Gulf Monetary Council big step forward toward economic integration

Source: Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

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“The plans are moving smoothly and decisions are taken with adequate study to reach the aspired goal.” During the opening ceremony of the Gulf Monetary Council last Saturday, Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency and Chairman of the GCC Monetary Council Dr. Fahad bin Abdullah Al-Mubarak said the Council will contribute to further promoting the monetary cooperation frameworks between the member states, based on the institution-building approach which aims at developing the monetary union, as this Council is the first step to the institutions of the monetary union.  Al-Mubarak pointed out that the main objective of the council is to “achieve the highest level of economic integration among GCC states for the interests and welfare of Gulf citizens.”

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UAE donates Dh5.83b in aid to 137 countries

Source: Khaleej Times (Read full story)

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The UAE was ranked sixth among the biggest donors in 2012.  “The UAE does not provide conditional aid or wait for a return, as the motivating stimulus to provide humanitarian aid is its strong keenness to contribute to achieving stability and providing a dignified life for all peoples, regardless of their race or religion,” Shaikh Mohammed said.  Speaking about the report, Shaikha Lubna said, “The report gives detailed data on UAE grants and loans provided by 43 donors, charitable and humanitarian organisations, including 22 Emirati government entities.”  Similar to previous years, the UAE government was the largest foreign aid donor giving Dh2.62 billion ($712.2 million), which accounts for nearly 45 per cent of the country’s total foreign assistance.  “President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan is a pioneer in humanitarian work without peer in the country, as aid provided by him alone stood the highest among all government or private institutions in the country,” commended Shaikh Mohammed.

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Government focuses on skills of Emiratis

Source: Khaleej Times (Read full story)

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Shaikh Mohammed’s statement came during the graduation ceremony of the first batch of the Performance Management System for the employees of the Federal Government.  The ceremony was held in the Abu Dhabi Presidential Palace and was attended by Lt-General Shaikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, and Shaikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.  Addressing the performance experts after the ceremony, Shaikh Mohammed stated: “We want our government’s work to be developed by the hands of our national experts and consultants. Government system is a contemporary science, and our objective is to develop specialised national competencies. We cannot keep competing internationally unless we qualify our national cadres to the international standards and make them an active part in the daily work cycle.

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Union ‘crucial to strengthen GCC solidarity’

Source: Gulf Daily News (Read full story)

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“The GCC union is the aim of all peoples in the region. We have to build on our successes in all fields,” the Premier said.  He expressed optimism of the achievement of this goal as it has consensus among people across the Gulf and stressed the importance for leaders to intensify meetings to discuss developments.  Meanwhile, the Premier said he hoped that Iran would overcome its internal problems and resume its role as a pivotal Arab nation. He warned that sectarian strife would destroy the Islamic republic’s identity.  Bahrain welcomes friendly ties with all countries on the basis of mutual respct and non-interference in internal affairs, he said, with regard to the kingdom’s relations with Iran.

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GCC investors plan logistics firm

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

Gulf investors are studying the possibility of establishing a logistics services company that would help streamline the flow of goods across the borders of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). A feasibility study is currently under way, Ali Abdul Latif Al-Misnad, a board member of the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told local media. He said investments in the services sector ranges between $50 billion and $100 billion. The proposed company would regulate the activities of companies and institutions involved in the GCC transport sector and determine how to remove obstacles facing investors, Al-Misnad said. The study emerged from an initial agreement by GCC investors to establish a private services company with branches in all six countries.

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Saudi investments in foreign securities hit SR1.92 trillion

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

Saudi Arabia has invested 73 percent of its total reserves in securities of foreign countries, according to a financial report. Saudi total assets reached SR2.62 trillion last August while the invested portion in foreign securities reached SR1.92 trillion, the report prepared by Al-Eqtisadiah daily, said. The Kingdom has steadily increased investments in foreign securities and jumped tenfold in a nine-year period at SR1.92 trillion in August compared to SR202 billion in January 2005, the report said quoting the latest data released by the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA). Saudi investments in (foreign) securities reportedly increased by 21 percent compared to the levels of August 2012, which stood at SR1.6 trillion and 1.3 percent compared to figures of July 2013 at SR1.9 trillion.

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Feasibility studies for GCC railway project under way

Source: Arab News (Read full story)

Two international firms will conduct feasibility studies for the proposed multibillion-riyal railway project that would link the six-member countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), it was revealed at a recent meeting here of the GCC transport ministers. Bahraini Minister of Transport Kamal bin Ahmad said the two companies would conduct technical, consultative and engineering studies. He did not specify a timetable for the start of the project. Bin Ahmad said that Saudi Arabia and Bahrain’s ministries of finance and transport agreed to appoint the General Organization of the King Fahd Causeway as the body to choose the company that would oversee the project. The Bahraini minister said the technical specifications for the project have been drawn up.

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A grateful farewell to Saudi Arabia

Source: Saudi Gazette (Read full story)

In 2009, President Obama spoke in Cairo of his hopes for “a new beginning in the Islamic world, one based on shared interest, mutual trust and mutual respect.”  That sentence has guided me over these last four years.  Our cooperation with Saudi Arabia has never been stronger, our shared interests never closer, and the foundation of our relationship never more solid. In 2009, there were 23,000 Saudi students in the United States.  We committed ourselves to making sure that no student missed a class because they could not get a visa appointment, and this started a long, deliberate process to retool the visa process in our Embassy in Riyadh and our Consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran.  Today there are over 71,000 Saudi students in the United States, half of all the Saudis who are studying abroad, with both numbers growing.

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