A delegation headed by His Excellency Eng. Abdennebi Manar, Director General of the Arab Civil Aviation Organization, participated in the 54th session of the meetings of the Higher Coordination Committee for Joint Arab Action, held from 24 to 26 January 2023, and hosted by the Arab Union for Digital Economy in the United Arab Emirates. The meeting was headed by His Excellency Secretary General, Mr. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, under the auspices and honor of Lieutenant General His Highness Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of the United Arab Emirates, with the participation of directors general of Arab organizations and secretaries general of specialized Arab unions.
The agenda of the meeting included discussion of many important items that fall within the framework of supporting and strengthening the joint Arab action system, including the Arab food security issue in light of climate changes and the most important plans of Arab organizations related to Arab food security issue and their proposals to deal with it, the most important item of the outcomes of the 31st session of the Council of The League of Arab States at the summit level, which was held in the Republic of Algeria - November 2022 session, the most important outcomes of the works of the Cop27 climate summit, which was held in Sharm El Sheikh - November 2022 session, the item related to the Arab strategy for cybersecurity and the role of specialized Arab organizations related to the preparation of the Arab strategy for cybersecurity. The meeting also discussed the initiatives presented by some joint Arab action organizations and institutions, which are proposed to be presented to the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit, to be held in the Islamic Republic of Mauritania - November 2023 session. The session reviewed the results of the second international media conference, which was organized by the Arab States Broadcasting Union in the Republic of Tunisia on January 13 and 14, 2023, and the proposed submission of its results to the next Arab summit.
On the sidelines of the meeting, a memorandum of understanding for the Arab food market was signed between several joint Arab labor organizations and institutions.
In his speech, Aboul Gheit stressed the importance of the forum as a platform for exchanging ideas and successful experiences of Arab unions, expressing his thanks and appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, "may God grant him protection," for his kind support and assistance in the efforts of joint Arab action initiatives.
He also thanked His Highness Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior, for his support for joint Arab action and sponsorship of the Arab Vision for Digital Economy’s initiative through the Arab Union for Digital Economy, praising the initiatives launched by the Arab Union for Digital Economy and its close cooperation with the League of Arab States to implement them.
In his opening speech, His Excellency the Secretary-General, Mr. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, stressed the role of Arab unions as houses of expertise working within the framework of the League of Arab States. This has prompted the convening of this forum periodically to address issues of interest to Arab business such as entrepreneurship, sustainable development, digital transformation, food security and climate change and others.
The Secretary-General of the League of Arab States urged organizations and unions to raise more initiatives and plans to the Arab summits, and to expand the scope of their work through cooperation with Arab organizations and specialized ministerial councils, calling on them to intensify their efforts in the field of food security in response to the changes in the current circumstances, which led to the deterioration of Arab food security indicators in a worrying way, and in the same context, he praised the initiative launched by the Arab Federation for Digital Economy under the title "Arab Food Market", calling on everyone to cooperate in facilitating its implementation.
His Excellency also said that the world has been facing, since the beginning of the current decade, an increase in risks that threaten the prosperity and security of societies, which indicates the beginning of a new phase of "instability", and one of the most prominent features of which is the continued high rates of inflation and debt, since the Corona pandemic, to record levels, and the decline in global demand for commodities and escalating recession and unemployment.
Aboul Gheit referred to the climate summit held in Sharm El-Sheikh, explaining that it received great Arab interest, which will undoubtedly contribute to raising Arab awareness on climate issues. The summit was marked by distinguished participation from the League of Arab States compared to previous sessions, and because the next climate summit will also be held in the Arab region, in the United Arab Emirates, he suggested that some ideas that would enhance the participation of the Arab League in the aforementioned climate summit be consulted in cooperation with the UAE government, in order to benefit our Arab organizations and our member states alike.
It is worth noting that the 35 joint Arab action institutions and organizations are the technical arms of the League of Arab States and are relied upon to present initiatives and proposals to find solutions to some issues of concern to the Arab region.
The meetings of the Higher Coordination Committee for Joint Arab Action aim to enhance cooperation, coordination and exchange of experiences between the League of Arab States and its institutions to increase the effectiveness of its organizations and federations, and to avoid duplication of work with the aim of developing a strategic vision for the development of joint Arab action in the sectors that fall under the competence of each institution.