Doha / Information Office / May 01

HE Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Sultan bin Saad Al Muraikhi said that the 16th Ministerial Meeting of the Member States in the Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD), under the chair of the State of Qatar, contributed to the development of a new vision for a new stage of harmonious work among the Member States.

In the speech delivered at the end of the meeting today, His Excellency thanked all delegations for their efforts to make this meeting a success, praising the positive discussions which led to the adoption of the Doha Declaration 2019 and the establishment of a new vision for a new phase of harmonious work among all Member States.

He added that today's meeting reflected the understanding of the scope of the responsibilities and sincere will to face all the challenges to the development, growth and prosperity of member countries within the framework of the ACD Vision 2030 and the proposals of Member States on key areas for constructive and fruitful cooperation through effective mechanism. It also allowed the participants to review what has been achieved by all Member States with the Secretariat over the past years to determine the best ways to address the challenges ahead.

HE the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs reiterated the State of Qatar's commitment to the fundamental objectives of the ACD initiative and announced the initiative of the State of Qatar to teach Arabic to non-Arabic speakers.

Al Muraikhi reiterated his thanks to the Islamic Republic of Iran for its successful chair of the ACD in 2018, and wished the Republic of Turkey success in its future presidency of the dialogue, starting next September.

His Excellency also appreciated the efforts made by HE ACD Secretary General Bundit Limschoon for efforts during his term to develop the joint work of Member States.

In the meeting the delegations of the ACD member countries spoke and stressed the importance of enhancing joint cooperation to meet the current global economic challenges resulting from the trade disputes and exploit the material and human potentials of the Asian continent to realize the ambitions and aspirations of the peoples of the region.

They emphasized that Asia has a lot of potential to achieve the objectives of the ACD Vision 2030 and to achieve all initiatives related to cooperation, especially in energy, education, technology, tourism, agriculture, poverty alleviation and others, while pointing to great achievements for the advancement of Asian society and the promotion of friendship, peace and development on the continent.

They called for the development of new mechanisms of cooperation in the areas of investment, infrastructure, transport, communications, science and technology, food security and sustainable energy security, for commitment to enhance cooperation in trade and economy, entrepreneurship and the fight against corruption and any negative activity as well as for this cooperation to be based on justice and equality in the interests of Member States and the building of a culture of peace and stability throughout the Asian continent, warning that conflicts and wars pose a real threat to economic growth and threaten the plans and strategies at the developmental level.

The participating countries in the 16th ACD Ministerial Meeting in Doha declared their commitment to collective action, sharing knowledge and expertise, enhancing trade and investment and cultural exchanges with Member States to achieve the desired growth, and working on more partnerships and collective action in the areas of energy security, poverty eradication and water scarcity as well as benefiting from the experiences of developed countries in achieving food security and security challenges.

They pointed out that the areas of cooperation must be based on the implementation of projects that reflect the responsibilities of States towards better future through the promotion of research, the formation of industrial and technological blocs, and the development of organizational structures to enhance the potential of States and bring a positive impact to translate the ACD vision 2030 into reality.

The participants stressed the importance of stability and security in achieving sustainable development, pointing to the need to establish a system of transit and transport and to establish new cooperation mechanisms to expand international crossings and easy access to seaports.

They identified elements of assistance to enhance efforts and achieve sustainable development. The most important of which are the focus on youth empowerment and innovation and involving youth in decision-making, as well as the use of modern technology and the flow of information and data to increase innovation and responsiveness to the changing economic landscape in the world.

The delegations also stressed the importance of encouraging small and medium-sized enterprises as they are of great importance in economic activities, increasing communication between companies, establishing electronic platforms and promoting communication among peoples in education, tourism and culture in a way that promotes friendship between peoples and understanding between societies and encourages projects that achieve the aspirations of dialogue and building.

They also touched on the importance of activating this comprehensive cooperative framework, the Asian Cooperation Dialogue, and strengthening its mechanisms and initiatives in light of the challenges facing the continent, including the spread of democracy in member states and addressing unilateral sanctions against some Asian countries, and the uneven levels of development among the countries of the continent, considering that Asia has the largest share of conflicts, noting at the same time that the meeting was an opportunity to discuss these challenges, which require a collective effort to address them.

The representatives of the countries participating in the meeting reviewed the efforts of their countries to achieve the objectives of the ACD as well as their country's potential in technology, agricultural, industrial and tourism systems, legislative reforms, education, research and academic programs, launching initiatives and signing bilateral and multilateral agreements to promote sustainable development projects and assist the less developed countries in the continent to grow.

A number of representatives of the participating countries also welcomed Palestine's request for accreditation as a member of the Asian Cooperation Dialogue, stressing that its membership represents an important addition to Asian work and the effectiveness of the ACD.

They condemned in the strongest terms the recent terrorist attacks in Sri Lanka and denounced all forms of violence and extremism, stressing their solidarity with all measures taken by Sri Lanka to maintain its security and the stability of its people, while calling for working on drying up the sources of terrorism.