Union du Maghreb :

[Al-khiyal]

Maghreb ministers promote regional health policy co-ordination

May 13, 2008 -- Participants in the tenth round of the Maghreb Health Ministers' Council, held May 8th-10th in Tunis, recommended boosting efforts between Maghreb countries in the manufacturing and unified purchasing of drugs and vaccinations.

The ministers stressed the need to kick off an initial project for registration and continuous control over the drugs, and to boost the partnership between medical labs, in addition to organising workshops on ways to develop the health indicators in the region, and holding other Maghreb meetings on the pharmaceutical sector and ways to combat AIDS.

The officials also recommended the distribution of a Maghreb guide on the maintenance of medical and hospital equipment and the creation of a health information bank in the region. They also called for the establishment of a Maghreb network for combating cancer, and a Maghreb centre for epidemic alertness and combating chronic and emerging diseases.

"The enhancement of co-operation in the field of medical equipment and its purchase, as well as the training of technical cadres, will allow us to deal with these diseases more effectively," said Dah Weld Haj Sidi, an advisor to the Mauritanian health minister.

Meanwhile, Rached Abou Agila, Secretary of the General People's Committee for Health and Environment in Libya, said the decision by the Presidential Council of the Arab Maghreb Union ten years ago to establish a special health council reflected the importance of this issue to the Maghreb citizen.

"Our goal is to establish a unified policy and to deal with many issues of concern to the Maghreb citizen," he said. "There are technical committees exploring the possibility of buying unified drugs, and dealing with bird flu as well as climate change, and vaccinations and immunizations that can have an effect on the region."

For his part, Moroccan Ambassador to Tunisia Najib Zarou Werati said the meeting was proof of the recent liveliness of the Arab Maghreb Union, and of the efforts made by the General Secretariat to enhance Maghreb co-operation in important sectors, including public health and human development.

Arab Maghreb Union Secretary-General Habib Ben Yahia called upon the region's leaders during the opening session to co-ordinate national health policies and to exchange experience on health reforms, especially those related to the health map, financing the health services, quality and management of hospital institutions.

He also stressed the need for more co-operation and integration among the Maghreb countries to face health dangers and benefit from early warning systems made available by the World Health Organization (WHO).

The next round of the Health Ministers' Council of the Maghreb Union will be held in Morocco in early 2009.

[Al-khiyal]

Union du Maghreb :
l'Algérie appelle à redoubler d'effort pour réaliser l'UMA

Samedi 17 Mai 2008 -- Le chef du gouvernement Abdelaziz Belkhadem a appelé à «redoubler d'efforts» pour la réalisation de l'Union du Mahgreb arabe (UMA), samedi à Alger lors d'une réunion algéro-libyenne. «Nous sommes appelés à redoubler d'efforts en ce qui concerne le projet d'unification maghrébine, qui doit être mis à l'abri des contingences et des différends marginaux», a déclaré M. Belkhadem à l'ouverture des travaux d'une réunion algéro-libyenne qu'il a co-présidée avec le Premier ministre libyen, El Baghdadi Ali El Mahmoudi.

L'UMA (Mauritanie, Maroc, Algérie, Tunisie, Libye) "constitue un cadre global et stratégique pour l'action inter-maghrébine", a-t-il souligné. L'UMA est en panne depuis 1994 à la suite d'un différend entre ses membres sur l'avenir du Sahara Occidental. Le ministre marocain des Affaires étrangères Taïeb Fassi-Fihri a renouvelé le 5 mai son appel en faveur de la réouverture de la frontière terrestre entre les deux pays. Elle avait été fermée en 1994 à la suite d'une attaque islamiste contre un hôtel à Marrakech (sud Maroc), attribuée par Rabat aux services secrets algériens.

Le ministre algérien de l'Intérieur, Yazid Zerhouni, a conditionné la réouverture de la frontière terrestre entre les deux pays à une "solution globale" des différends en suspens, y compris le conflit du Sahara Occidental.

[Al-khiyal]

Belkhadem évoque le problème du Sahara occidental devant Fillon

Samedi 21 Juin 2008 -- Le chef du gouvernement Abdelaziz Belkhadem a déploré samedi à Alger le blocage de l'Union du Maghreb arabe (UMA) «restée otage» du conflit du Sahara occidental. «Le processus d'intégration maghrébine est resté, hélas, l'otage du conflit du Sahara occidental», a déclaré M. Belkhadem à l'ouverture d'une séance de travail avec son homologue français François Fillon qui effectue une visite officielle en Algérie. «Lors de la constitution de l'UMA en 1989, il avait bien été établi que le processus d'intégration devait être dissocié du conflit entre le Maroc et le Polisario», a ajouté M. Belkhadem.

