AFGHANISTAN: DUTCH INDUSTRY TO STAGE CONFERENCE

UNCLAS THE HAGUE 003011 SIPDIS SA/AR, EUR/UBI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AF EAID ECON NL SUBJECT: AFGHANISTAN: DUTCH INDUSTRY TO STAGE CONFERENCE ON BIZ OPPORTUNITIES ¶1. The Dutch Chamber of Commerce and the National Center for Trade Promotion are sponsoring a conference on business opportunities in Afghanistan, to be held December 10 in Rotterdam. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will send two speakers: Ronald Mollinger, Ambassador at Large and Special Envoy for Afghanistan, and Wouter Biesterbos, senior official at the South Asia Division. ¶2. The stated goal of the conference is to highlight for the Dutch business sector the future potential opportunities that exist both in investment in Afghanistan and in participation in the country's reconstruction. The conference is being organized by the membership organization "Dutch-Afghan Center for Trade Promotion" which is chaired by Afghan expatriate Ehsan Turabaz. The organizers also expect to have a representative of Dutch bank ING and/or a spokesman from Price Waterhouse Coopers. The Chamber has held two similar conferences on Iraq in the past year -- each was attended by around 200 participants. ¶3. The invitation letter states that Afghanistan has gone through extensive change: "Stability is back, and there is a good political structure, next to which the economy is gradually taking shape." The invitation also makes note of the reconstruction opportunities that will be made possible by the USD 500 million Afghan Reconstruction Trust Fund and identifies the government of the Netherlands as one of the fund's largest donors. ¶4. Embassy The Hague's Economic Section will send a representative to the December 10 conference. SOBEL