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DOHA / WAM
The UAE delegation participated in the third session of the Arab Economy and Cooperation Forum with Central Asian States and the Republic of Azerbaijan, held in Doha under the theme ‘Prospects for mutual cooperation amidst challenges and aspirations’. The country’s delegation was represented at the forum by Suhail bin Mohammed Al Mazrouei, Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, and Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy.
Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the Arab League, Arab ministers for foreign affairs, finance and economy, as well as the ministers of foreign affairs, finance and economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyz Republic and Kazakhstan attended the forum. Bin Touq emphasised that the UAE reaffirms its commitment to strengthening economic cooperation between Arab countries, Central Asian countries and Azerbaijan and exchanging best practices and experiences in all economic activities and fields. Moreover, the UAE remains keen to open new development prospects and create future opportunities that contribute to the development of Arab and Central Asian economies.
In his speech at the meeting, the UAE Minister of Economy said, “The UAE enjoys strong strategic economic and political relations with the Central Asian States and the Republic of Azerbaijan, and the developmental aspirations of both sides meet in a number of areas of mutual interest.”
“This will drive continued cooperation and exchange of experiences in the interest of all Arab countries, Central Asian States and Azerbaijan.” He further noted that the meeting is an important milestone in promoting joint economic cooperation in various economic sectors by effectively capitalising on the opportunities and strengths enjoyed by Arab countries, Central Asian States and Azerbaijan.
Bin Touq continued: “In light of the current global economic challenges, we believe it is important to strengthen cooperation in new and sustainable economic sectors, especially technology, artificial intelligence, digital transformation and advanced applications. Tourism, circular economy, green economy, entrepreneurship, and other future sectors are also equally important. We should also consider exploring new mechanisms that contribute to facilitating tourism flows between the countries participating in the Forum. This will promote sustainable tourism development in both regions by exploiting the tourism potential of all our countries.”
Furthermore, the Minister of Economy elaborated on the UAE’s vision to foster the growth and sustainability of the tourism and aviation sectors, including the launch of UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, which aims to raise the sector’s contribution to the GDP to AED450 billion, and strengthen the UAE’s position as one of the best global tourism destinations by the next decade. The UAE’s national aviation decarbonisation roadmap, which seeks to achieve an annual production of up to 700 million litres of sustainable fuel (SAF) by 2030, was also highlighted.
In addition, Bin Touq highlighted the UAE’s strong commitment to pursuing collaborative efforts, thus contributing to achieving the goals set by the third session of the forum. These include the development of tourism exchanges between Arab countries, Central Asia and Azerbaijan through facilitating cooperation between relevant tourism organisations and entities. Strengthening cooperation in land, sea and air transport sectors through joint projects and initiatives, besides sharing best practices and experiences in such vital sectors, are also focus areas.
Furthermore, Bin Touq underscored the UAE’s readiness to share its experience in facing water scarcity challenges, as the country gained global status in managing its water resources and devising proper solutions, especially after hosting COP28, which placed water security on top of its agenda.
In this context, the participants welcomed the Mohamed bin Zayed Water Initiative (MBZWI), launched in the UAE to increase awareness of the importance of the water scarcity crisis and its critical effects at the international level. It also accelerates the development of innovative technological solutions to address this challenge and enables cooperation with concerned international partners and parties to advance technology innovation in addressing water scarcity. Besides, it contributes to expanding the scope of international collaboration and increasing investments directed towards overcoming this global challenge.
The forum also underlined the importance of supporting agricultural cooperation and benefiting from exceptional experiences in harnessing advanced agriculture technologies and smart irrigation systems. Also highlighted was the need to promote cultural and scientific exchange by encouraging joint events and exhibitions and strengthening the relationship between concerned universities and specialised centres.
The first session of the Arab Economic and Cooperation Forum with the Central Asian Countries and the Republic of Azerbaijan was held in 2014 by virtue of an MoU signed between the foreign ministers of the Central Asian countries and the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States.