RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan headed the Kingdom’s delegation at the 121st meeting of the Financial and Economic Cooperation Committee of the Gulf Cooperation Council on Thursday, in Qatar’s capital Doha.

The meeting was held under the chairmanship of the Qatari Minister of Finance Ali bin Ahmed Al-Kuwari, with the participation of other Gulf finance ministers and the GCC’s Secretary-General Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

The ministers reviewed a number of topics related to enhancing financial and economic cooperation between the GCC countries.

The committee also reviewed recommendations submitted to it by the Undersecretaries of Ministries of Finance Committee, and the latest developments from the Secretariat General.

The ministers discussed the findings of the GCC Customs Union Authority in activating its work and granting it the necessary powers to carry out its tasks, in accordance with best practices that support completing the authority’s requirements.

Al-Budaiwi said the committee played “a major and important role in elevating cooperation and joint integration among the GCC countries in the field of financial and economic cooperation.”

He added: “The GCC countries have expanded in the economic, industrial, innovation and artificial intelligence aspects, which represents a qualitative shift that carries many promising investment opportunities, given their great potential represented in their ambitious people, young population and natural resources such as oil and gas, and their orientation toward a sustainable and diversified economy that supports the private sector and empowers the youth.”

He added that this promise came from the implementation of the directives of the Gulf leaders “to strengthen the foundations of the GCC economic structure on solid foundations and principles.”

Al-Budaiwi said that the World Bank had predicted the GCC countries’ economy would grow by 3.6 percent in 2024 and 3.7 percent in 2025, outperforming major global markets, while the International Monetary Fund expected that the total general government surplus would reach 3 percent of gross domestic product during this year.

He added: “Despite the weak global economic growth, high interest rates, and geopolitical risks in our region and the entire world, the World Bank confirmed that the non-oil sectors will lead economic growth in the GCC countries.”

Meanwhile, Saudi Minister of Municipal, Rural Affairs and Housing Majid Al-Hogail headed the Kingdom’s delegation at the 27th meeting of the Committee of Ministers concerned with municipal affairs among the GCC countries in Doha.

Al-Hogail expressed his country’s pleasure at hosting the 12th annual Gulf Municipal Work Conference in Riyadh from Oct. 6 to 8. He urged companies and institutions in the private sector in the GCC countries to actively participate to enhance cooperation.

Member states and the General Secretariat were also encouraged to actively participate and highlight the achievements of joint Gulf municipal work at international forums, and to sign memorandums of understanding with various specialized international organizations to better serve the municipal sector.

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s minister of finance, Mohammed Al-Jadaan, and his Qatari counterpart, Ali Al-Kuwari, signed an agreement on Thursday designed to avoid the possibility of double taxation and prevent tax evasion.

During the signing ceremony in Doha, Al-Jadaan said the agreement is part of efforts to strengthen legislative coordination between the two countries, to encourage bilateral trade and attract investment to the region, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Al-Kuwari highlighted the important nature of the agreement and the effective role it will play in these efforts, adding that it will help to ensure international standards of transparency are in place, through the exchange of financial information as the nations work together on taxation and economic relations.