos and Cambodia through cooperation with Viet Nam, leveraging the experience and existing presence of Vietnamese contractors and investors in the region.

Chairman Nguyen Chi Thanh agreed with QIA's ideas and approach for the ASEAN region in general and Viet Nam in particular, and expressed SCIC's readiness to serve as a bridge and reliable local partner for jointly researching investment projects proposed by the Prime Minister for Qatar-Viet Nam cooperation, and to facilitate QIA's exploration and cooperation in regional markets through Vietnamese partners. Chairman Thanh also mentioned Ho Chi Minh City's process of building a financial center, which will need support from QIA's extensive experience and abundant resources, and suggested potential cooperation in areas of Qatar's interest such as pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and Halal food.

At the conclusion of the meeting, Chairman Nguyen Chi Thanh thanked Chief Investment Officer Faisal bin Thani Al Thani and took the opportunity to invite QIA for another visit to SCIC headquarters in Hanoi, Viet Nam.

SCIC visited and worked with the Vietnamese Ambassador in Doha, Qatar

Chairman of SCIC Board of Members Nguyen Chi Thanh and the delegation visited and worked with the Vietnamese Ambassador in Doha, Qatar.

Chairman of SCIC Board of Members Nguyen Chi Thanh and the delegation working with the Vietnamese Ambassador in Doha, Qatar

On this occasion, Chairman Nguyen Chi Thanh met with the Ambassador H.E. Nguyen Huy Hiep and expressed hope that the Vietnamese Embassy in Qatar would continue to support SCIC in working and cooperating with QIA, and assist SCIC in promoting investment cooperation activities as proposed by the Prime Minister for implementation between Qatar and Viet Nam. During the meeting, the Embassy shared some information and experience in working with businesses and investment funds of Qatar and the Gulf region so that SCIC could better promote its activities and cooperative relationships.

SCIC delegation taking souvenir photos with the Vietnamese Embassy in Qatar

Previously, in Viet Nam, Chairman Nguyen Chi Thanh met and worked with Qatari Ambassador to Viet Nam, H.E. Khalid Ali Abdullah Abel, thanking the Embassy for the help and support in maintaining and enhancing the relationship between SCIC and QIA, and expressed his wishes that the Embassy will continue to be a bridge for good relations between not only SCIC and QIA but also between Viet Nam and Qatar.