Saudi Finance Minister Mohammad Al-Jadaan said that successive world crises have underlined the importance of economic integration between Arab states and the need for sustainable economic and financial models that raise flexibility in dealing with challenges and threats.
The minister also pointed to “the Kingdom’s keenness to achieve appropriate conditions for economic growth and stability in the region.”
Addressing the ministerial meeting of the Economic and Social Council, which is held in preparation for the Arab Summit in Jeddah, Al-Jadaan said that Saudi Arabia has worked on many initiatives to meet emerging challenges, including the Middle East Green Initiative, and the carbon circular economy approach, which will contribute to achieving international goals to reduce carbon emissions while providing the world’s needs of energy supplies.
He added that the Kingdom was cooperating with the institutions of the Arab Coordination Group to enhance food security, and has launched a financial support package of more than $10 billion for this purpose.
The Saudi minister noted that his country welcomes Syria’s return to the Arab League, saying: “We look forward to joint work in the interest of our peoples.”
For his part, UAE Minister of Economy Abdullah bin Touq Al-Marri shed light on the importance of establishing an Arab free trade zone, stressing that it “has become a development necessity, especially in light of the current global changes and their impact on the movement of trade and supply chains.”
He added that enhancing the efficiency of trade and customs policies, removing obstacles and ensuring the flow of goods and services between Arab countries constituted a “major guarantee” to support the ability of those countries to meet the requirements of comprehensive and sustainable development.
The Emirati minister said that the UAE’s non-oil trade with Arab countries accounted for 22 percent of the country’s total non-oil trade, with a value exceeding $131 billion during 2022, and with a growth of 17.4 percent compared to 2021.
Saudi Arabia’s Assistant Minister of Finance for Macro-Fiscal Policies and International Relations Abdul-Muhsen Al-Khalaf chaired on Monday the first meeting of the senior officials of the Arab League Economic and Social Council.
The meeting touched on the need to strengthen joint Arab economic and social action and find urgent solutions to current challenges.i-
