Abu Dhabi, May 21st, 2009 (WAM)--The UAE decision not to take part in a proposed GCC Monetary Union is attributed to given economic priorities dictated by the UAE economic interest in the light of World Financial Crisis, said Khalfan Saeed Al Ka'abi, head of the Emirates Economic Centre and Chairman of Ascorp Holdings.
"The decision follows a study of the global economy and its effects on the local economy. These findings of the study require a change in current directions by giving priority to future of the national economy, which has a vision and new strategy capable of dealing with current and future challenges", he added. Al Ka'abi said that if the issue was seen from perspectives of the UAE's right to host the seat of Monetary Union Council, the UAE would be the most qualified not only as projected by Emiratis, but also by many GCC nationals. He indicated that the UAE was first to request hosting of the monetary union council's seat as its application was there for long time before any applicant applied. He cited huge progress in the banking, monetary and financial sectors in the UAE. Al Ka'abi expected that the Gulf Economic Integration steps would slow down, following this decision, noting that the UAE constitutes a considerable weight in regard to the monetary union and Unified GCC Currency, which may be deferred to 2010.Copyright Emirates News Agency (WAM) 2009.
