Qatar participated in the meeting of the 112th session of the Arab Economic and Social Council at the ministerial level, held on Thursday at the headquarters of the Arab League General Secretariats in Cairo.
Assistant Undersecretary for Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Finance Dr Saud Abdullah al-Attiyah headed Qatar's delegation to the meeting. The agenda of this session included several important topics including preparation for the 5th Arab Economic and Social Development Summit held in Mauritania next November, in addition to supporting Palestine's economy in the face of the financial challenges and unfair economic sanctions against the Palestinian people imposed by the Israeli occupation.
In his opening statement at the meeting, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States Ahmed Aboul Gheit stressed the importance of the current session as it comes before the 5th Arab Economic and Social Development Summit which will revolve around Arab food security. Arab food security is a crucial issue that falls under Arab national security in its broad sense, especially considering the worrying data related to grain trade and its supply chains, as well as the impact of climate change on the state of food security in many countries including Arab countries, Aboul Gheit added.
He said that the agenda of the session includes an initiative to support efforts to save Sudan's agriculture in co-operation with the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD), with the aim of alleviating the burdens resulting from the conflict that threatens the spread of hunger and large-scale displacement.
Aboul Gheit pointed to the crises in the Arab region and the world during the past few years which results in the need for cooperation and solidarity to overcome them. Deeper support should be directed to specialized Arab organizations for their pivotal role in the joint Arab action through proposing initiatives and implementing strategies.