«La responsabilité de la communauté internationale reste engagée sur ce dossier, en particulier celle des membres permanents du Conseil de sécurité de l'Onu, qui doivent jouer un rôle positif, impartial et équilibré pour permettre au peuple sahraoui de disposer librement de son destin», a souligné M. Belkhadem.

[Al-khiyal]

Algeria still supports Arab Maghreb Union

June 25, 2008 -- Algeria is still strongly committed to the Arab Maghreb Union (AMU), Algerian Minister for Maghreb and African Affairs Abdelkader Messahel affirmed in a television interview on Saturday (June 21st). Mounting a fierce defence of the Maghreb institution, he maintained that for any country in the region, supporting French president Nicolas Sarkozy’s proposed Mediterranean Union does not also sign the death warrant for a 65-year-old dream.

Messahel's comments followed a June 10th mini-summit in Tripoli where political leaders from Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and Libya gathered to discuss the French initiative and other regional issues. At its conclusion, the Maghreb Organisations and Political Parties' General Congress issued a declaration stressing the need to advance the Arab Maghreb Union through joint economic and social development strategies. Participants also called for free movement of goods and persons along with the exchange of services between AMU countries.

"This is clear: we believe in the Maghreb Union, and we want to improve and re-launch it so that it will be able to tackle the challenges which we must all face together," Messahel said on state-run TV channel ENTV. The minister refused to talk of a freeze on the AMU. Actions, he said, indicate it remains very much alive.

"The five countries involved have a common strategy to counter desertification, where water resources are concerned. Consultation has never stopped between Maghreb ministers and experts," he noted as proof. "Last week, a conference for Maghreb environment ministers took place in Algiers. Another one to bring the energy ministers together is being prepared; same goes for the educational and cultural sectors. This is extremely important."

In answer to a question about Algerian-Moroccan relations, Messahel described them as "good", saying the 2005 cancellation of a visit by Algeria's then-head of government Ahmed Ouyahia and the dispute over the Sahara that took place on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Tangiers declaration should in no way be interpreted as meaning there is no future for the AMU.

Messahel also reminded his TV audience that Morocco is Algeria's top partner in Africa, with trade estimated to be worth $570 million, ahead of Tunisia with $420 million, Libya with $4 million and Mauritania with $3 million.

Economist Arslane Chikaoui agrees that the best way to achieve Maghreb integration is through the economy. "The age of geo-strategic composition has passed. Now the world is repositioning itself along geo-economic lines. The sub-region known as the Greater Maghreb cannot escape this principle," he told Magharebia.

The development of the region cannot continue without the free circulation of capital, people and goods. This, the expert said, relies on the resolution of differences between Algeria and Morocco.

"It is imperative that these two countries settle their differences," Chikaoui said, "so that development of the region can take place."

Despite the closure of the land border separating the two countries, said Abdelkader Messahel, some 550,000 Algerian tourists visited Morocco in 2007.

Talking about this last point, the Algerian minister did not set a deadline for the borders to be reopened. He limited himself to giving a reminder that there were "objective" reasons behind the closure: "Algeria has chosen to deal with this matter in a more general context."

On the Western Sahara issue, Messahel encouraged the two parties – Morocco and the Polisario Front – to pursue "direct" negotiations.

The Algerian position, he reiterated, is that of the United Nations General Assembly: the right of the people to self-determination.

[Al-khiyal]

Conseil maghrébin des ministres de l'Energie demain à Alger

Mercredi 2 Juillet 2008 -- La huitième session du Conseil maghrébin des ministres de l'Energie et des Mines se tiendra demain à Alger. Cette rencontre sera précédée, aujourd'hui, par une réunion des experts des pays participants. L'ordre du jour de cette session portera sur l'examen des résultats des travaux des commissions opérant sous l'égide de ce Conseil, pour les questions relatives à la planification générale et la maîtrise de l'énergie, l'électricité ainsi que les mines et la géologie. Au cours de cette rencontre, les participants se pencheront sur l'identification des perspectives de coopération entre les pays de l'Union du Maghreb arabe (UMA) dans le domaine de l'énergie et des mines et la définition des axes de travail prioritaires du Conseil pour les prochaines années.

