Photo: Jana Treeck, Country Director for OBG Libya (left); Mark De Vries, Editorial Manager for OBG Libya (right).

The Team Interviewed 150 of the Most Prominent Political and Economic Figures in Less than Eight Months

In an interview with Oxford Business Group team in Tripoli including Ms. Jana Treeck, Country Director, and Mr. Mark De Vries, Editorial Manager for OBG Libya, both made it clear that Libya indeed is moving ahead on the road of development and the future looks rather bright.

They spoke of huge opportunities for investment in various fields, especially in the banking and construction sectors. They also say that there is serious effort on the part of the authorities to change the way of doing business to the better. Here are excerpts of the interview:

How is the Oxford Business Group (OBG) project in Libya being received by the local institutions and companies?

OBG: Reaction to OBG`s first time presence in the country and our first comprehensive economic review of Libya, which is currently being produced in partnership with the General People's Committee (GPC) for Economy, Trade and Investment, have been extremely positive. Most representatives from the private as well as public sector regard our presence here as a very good indication for the country's progress, increasing openness to the West and a move in the right direction. The receptiveness to our project here in Libya was straightforward and we were able to gather from the market the information we needed.

In other countries in the region, in which OBG has been present for anything from two to 15 years, organizations contacted us to assist with our annual research. In Libya, it took some time to establish the initial trust and relationships with companies and organisations.

After an initial phase of getting to know each other though, we have found entities in Libya to be extremely helpful, keen to contribute to our research and appreciative of what we do. Our interviews and discussions often took several hours.

Please tell us about The Report: Libya 2008, your experience in putting it together and collecting information, its contents, your findings in the country, etc.

OBG: Our research period for The Report: Libya 2008 was a very exciting time. We spent eight months in the country and talked to the key business leaders and government officials in order to gain a deep understanding of the market and analyse investment trends and business opportunities. Our team of editors and specialist analysts conducted about 150 interviews with the most prominent political and economic figures. Interspersed with the most recent stats, facts and figures, we then merge the gathered views, perspectives and forecasts into the most comprehensive report on all sectors of Libya's booming economy. Locals and expatriates alike have shown a strong interest in putting the country on the map and to help profile the pros and cons for investing in Libya.

An exclusive interview with, Kurt Asamer, Executive Board Member of Libyan Cement Company, highlights the country's aspects and current investment climate for foreign operators. From the perspective of a prominent international oil and gas corporation, Felipe Posada, CEO of British Petroleum North Africa, shares with us the significance for Libya's oil reserves in the international market and its procedures for working in exploration and redevelopment of Libya's oil fields. Hamed el Houderi, chairman of the Social Economic Development Fund, will be speaking of the redistribution of wealth in the economy to the people and its major function to attract international investors to the country.

How would you describe the economic development in Libya at present and how does it affect international companies?

OBG: Currently there is lift-off for wholesale economic reform, with plans for cutting all subsidies and privatisation of all national companies. The country is facing many specific issues with these changes.

Alongside the privatisation there is a total refurbishment of the banking system. The stock market is making good progress and all the financial institutions have made it easier for us to get the information we needed to write our report.

With the current economic incentives that have been given to foreign and local investors, the current economic climate has improved strongly. When we focus, for instance, on real estate development and construction you see a major boom of foreign and local organisations that have funds to be invested in new projects in all the major cities in the country. The fundamental legislative issues are being resolved and foreign organisations are getting more leverage to decide whether to invest in the Libyan market.

Apart from increasing foreign investment, initiatives to increase entrepreneurship within small and medium size enterprises (SME) have received significant attention from the local authorities. With the support of the Libyan Economic Development Board, many young entrepreneurs were given the opportunity to start their own SME to create a more diverse Libyan economy and build a sustainable economic presence in the global market once oil reserves decline.

What do you consider the challenges for international companies operating in Libya? Which challenges did you encounter?

OBG: Even though there is a move in the right direction for foreign investment to come in the country, Libya is not the easiest country in which to operate. This can partly be attributed to a lack of transparency in the legal and accounting system. Yet, with the right partner in the country and a well thought out feasibility plan, there is a huge potential for doing business in Libya.

We have seen that the road to achieving goals is to have patience. For historical reasons, there is still a strong bureaucratic system in place which imposes a long decision-making process to actually get projects started. With the initiative of special funds placed in the market to partner with foreign investors, the business environment has become less bureaucratic.

For ourselves we have experienced this with our partners that smoothed our path. Our local partner, the GPC of Economy, Trade and Investment, was invaluable in giving us access to the right channels and sources of information and our accountancy and law partners, Mohammed Ghattour PricewaterhouseCoopers and Tumi Law Firm, have contributed strongly to making our work here more efficient. We are looking forward to continuing these relationships.

A challenge for us was the absence of directories and databases. More than in other countries, we were dependent on word of mouth referral. When we started with the research to find the actual number of companies in a specific field was almost impossible. Then, the collection of data. Even though most organisations have the respective data available, there seems to be no organised system in which data and information are stored in many cases, so it took quite some time to gather many different pieces of information and from many different sources and departments within organisations and institution to come with the right assessment of the current market situation.

What sectors are going to show the most growth after meeting over 150 different organisations in Libya?

OBG: Primarily banking, real estate, construction and the energy sector will see the most significant growth for the coming years as the current investment and planned investment by local and international organizations is tremendous. With increasing foreign participation in most of the sectors, the competitive edge will increase which will lead to a high quality performance and a strong fundamental base for the economic development. Currently the energy sector is still the largest contributor to GDP but within the years the real estate and construction sector will have the chance to surpass the energy sectors economic contribution.

In general terms, what were the most interesting experiences during your stay in Libya?

OBG: We were impressed by the ancient Roman ruins of Leptis Magna and Sabrata, the virginity and unspoilt ness of the country, the endless untouched coastline. Another thing that fascinated us was the friendliness and genuine hospitality of the Libyan people. Everyone was extremely welcoming, open and friendly. On a business perspective, the rapid development in construction projects in the country has really lifted off and the plan for the future Tripoli looks like a massive skyline.

Secondly the major bilateral agreements that were signed between many countries and Libya were a major experience. With back-to-back visits of the many presidents and prime ministers of European, American and Asian countries in such a short timeframe, it really shows that Libya is moving forward to development.