SEMINAR ON ASSISTANCE TO PALESTINIAN PEOPLE CONCLUDES IN CAIRO, 28 APRIL

Press Release
GA/PAL/779

SEMINAR ON ASSISTANCE TO PALESTINIAN PEOPLE CONCLUDES IN CAIRO, 28 APRIL

A two-day Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People on the theme, "Facing the challenges of the year 2000: promoting Palestinian development", concluded in Cairo on 28 April. It was the sixth in a series of annual seminars on economic and social issues held under the auspices of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

This year's meeting gave particular attention to the Palestinian Authority's Development Plan for 1998/99 and a recently concluded population census. It was attended by representatives of 61 governments, three intergovernmental organizations, 10 United Nations bodies and 27 non- governmental organizations (NGOs), as well as by several prominent representatives of the Palestinian Authority.

The Seminar provided a framework for an expert discussion on promoting Palestinian national economic and social development. It was geared towards encouraging the international community to provide assistance to the Palestinian people for overcoming internal as well as external obstacles in implementing its plan of development.

At the opening session, a statement on behalf of the host country was made by Mostafa Abdel Aziz, Assistant Foreign Minister of Egypt. A message from Secretary-General Kofi Annan was then delivered by Chinmaya Gharekhan, Under-Secretary-General and United Nations Special Coordinator in the Occupied Territories. The opening session was also addressed by Ibra Deguene Ka (Senegal), Chairman of the Palestinian Rights Committee. A statement on behalf of Palestine was made by Nabil Shaath, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation of the Palestinian Authority.

At the Seminar's plenary session, the keynote address was given by Mr. Shaath, who focused on the challenges and prospects of planning Palestinian national development. He drew attention to the continuous efforts made by the Palestinian Authority to that end, as well as to the contribution of the United Nations and donor countries and the need for international assistance and support to overcome the political obstacles mounted by Israel which hindered prospects for economic development.

Following his presentation, statements were made by representatives of governments, intergovernmental organizations and United Nations bodies. The Meeting then held three round tables on related issues.

- 2 - Press Release GA/PAL/779 12 May 1998

In the first round table, panellists focused on the goals, strategies and priorities of Palestinian national development, discussing major economic indicators and social conditions. The role of donor countries and the use of external resources in drawing up and implementing the development plan were also discussed.

The panellists in this round table were Ali Shaath, Assistant Deputy Minister for Planning and International Cooperation of the Palestinian Authority; Jonathan Paris, a Fellow in the Council on Foreign Relations working on United States/Middle East projects; and Ghania Malhess, of the General Directorate of Economic Affairs at the League of Arab States.

In the second round table, entitled "Gathering information for future planning", the panellists discussed the structure, trends and historical perspective of the Palestinian people, based on the results of the Palestinian census. They also discussed aspects of the Palestinian labour force, including characteristics, skills, trends and potentials.

The panellists in this round table were Hassan Abu Libdeh, President of the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics of the Palestinian Authority; and Marwan Khawaja, Professor of Sociology at Birzeit University.

The third round table focused on obstacles facing the Palestinian economy, and developing the role of the international community to overcome those obstacles. Panellists and participants discussed the challenges facing planning for future development, the efforts made by the Palestinian Authority to overcome the negative effect of the closure policies of Israel on the Palestinian economy and development plans, and the role of governments and intergovernmental organizations in minimizing those negative effects. The activities and efforts of United Nations programmes and agencies and of NGOs on the ground were also discussed.

The panellists were Chinmaya Gharekhan, United Nations Special Coordinator in the Occupied Territories; Mahdi Abdul Hadi, head of the Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs; Simcha Bahiri, Co-Chairman of the Israel/Palestine Centre for Research and Information in Jerusalem; and Joseph Bock, country representative of the Catholic Relief Services in the Palestinian territory.

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