[09/June/2009]

RIYADH, June 09 (Saba) - Foreign Ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)'s states have confirmed their countries' support to Yemen's unity, security and stability as well as its developmental projects.

In the final statement of the 4th joint meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the GCC and Yemen which held Monday in the Saudi capital Riyadh, they confirmed the importance of boosting coordination and consultation between the GCC and Yemen and reviewing the progress which has been achieved in all cooperation fields between the two sides.

"The GCC's states support the Yemeni unity and its government's efforts which aim at dialogue so as to ensure Yemen's stability and its territories unity", the statement highlighted.

The statement made it clear that Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi had briefed the participants in the meeting on a number of proposals related to enhancing the cooperation between the two sides.

The Ministers listened to a report of the GCC's General Secretary on the obtained progress in the cooperation fields between the GCC and Yemen, especially in the developmental field.

The report indicated that the total volume of the current pledges of the GCC's states and the territorial funds was about $3.5 billion devoted for projects of the period from 2007 to 2010 and about 90 percent of the total pledges, which equals about $ 3.2 billion, was allocated so far and distributed on 50 developmental projects which have been approved by the two sides.

It pointed out that the two sides have signed financing agreements exceeding $ 1.5 billion to finance projects of electrical power production, roads, seaports, airports, hospitals rehabilitation and construction, vocational education and training, Social Fund for Development (SFD), Public Works Program and others.

The Ministers expressed their stratification for the progress in the cooperation areas between the two sides, particularly the GCC's decision at Muscat's Gulf summit in December 2008 which joined Yemen to four organizations of the GCC, including the GCC Standardization Organization, Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting, the GCC's Accounting and Auditing Organization and Gulf Television.

In addition, Yemen is a member in the Gulf Arab Bureau of Education, the GCC's Health Ministers Council, Council of Ministers of Labor and Social Affairs of the GCC's and Gulf Football Championship.

The Gulf Ministers hailed Yemen's steps to execute the reforms aiming at promoting competency of Yemen's economy, improving investment environment and achieving objectives of the economic and social development which would contribute to integrating its economy within the Gulf states' economies.

They also praised the obtained progress in carrying out the investment program of the third development plan and the projects funded by the GCC's states and regional funds.

The statement unveiled the GCC Foreign Ministers directed the joint technical committee to take the necessary actions in this regard as to follow:

- To speed up the projects implementation according to the timetables, reporting any obstacles hindering the implementation and pinpointing the developmental requirements of Yemen for the fourth developmental plan for 2011-2015 so as to achieve a comprehensive development in Yemen and integrate Yemen in the economies of GCC's states.

- Giving priority to the programs of qualifying the Yemeni workforces.

- Studying Yemen's workforces' participation in the GCC's labor market by the GCC's Ministers of Labor and Social Affairs and reporting the results to the council.

- Providing the technical and financial support to the GCC-funded Projects Unit established in Yemen's Ministry of Planning and International cooperation.

- Making mechanisms for encouraging the private sector in the GCC's states to invest in Yemen and urging the Gulf and Yemeni commercial chambers to enhance the partnership of businessmen in the two sides.

The GCC's Foreign Ministers welcomed an invitation offered by Yemen's Foreign Minister al-Qirbi to hold their coming joint meeting in Yemen during the first quarter of 2010.

The joint meeting discussed a proposal of Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz to give priority to the Yemeni skilled labors in the Gulf labor markets which was adopted by the last Gulf summit held in Riyadh last May.

Moreover, the meeting reviewed means of strengthening the partnership between Yemen and the GCC, joining Yemen to new Gulf organizations and qualifying Yemen's economy through supporting its development process and executing the current projects within the financial pledges of the GCC's states announced in the London Donors Conference held in November 2006.

It also dealt with issues of coordination and consultation between the two sides in the political, economic and security fields in light of the current developments in the region.

In his speech to the meeting, the Yemeni Minister affirmed Yemen's keenness on coordination and cooperation with the GCC's states so as to serve Yemen and the GCC's common interests, security and stability. Minister al-Qirbi called for opening an office for the GCC's General Secretariat in the capital Sana'a to follow up executing the joint programs and coordinate between the two sides.

Al-Qirbi voiced Yemen's thanks to the leaders of the GCC for the developmental support presented to Yemen in the different fields.

He also thanked the GCC's states for allocating 80 percent of their pledges presented during the London conference.

The Yemeni official highly valued the supportive positions of the GCC's states to Yemen's unity "which is not an important factor of security and stability in Yemen only, but in the whole region.

BA/YA