The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for West Asia in Beirut, Lebanon organized an expert group meeting on Preferential Trade Agreements and Regional Integration in the Arab World in Tunis on 5 and 6 December, 2012. The meeting focussed on salient regional themes including Arab regional integration initiatives, the Euro-Med partnership agreements, accession to WTO and the current Doha Round of multilateral negotiations, Non-Tariff Barriers and Technical Barriers to Trade, macroeconomic policy convergence and regional integration, and impact analysis of trade reforms. The meeting constituted a forum where representatives from eminent regional and international organizations shared the findings of their recent activities on Arab regional and global integration with high officials from the Arab ministries of trade and economies. It concluded with a set of policy recommendations in term of strategies for enhancing and deepening regional trade for the attainment of Arab regional integration.

For further information on the EGM please contact:

Mohamed Chemingui, Chief of Regional Integration Section at UNESCWA (cheminguim@un.org).