Gulf_cooperation_council

مجلس التعاون لدول الخليج العربية Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG)
Map indicating CCASG members
Official languages		Arabic
Type		Trade bloc
Membership		Arab states of the Persian Gulf (6)
Leaders
-	Secretary-General	Abdul Rahman ibn Hamad al-Attiyah
Establishment
-	As the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)	May 25 1981
Population
-	estimate	39,371,307[1] wikipedia. Retrieved 2007.
GDP (nominal)		estimate
-	Total	$791 Billion
-	Per capita	$20,083
Currency		see footnote 1
Website http://www.gcc-sg.org/
1	Common currency planned for introduction in 2010. Present currencies (ISO 4217 codes in brackets): Bahraini dinar (BHD) • Kuwaiti dinar (KWD) • Omani rial (OMR) • Qatari riyal (QAR) • Saudi riyal (SAR) • UAE dirham (AED)

The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (CCASG; Arabic: مجلس التعاون لدول الخليج العربية‎), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; مجلس التعاون الخليجي) is a trade bloc involving the six Arab states of the Persian Gulf with many economic and social objectives.

History

Created on May 25, 1981, the Council comprises the Persian Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The unified economic agreement between the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council was signed on November 11, 1981 in Riyadh. These countries are often referred to as Gulf Cooperative Countries.Tourism Australia Strengthens Commitment In The Gulf Countries. Tourism Australia (October 6, 2005). Retrieved on 2007-04-07.

Not all of the countries neighboring the Arabian Gulf are members of the council. Iran is excluded, as is Iraq, although both nations have a coastline on the Persian Gulf. Yemen is (currently) in negotiations for GCC membership, and hopes to join by 2016.Yemen hopeful to join GCC in 2016. Yemen Times (December 19, 2006). Retrieved on 2007-04-07.. The GCC Patent Office was approved in 1992 and established soon afterGCC Patent Office page of the GCC website. Retrieved on 2008-02-12..

A common market was launched on January 1, 2008.http://www.arabtimesonline.com/kuwaitnews/pagesdetails.asp?nid=10186&ccid=12

Objectives

Among the stated objectives are:

• formulating similar regulations in various fields such as economy, finance, trade, customs, tourism, legislation, and administration;
• fostering scientific and technical progress in industry, mining, agriculture, water and animal resources;
• establishing scientific research centres;
• setting up joint ventures;
• encouraging cooperation of the private sector;
• strengthening ties between their peoples; and
• establishing a common currency, the Khaleeji, by 2010. (However, Oman had announced it will not be able to meet the target date.)

Economy

This area has some of the fastest growing economies in the world, mostly due to a boom in oil and natural gas revenues coupled with a building and investment boom backed by decades of saved petroleum revenues. In an effort to build a tax base and economic foundation before the reserves run out, the UAE\'s investment arms, including Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, retain over $900 billion in assets. Other regional funds also have several hundred billion dollars.

The region is also an emerging hotspot for events, including the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar. Doha is also planning to submit its application for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games.

In 2006, its GDP (nominal) was $717.8 billion dollars (IMF April 2007), led by spectacular growth in United Arab Emirates and Qatar. See references in List of countries by GDP (nominal) . Qatar is expected to overtake top ranked Luxembourg in GDP (nominal) per capita next year for the world\'s top spot. See List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita.

Secretaries-General

• Abdullah BisharaClip No. 426: excerpts from an interview with the former Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Abdallah Bishara. TV Monitor Project, MEMRI (December 12, 2004). Retrieved on 2007-04-07., Kuwait, 26 May 1981 — April 1993
• Fahim bin Sultan al-Qasimi, United Arab Emirates, April 1993 — April 1996
• Jamil ibn Ibrahim al-Hujailan, Saudi Arabia, April 1996 — 31 March 2002
• Abdul Rahman ibn Hamad al-Attiyah, Qatar, 1 April 2002 to date

Comparison with other regional blocs

See also

• Arabian Gulf Rugby Football Union, which administer rugby in this area
• Arab states of the Persian Gulf
• Iran-Arab relations
• Euro-Mediterranean free trade area (EU-MEFTA)
• Middle East Free Trade Area (US-MEFTA)
• List of trade blocs
• The GAFTA trade block
• Monetary Union
• Eco (currency)
• Afro (currency)
• Euro
• Ecu
• Amero
• Aamir A. Rehman - Author of "Dubai & Co.: Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States"

References

External links

• http://www.oxfordenergy.org/pdfs/NG22.pdf The Dolphin Project: The Development of a Gulf Gas Initiative, by Justin Dargin,

Oxford Institute for Energy Studies Jan 2008 Working Paper NG #22 ISBN 978-1-901795-69-1

• The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf - Secretariat General
• The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf - Secretariat General - English
• Gulf Cooperation Council Accounting and Auditing Organization
• Kuwait pegs dinar to basket of currencies
• The Unified Economic Agreement between the Countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council
• GCC Trade Exchange
• Flag of The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf
• A new fiscal framework for GCC countries ahead of monetary union, Chatham House, May 2006
• Border security in the Gulf States (extract) June 2006

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia