The huge exhibition which is the fourth of its kind included companies from all over the world including the United States , Brazil, Italy, United Arab Emirates and Japan.
The organizers of the exhibition said that the market of reconstructing Iraq worth $100 billion; however, the worsening security situation, the daily explosions and kidnappings prevent foreign companies from sending their workers and experts and rely more on Iraqis.
Faris Muslih, Executive Director of Reconstructing Iraq Council, said that Iraq's poor security situation is deporting foreign firms from Iraq and slowing down the reconstruction efforts, but it also opened the way for Iraqi companies which are in need of capital and basic materials.
He said that holding such forums provide an opportunity for foreign investors to meet the real needs of the Iraqi market and to create an opportunity to form partnerships with Iraqis especially that Iraq faces major problems in the infrastructure of water and electricity and others.
The companies participating in this forum represent all commercial and industrial sectors of electricity and oil plants to food and raw materials and other needs.
Harry Korkain, chief executive of HP in Britain and the Italian Bertoli transformers, said: "There are significant security problems ... Everyone is facing problems in Iraq".
Korkain, who lived in Iraq for two years and was wounded in Fallujah, added that he won't send any foreign workers unless the project is huge and that his company is using Jordanian companies for the transfer of power transformers which it wishes to instill in Iraq where it relies on Iraqi staff there.
He said, "We rely more on Iraqi workers and we train them either in Amman or in Turkey, but some of them who left Iraq do not wish to return, and this is a problem we are facing".
A security campaign backed up by the United States led to the retreat of sectarian killings in the capital but the gunmen intensified their attacks on highways around the capital, and the American leaders believe that the armed men are re-assembling there.
American President George Bush, who is under pressure from the democratic opposition to set a timetable for the withdrawal of American forces, says that the American Forces will leave Iraq when the Iraqi forces are able to assume responsibility for security in the fighting against the death squads and gunmen.
Ali Shamara, an Iraqi businessman, said that investment companies in his country have been greatly affected by poor security situation, but he called on Arab and foreign companies to be proactive in investing in Iraq without waiting for the security situation to improve.
He said: "We hope that companies do not wait till the security situation is settled to invest in Iraq. Certainly there are risks but sometimes there are positive points as well". (Source)AlSabah
