By Bader Al-Bedah
KUWAIT, Jan 18 (KUNA) -- His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, along with former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, proposed the Arab Economic Summit as an event focusing on promotion of Arab states' economies.
The first Arab Economic Summit began in Kuwait, January 2009.
The initiative aimed to tackle issues of economic, developmental, social and cultural importance that affect life and dignity of Arab citizens and their right to lead a secure and decent life.
On such basis, His Highness Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah dedicated unique interest and support to ensure success of this summit and its organization.
The call by His Highness to hold an Arab economic development summit reflected his deep vision and far-reaching insight regarding necessity of integration and development for the peoples of the Arab world, his Arab and national sense, as well as his concern that the Arab summits and conferences achieve the ambitions of the Arab peoples.
Taking into consideration importance of economic, social and development aspects with regard to comprehensive Arab security, this summit is a historic turning point in the Arab joint work and the real and right offset in implementing the Arab economic project, which was born fragile half a century ago.
The summit's agenda includes issues relating to unemployment, preparing and qualifying Arab labor, methods of developing education, water and food security, in addition to discussing the issues of technology and methods of enhancing the coordination mechanism between the concerned Arab organizations to confront climate changes, natural disasters and emergencies.
Kuwait Declaration of the Arab Economic Summit indicates that it has been launched on basis of a new Arab economic development ideology, committing to what has been stated in the Arab League Charter, agreements and charters signed within the framework of the League and adopted strategies." The Declaration commended the Kuwaiti-Egyptian initiative, which underlined the relation between security and Arab social peace of the economic and social development, which was activated through issuing two resolutions in Riyadh and Damascus Arab Summits of 2007 and 2008 respectively, after a special summit to push the development cycle in the Arab world.
It explained that the necessary resolutions were adopted to guarantee uplifting the living level of the Arab citizen, giving priority to joint Arab investments, and giving way to private sector and civil societies to participate in the advancing process of the economic and social development.
The declaration affirmed supporting infrastructure projects, developing sectors of production, business, services and social projects, preserving environment, in addition to projects of electricity link, Arab land link scheme and water and food security programs in order to realize Arab economic integration.
Arab leaders commended the pioneer development initiative declared by His Highness the Amir on launching the Economic, Social and Development Summit. They also hailed Kuwait's contribution that was worth USD 500 million to the budget of this initiative.
In addition, it was decided to hold the Economic Summit meetings regularly every two years.
Due to the impact of the global financial crisis, the disturbance in the world financial market, the danger of recession and economic deflation and its negative repercussion on development, many countries, economic blocks and international financial organizations hurried to find proper solutions and limit the buildup of damage.
Many leaders agreed to amplify their efforts to attain Arab economic and social integrity, as it is a main objective that all Arab countries are seeking to achieve the joint Arab economic and social action.
Regarding the global financial crisis, the declaration pointed out the leaders' agreement on following monetary and financial policies that enhancing Arab countries' potentials to face the backlash of the global financial crisis, so it asserted the importance of encouraging intra-Arab investment, providing suitable atmosphere, necessary protection, facilitating Arab capital movement among Arab Nations, widening the scope and mechanism of implementing the unified agreement of investing Arab capitals in the Arab countries.
The Declaration reiterated importance of enhancing role of funds and joint Arab financial organizations, developing its resources, facilitating conditions of loans, mechanisms and accesses to finance basic infrastructure projects to allow participation in financing Arab economic integration projects, in cooperation with the private sector and providing credit facilities to various ventures.
Concerning the private sector, the Declaration emphasized providing the economic fundamentals and proper legislation environment by lifting obstacles that limit achieving economic and social development in Arab countries.
The Declaration focused strongly on the action to elevate human potentials of the Arab citizen, and widening the scope of women and youth empowerment, increasing job opportunity before them, advancing health, education and increasing real incomes.
Furthermore, it focused on health services, the importance of increasing basic health care projects in Arab countries, activating the role of joint Arab health organizations to promote the health service level and providing it in a proper way to the Arab citizen and uplifting pharmaceutical production. As for women, The Declaration highlighted importance of woman empowerment, promoting her economic, social and legal conditions, enhancing her role in public life to achieve equality principle and assure justice and equity principles in the society.
In the field of agriculture and food security, the Declaration called for taking action to increase agricultural productivity, improving its rates, encouraging investment in agricultural development by accelerating the implementation of agricultural development strategy adopted in Riyadh Summit 2007.
The Summit called also for taking all the necessary procedures to clear obstacles that are still hindering in the communication and information technology sector, and encouraging private companies and organizations to attract investment.
Demands of preserving the environment and natural resources, using those resources optimally to achieve sustainable development were one of the main aims of the Declaration.
It also emphasized Arab cooperation in the energy field; particularly improving its effectiveness and rationalizing its usage as a mean of sustainable development, strengthening the existing Arab electrical link networks, enhancing natural gas networks and increasing the participation of the private sector in its investments.
Demands made in the Declaration, regarding transportation, seeking to achieve linking land, marine and air transportation networks among Arab countries as they are the main veins of trade, tourism, investment and labor movement inside the Arab region.
On January 20, 2019, all Arab leaders and Presidents are invited to the 4th Economic and Social Development Summit in Beirut, Lebanon with the same aims and goals as the previous summits that were held in Kuwait 2009, Sharm El-Sheikh 2011 and Riyadh 2013.
Arab Leaders try in every way possible to improve the lives of their peoples in an integrational way by providing strategies covering all economic and social aspects. Arab Leaders strive to translate this project into a certain reality to take right decisions that positively reflect on the life style of their peoples and improve their variable conditions. (end) bb