India, Saudi Arabia agree to issue multiple-entry visas to businessmen

India and Saudi Arabia have jointly decided to issue multiple-entry visas to businessmen in an attempt to overcome regulatory obstacles that block the growth of two-way trade between the two countries.

The decision to issue multiple-entry visas to traders was taken at a meeting of the Indo-Saudi Joint Commission held in at Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.

The meeting was attended by India’s Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Saudi Arabia’s Minister for Commerce and Industry Abdullah Zainal Alireza.

A 10-member delegation of businessmen from India, which accompanied Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, also held discussions with senior officials of Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province Chamber of Commerce, on taking the trade between Indian and Saudi Arabia “to the next level.”

Reacting to the bilateral decision on multiple-entry visas to businessmen, Sharad Nandurdikar, of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), said that a major hurdle has been removed. Indian business who wanted to come to Saudi Arabia to do business had to face visa-related issues every time, and businessmen from Saudi Arabia had similar complaints, Nandurdikar added.

Nandurdikar said that an important meeting will be held in New Delhi in early 2010 in order to address specific issues related to “processes and procedures” that affect two-way trade.

Adnan A Al-Nueim, secretary-general of Asharqia Chamber, of Saudi Arabia, said his country’s trade will certainly get a boost with the reciprocal visits.

According to Adnan A Al-Nueim, over 200 ‘Amerindic’ companies are at present active in Saudi Arabia.