AL chief asserts importance of Arab-European partnership

ROME, June 25 (MENA) - Arab League (AL) Secretary General Ahmed Abul Gheit on Tuesday said that the International Arab Banking Summit (IABS) is an opportunity for discussing a real partnership between Arab and European countries.

Addressing the summit which kicked off here this morning under the title 'Euro-Arab Mediterranean dialogues for a better economic zone', he added that the gathering is also an opportunity for exchanging expertise between both sides.

The AL chief pointed out that the Arab region does not need only investments but also new experiences in the financial sector as well as in financial technology.

Meanwhile, the European side needs pumping more funds in its economies especially after the financial crisis that hit ten years ago and obliged it to adopt austerity policies, he added.

The Arab market is a perfect destination for the European countries, he said, adding that there are many promising sectors in the Arab region such as energy and information technology.

The two-day International Arab Banking Summit is hosted by the Union of Arab Banks. The Summit, which is an annual international platform, gathers Ministers, Governors of Central Banks, senior executives from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), leading bankers, decision-makers and representatives of public and private sectors from numerous global nations to discuss issues of concern to the international banking community and the wider global economy.

IABS Rome 2019, will focus primarily on the Mediterranean finance and banking aspects.

Its objective is to facilitate discussions among banking and financial leaders in addition to government and public sector officials and it will present an important assessment of the Euro-Arab Mediterranean economic & banking relations and emphasize the need to launch initiatives between public and private sectors in order to strengthen these relations and open channels of cooperation, trade and bilateral investment.