This past week, IBBC’s Managing Director, Christophe Michels, and IBBC’s Deputy Chairman, Eng. Rasmi Al Jabri visited Iraq with Brigadier James Ellery CBE, Chairman of Turnkey LLC. The main focus of the visit was construction and redevelopment in Ramadi, Anbar Province, which has undergone a remarkable period of change since Islamic State was ousted from the area. While in Ramadi, IBBC met with a number of tribal leaders, local business figures and the provincial governor, Mr Ali Farhan Hamid, who shortly intends to visit the UK. IBBC looks forward to hosting him on this trip, and will be organising events which will allow its members to meet and network with him in the near future.

“Overall, this trip was a great success”, said Mr Michels. “While always good to connect with members, it was particularly impressive to see how far the Anbar Province has come since its liberation from Islamic State. The level of infrastructure and construction I saw is some of the best in Iraq, and increasing long-term stability offers real potential for foreign investors”.

IBBC also visited Baghdad, where they met Dr Thamer Ghadhban, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil, Abdulkariem Al Faisal, Chairman the Prime Minister’s Advisory Commission, Professor Hamid Ahmed, Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Dr Salar Ameen, Deputy Chairman of the National Investment Commission. They also hosted a dinner at the Alwiyah Club, which was kindly sponsored by the Iraqi International Islamic Bank and attended by over forty IBBC members.

A particular highlight of the trip’s time in Baghdad was a visit to the Iraqi National Museum. While closed for a number of years after the war, it has now reopened to the public, and is a world-leading collector and displayer of ancient artefacts from the region.

For more information on the Iraq Britain Business Council, visit our website at https://iraqbritainbusiness.org/

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