Bahrain chairs 45th meeting of GCC common market committee in Riyadh

Riyadh, Aug. 27 (BNA): As part of Bahrain’s presidency of the 46th session of the GCC Supreme Council, Shaikh Abdullah bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, Director of International Relations at the Ministry of Finance and National Economy, chaired the 45th meeting of the GCC Common Market Committee.

 The meeting, held at the GCC General Secretariat headquarters in Riyadh on August 26–27, brought together representatives of GCC member states and the General Secretariat, as well as representatives of the GCC Statistical Centre.

 The meeting discussed issues related to completing the requirements of the GCC Common Market and enhancing Gulf economic integration. It also reviewed developments in cross-border trade in services and ways to further develop the unified electronic platform, "Takamul", for receiving comments and enquiries, with a view to enhancing GCC citizens’ access to the benefits of the Common Market and supporting joint GCC action.

 The GCC Common Market was launched in January 2008 under the GCC Economic Agreement, which provides for treating GCC citizens in any member state on an equal basis with its own citizens, without discrimination, across various economic sectors, including mobility, employment, investment, real estate ownership, company establishment, education, healthcare and social services, among other areas that support Gulf economic integration and meet the aspirations of GCC citizens.