His Excellency the Saudi Minister of Finance, Mr. Mohammed Aljadaan, headed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's delegation participating in the 122nd meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee, held today, October 3, 2024, in Doha, Qatar.
with the participation of their excellencies the Ministers of Finance of GCC nations, as well as the Secretary- General of the GCC.
The participants discussed key issues related to strengthening financial and economic cooperation between GCC nations, while the Committee was informed of the recommendations from the GCC Undersecretaries of Ministries of Finance Committee, as well as the latest developments from the Secretariat General.
On the sideline of the meeting, Minister Aljadaan participated in the first session of the GCC Future Forum entitled "Industries of the future and models of cooperation", in the presence of the Qatari Minister of Finance Mr. Ali Alkuwari, and the Minister of Finance and National Economy of the Kingdom of Bahrain, H.E. Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa as well as the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Ms. Kristalina Georgieva.
During the session, Minister Aljadaan said that the GCC nations share the same opportunities and challenges, "so close cooperation at the domestic and international levels is in the GCC members' best interests and will contribute to the achievement of their common objectives, as well as enhance their global position".
Minister Aljadaan also participated in the Joint Meeting of the GCC Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, along with the Managing Director of the IMF, to discuss economic prospects and political challenges facing the GCC in 2024.
During the meeting, Minister Aljadaan said that each GCC country has different economic needs and plans, but we all face the common challenge of reducing our dependence on oil revenues, noting that Saudi Arabia has implemented financial reforms under Vision 2030 aimed at diversifying the economy and reducing our dependence on oil revenues. Similar initiatives are being implemented throughout the Gulf Cooperation Council.
The Minister also participated in the roundtable entitled "The Fund for the Future", which highlighted various visions of the major reforms to be implemented by the IMF in order to strengthen international economic cooperation, and to improve the financial and management structure of the Fund. They also discussed reforms to the IMF regulatory and supervisory frameworks, lending, and capacity development to provide optimal support to its members in the region and the rest of the world, and to strengthen its internal operations.
During the meeting, Minister Aljadaan highlighted the challenges facing the global economy, including increased geopolitical tensions and slowing global growth, noting the role of the IMF in collaboration with other financial institutions to mobilize multilateral international cooperation to overcome these challenges.