LOC15:14
12:14 GMT
BEIRUT, Nov 24 (KUNA) -- Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati inaugurated the Beirut Economic Forum 2022 on Thursday, organized by the Union of Arab Banks (UAB) and titled "Arab Experiences in Economic Reforms and an Agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF)."
In a speech he delivered, Mekati stressed the necessity of devising a comprehensive strategy to enact structural reforms that ensures the sought economic and social recovery.
"We believe that there is no solution to the current economic and monetary crisis in Lebanon without the conclusion of a final deal agreement with the IMF," he underlined.
Mikati went on to say that overcoming the crisis should be through a general settlement that includes the election of a president of the republic in the nearest time possible, the formation of a new government, the expedition of the required reforms, and the conclusion of a final deal with the IMF.
On his part, the Head of Investment Committee in the (UAB) Sheikh Mohammad Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah said during the opening session, that "Kuwait has been always a great supporter to Lebanon," stressing the continuous Kuwaiti support for any economic recovery that would contribute to ensure stability and growth in the country.
He explained how the investment committee in the union is working to ensure the return of foreign investment to Lebanon, hoping that the forum will open new horizons of trust in the Lebanese economy.
Al-Sabah called on the Lebanese government "to put a plan that guarantees the recovery of the money of Arab depositors in order to preserve confidence in Lebanon and its banking sector."
Chairman of the Executive Committee of (UAB) Joseph Tarabeih underscored the importance of the role played by the International Monetary Fund in the global economy, and how it helps countries that implement economic reforms to gain access to other international financing institutions and to financial markets.
He referred to the negotiations conducted by some Arab countries with the International Monetary Fund to adopt economic reforms and obtain loans to overcome their financial difficulties, as is the case with Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan, Sudan and Lebanon, which "suffer from economic crises accompanied by urgent financing needs."
He believed that Lebanon's process of negotiating with the fund would become more difficult with Lebanon falling into the stage of a presidential vacancy and other legislative issues, such as writing off deposits, zeroing capital, placing restrictions on the movement of capital, and reviewing the tax system."
Tarabeih stressed the need for Lebanon to assume responsibility for their debts and to lead the solution through a plan to return deposits gradually without any sale of their assets, as well as negotiating with creditors abroad "in preparation for restoring financial legitimacy and returning to the international financial markets."
On the other side, the Lebanese Economy Minister Amin Salam said in a statement to KUNA that " the biggest obstacle is within the absence of the political will, all what we see is a result of political tension of a long period of time, resulted in down slowing many decisions and reforms".
In a similar statement, the head of economic authorities in Lebanon, Mohammad Shougair expressed to KUNA the hope that the Lebanese will benefit from the expertise and experience of our Arab brothers who have implemented reforms in their country to reach an agreement with the International Monetary Fund," he said.
The forum will discuss, over two days, a number files including economic reforms in Lebanon, presentation of Arab experiences in the economic reform process in Egypt, Jordan, Tunisia and Lebanon.
It will also discuss the structuring the Lebanese banking sector and the crisis of recovering depositors' money, in addition to studying the economic and social effects of economic reform policies.(end)
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