[Al-khiyal]

AMU energy ministers rekindle regional co-operation efforts

July 7, 2008 -- After 13 years of stagnancy, energy ministers from Arab Maghreb Union (AMU) member states met in Algiers on July 3rd to revitalise co-operation in the region. The ministers concluded the meeting with agreements to work jointly to produce renewable energy.

The energy ministers of Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, as well as Mauritania's ambassador to Algeria, gathered at the eighth AMU ministerial council on energy and mining on Thursday. The officials reviewed global developments in the energy sector, including rising oil prices, and agreed on the need to focus on renewable energies.

The ministers admitted that there has been no regional co-operation in the energy sector, while pointing out that a number of bilateral projects in the fields of oil drilling and energy distribution have been successful. Algerian Minister of Energy and Mining Chakib Khelil said co-operation is dictated by "domestic and global political and economic conditions".

After 13 years of infighting and foot-dragging, the ministers broke new ground for the AMU by agreeing upon the need to bolster energy-related ties among AMU states and calling for the establishment of a regional Maghreb electricity market, open to competition.

Algeria and Morocco signed two agreements on the sidelines of the conference. The first provides for cross-border electricity trading in the case of an emergency in either state. The second agreement allows Algeria to export electricity to Spain via Morocco's grid.

The AMU energy ministers also agreed to co-operate in the field of renewable energy. The use of solar energy figured prominently in the talks. Tunisian Minister of Energy Afif Chelbi proposed the establishment of a working team to kick start solar projects in the region. All parties are said to have warmly welcomed the proposal.

The meeting recommended forming a working team to develop a plan for the development of nuclear power for peaceful use in the Maghreb.

Algeria's Khelil told reporters on the sidelines of the meeting that AMU experts will conduct technical and legal studies to identify the projects countries in the region could undertake in this domain.

Both Morocco and Tunisia showed substantial interest in this proposal. Moroccan Minister of Energy Amina Benkhadra emphasised that that developing nuclear power for peaceful purposes has become an indispensable necessity, and that AMU states must implement nuclear projects. Tunisia's Chelbi adopted a similar view, stressing that nuclear energy is the alternative to oil.

When asked about a potential timeline for the proposed projects, Khelil told reporters it would be difficult to set a definite agenda before experts wrap up preliminary studies at the end of the year.

AMU Secretary-General Habib Ben Yahia said that the ninth AMU ministerial council on energy would be held in Morocco next year, providing an opportunity to assess progress on the projects identified in Algiers.

[Al-khiyal]

Le ministre des Affaires Etrangères, Mourad Medelci :
« L’Algérie est prête pour l’Union Maghrébine »

Lundi 29 Septembre 2008 -- Le ministre des affaires étrangères Mourad Medelci a insisté, durant son intervention devant la 63ème session de l’assemblée générale des Nations Unies à New York, au nom du Président Abdelaziz Bouteflika, sur la nécessité de mettre un cadre comportant l’échange d’informations et de coopération sécuritaire entre les nations pour réduire la danger des menaces terroristes sur les différents pays.

Il a appelé les Nations Unies à accélérer l’élaboration et l’adoption de l’accord International de lutte antiterroriste et continuer à combattre le phénomène sous toutes ses formes. Le ministre des affaires étrangères a mis l’accent sur la nécessité de ne pas confondre entre l’activité terroriste et le droit des peuples dans la lutte et la libération, ou d’utiliser la lutte antiterroriste comme couverture pour nuire à l’Islam ou toucher la dignité d’un groupe religieux quelconque.

Concernant l’Union Maghrébine, Medelci a affirmé que l’Algérie est prête à dépasser les difficultés circonstancielles qui handicapent l’activation de l’Union Maghrébine. Le ministre a déclaré que l’Algérie voit que l’activation de l’Union doit être faite sur des bases réelles, solides et continuelles et sans conditions préalables pour éviter de perdre les efforts fournis et de décevoir.

Le responsable de la diplomatie Algérienne a critiqué les pays Arabes ainsi que les partenaires Africains car ils n’ont pas tenu leurs engagements concernant la subvention des initiatives de développement en Afrique, et la réhabilitation de la paix par les programmes de développement social.