Kuwait's GCC statistical centre proposal materialises

Kuwait''''s proposal to establish a Gulf CooperationCouncil (GCC) statistical center has finally seen the light as the center was officiallyinaugurated in a big ceremony held in Oman Wednesday.Kuwait was represented at the ceremony by Minister of State for Planning andDevelopment Hind Al-Sabeeh.Al-Sabeeh, who doubles as Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, cheered the center''''sinauguration and expressed gratitude for all who helped turning this dream into areality."The idea of this center was initiated by Kuwait and supported by the Sultanate ofOman," she told KUNA on the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony.She noted that the center will provide decision makers with accurate and crediblestatistics about different domains to help them set effective strategies for achievingsustainable development of Gulf states. "The center will be of a great importance tothe GCC decision-makers," Al-Sabeeh.The Minister added that the center''''s statistics would provide a comprehensive view and evaluation of the situation in the Gulf countries.In 2005, the Kuwait''''s Planning Ministry in cooperation with the InternationalMonetary Fund conducted a comprehensive study on the proposal. In 2006, Kuwaitpresented the proposal, including complete vision about the future center and itsadministrative structure and budget, to the governors of the GCC central banks andthey included it in the GCC development plans. In September 2011, the GCCministerial council approved the proposal. Then center''''s charter was endorsed bythe Gulf leaders in their summit in December 2012.