The Dutch Business Council Qatar (DBCQ) organised a celebration and networking event, in collaboration with fellow European business councils, on Wednesday to mark the annual celebration of Europe Day.
The ambassador of Bulgaria and local European Union (EU) presidency, Metin Kazak, addressed the audience after the event’s opening ceremony, emphasising the importance of collaboration across the European member states and the development of a concerted approach to relations with Qatar. 
Kazak was accompanied on stage by a delegation of EU ambassadors and Yousuf bin Mohamed al-Othman Fakhro, undersecretary at the Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs.
Dutch ambassador and chair of the EU visibility group, Dr Bahia Tahzib-Lie, followed by underlining the significant achievements of the European Union and the importance to continue to strengthen the ties of Qatar and Europe. She reinforced the value of human rights, including worker rights, and introduced Houtan Homayounpour, head of the new International Labour Organisation office (ILO) in Doha. 
Dr Tahzib-Lie elucidated the European Union’s support to Qatar’s partnership with ILO. The emphasis of the evening was to “celebrate the unity in diversity across Europe based on a robust set of shared values, which allows the European Union to secure their peaceful co-existence and collective prosperity,” according to a press statement.
European and Qatari guests gathered to connect and advance business relations. The European Union is the second regional partner of Qatar, with a trading volume of QR55bn, and the EU is also the second source of imports to Qatar, with 30% of the country’s imports coming from EU countries. Some 50,000 Europeans reside in Qatar and more than 1,900 European companies operate in the country, either with 100% European capital or with a shared Qatari ownership.
The European business councils in Qatar “aspire to connect their professional business network, share experiences and jointly explore business opportunities in Qatar. They indicated a desire to bolster their collaboration and joint presence in Qatar”, the statement adds.
“I believe the evening was a great success for all of us,” said Robert Willem Cats, DBCQ chairman and speaker during the evening on behalf of all the European Business Councils in Qatar. “We see enormous potential to work together more to advance and promote our European presence in Qatar and to foster even closer relationships locally.”