Cairo, Oct. 13 (Petra) – Lebanon and Libya have ratified the statute
of the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies, bringing the
total number of ratifying Arab countries to seven and allowing the
statute to enter into force.

Attended by Minister of Social Development and Chair of the 45th
Session of the Council of Arab Ministers of Social Affairs Wafaa Bani
Mustafa, the ratification came during a meeting of the center’s board
of directors at the Arab League General Secretariat headquarters in
Cairo on Tuesday.

The meeting addressed the center’s operations and institutional
development, as well as the remaining procedures required to activate
its role in supporting Arab social and development policies. Jordan
hosts the center’s headquarters.

The meeting also noted the Executive Bureau of the Council of Arab
Ministers of Social Affairs’ approval of renaming the institution the
“Arab Center for Social and Development Policy Studies.”

Bani Mustafa emphasized the center’s role as a specialized Arab
platform for monitoring, analyzing, and developing social policies in
line with national development priorities and plans, while
contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals
(SDGs).

She noted that the center forms part of the Arab League’s efforts to
address multidimensional poverty and mitigate its effects by
improving social policies, enhancing their effectiveness, exchanging
expertise and successful practices, and drawing on specialized
technical knowledge.

Bani Mustafa added that the center would strengthen Arab coordination
and integration and support partnerships aimed at developing social
protection systems and improving the effectiveness of social programs
and policies to address development challenges and advance inclusive,
sustainable social development.

She expressed appreciation to the Arab countries that had ratified
the center’s statute and called for the remaining countries to
complete their ratification procedures to facilitate the center’s
operations and strengthen regional cooperation on social development.

On the sidelines of the meeting, Bani Mustafa held talks with
Egyptian Minister of Social Solidarity and Chair of the Executive
Bureau of the Council of Arab Ministers of Social Affairs Maya Morsy.

The discussions covered social programs under the council’s framework
and key issues on the agenda of its upcoming meeting.

The two ministers also explored ways to strengthen Arab cooperation
and coordination and exchange expertise and experiences in social
affairs to support social development priorities across Arab
countries.

//Petra// AO