The Secretary-General of the Union of Arab Chambers, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, met with the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, at the League's headquarters in Cairo, in the presence of the Assistant Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ambassador Hossam Zaki, and accompanied by a delegation from the Arab Society for Economic Research that included: Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Association, former Minister and former Director of the International Monetary Fund, Mahmoud Mohieldin, former Minister of Planning and International Cooperation in the Arab Republic of Egypt, Secretary-General of the Arab Society for Economic Research, Dr. Ashraf El-Araby, Economic Advisor at the Union of Arab Chambers and Dean of the Faculty of International Transport and Logistics at the Arab Academy for Science, Technology and Maritime Transport (AASTMT), Dr. Sarah Al-Gazzar.
During the meeting, they reviewed topics related to enhancing cooperation and joint Arab action, and issues related to the work of the Arab Society for Economic Research and the role it plays in promoting the reality of economic research and innovation in the Arab world due to the importance of the research sector in the development of Arab economies.
The Secretary-General of the Union, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, spoke during the meeting, and referred to the close relations and prominent cooperation between the Union of Arab Chambers and the Arab Society for Economic Research, through the organization of events and holding consultative meetings on a permanent and continuous basis, as the Union pays great attention to the subject of research development within the Union. He pointed out that within the framework of this close cooperation, the Union of Arab Chambers was honored to host the meetings of the Arab Society for Economic Research at its headquarters in Beirut in 2019, in the presence of a group of the most important and prominent economic researchers in the Arab world.
The Secretary-General, Dr. Khaled Hanafi, noted that the research sector is one of the most important criteria used to measure the development of peoples, due to its effective contribution to the development of the industrial fabric and to the economic and social renaissance. One of the most important indicators adopted in evaluating the performance of the research system is the number of published and internationally classified research, as well as the percentage of expenditure on scientific research of the national product.
For his part, the President of the Arab Society for Economic Research, Dr. Mahmoud Mohieldin, noted the importance of investing in artificial intelligence in the Arab region, where the world is witnessing a boom in this field today, and therefore it is necessary in the Arab region to enhance interest in artificial intelligence, where Arab youth because of their capabilities and skills are able to integrate in these fields for the benefit of our Arab countries, peoples and economies. He explained that there is a direct relationship between development and the percentage of spending on scientific research of the national product.
He stressed the importance of Arab countries guiding their structural transformation towards high-productivity sectors that use advanced technology and their ability to create sustainable jobs. In addition to enhancing various aspects of AI readiness in the Arab countries to keep pace with its increasing pace, and maximize the net benefits of AI technology. The rehabilitation of the current and future workforce is crucial to ensure that they acquire the necessary soft and hard skills that reflect the reality of the labor market and at the same time to ensure that they acquire skills that ensure their employability in high-quality jobs.
Dr. Ashraf Al-Arabi spoke about the establishment of the association in the mid-eighties, about 40 years ago, and the role it has played since its establishment and continues to play in spreading the culture of innovation and research in the Arab world. He pointed to the importance of benefiting from the experience of the association, which includes a group of researchers and academics in the Arab world, in this field. He pointed out that the association is interested in developing cooperation with the League of Arab States, which is concerned with promoting joint Arab action. Dr. Sarah Al-Gazzar touched on the magazine issued by the Society, and the importance of this magazine in publishing research and studies of interest to the Arab region in various issues and fields. She stressed that the journal includes writers, experts, and researchers from all Arab countries, and they have outstanding contributions in the field of research, and therefore there is a need for cooperation between the League of Arab States and the Assembly in order to implement the projects and research issued by the magazine on the ground so that all Arab countries benefit from it.
During the meeting, the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, praised the role of the Arab Association for Economic Research, which includes a group of prominent Arab figures. He appreciated what it is doing in order to promote research work in the Arab world, which is the key to development in the Arab world. He pointed out that the greater the interest in the research reality in all fields in the Arab world, the greater the path of growth and development in the Arab countries. He stressed the importance of activating the role of the research sector to contribute to the development of society. For this, it is necessary to find a plan to attract researchers and not separate economic research from priorities and real problems within Arab societies. Without strengthening the research role, we will not be able to overcome problems and find solutions in the future.
Source (Union of Arab Chambers)
