In line with its commitment to educate the local community about economic integration in the Gulf, the Ministry of Finance (MoF) recently organised an introductory meeting at the University of Sharjah, which aimed to introduce students, faculty members and the administration to topics related to the development of financial and economic integration between the countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, along with the Ministry’s strategic role, as a concerned party in the UAE, to review Gulf Common Market’s (GCM) general performance.
The Ministry’s delegation consisted of Ibrahim Hassan Rashid Al Jarwan Head of the GCC and Arab Countries at MoF and Dr. Sahel Al Rousan, Economist at MoF, along with Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al Kaabi, Salman Noor Aflatoon and Mariam Mohamed Al Hashimi, economic researchers at MoF.
The introductory meeting focused on several topics related to the structure of GCC joint economic action and the stages of economic integration, starting from the establishment of a free trade area in 1983, to the launch of the Gulf Common Market in 2008, in an aim to achieve monetary union and issue single currency. The participants were also briefed about different areas related to the Gulf Common Market, a principle issued by Article III on the Unified Economic Agreement, which states a need ‘to grant citizens of all Member States the same treatment as is granted to its own citizens without any discrimination of differentiation in the economic field.’
Commenting on this meeting, HE Younis Haji Al Khouri, Undersecretary of MoF said: “The Ministry believes in the significance of organising such introductory meetings, due to the active role it plays in educating university students on the importance of economic integration in the Gulf, the GCC Common Market and the different services provided to GCC citizens in various fields, particularly in social and economic areas. Informing students on these matters will enable them to invest this knowledge into their future work.”
HE added: “MoF will continue to make all the necessary efforts to strengthen the local community’s knowledge about the extent of the UAE’s commitment to implement most of the GCM’s decisions and promote the principles of Gulf economic integration, in order to safeguard all aspects of social and economic life for all GCC citizens.”
The meeting included a presentation given by Ibrahim Hassan Rashid Al Jarwan, Head of the GCC and Arab Countries at MoF on the ‘Gulf Common Market… Features and Opportunities”, whereby participants were presented with the various decisions made by the Supreme Council of the Gulf Cooperation Council on the support of the Gulf Common Market and the mechanisms adopted by the GCC Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee towards strengthening the performance of the market. Participants were also briefed about the annual statistical report on the Gulf Common Market for 2012. The report displayed the latest statistics, which confirm the UAE’s commitment to promoting economic integration in the market.
Jarwan also highlighted the three stages of handling G Common Market complaints. The first phase includes the liaison officers finding solutions. If this is not successful the second stage involves presenting the problems to the Gulf Common Market Committee. The final phase means presenting the issue to the Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee, whereby the Ministerial council will then determine the best solution.
He also stressed during his speech to the faculty members at the University on MoF’s efforts and initiatives to support the Gulf Common Market, whether it is through opinion polls, meetings aimed to promote the Market and Gulf economic integration, electronic pages, the issuance of annual statistical reports on the Gulf Common Market, the preparation of concise booklets on economic integration and hosting various Gulf delegations to brief them about the UAE experience in the implementation of decisions related to the GCC Common Market.
At the end of the meeting, MoF thanked the University of Sharjah’s help in organising a successful meeting and for their interest in spreading awareness about the Gulf Common Market, which creates a learning environment for maintaining the UAE’s position at the forefront of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
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