Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf
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| Image:Int-GCC-flag.gif GCC flag | |
| |
| GCC member states | |
|---|---|
| Image:Flag of Bahrain.svg Bahrain | Image:Flag of Kuwait.svg Kuwait |
| Image:Flag of Oman.svg Oman | Image:Flag of Qatar.svg Qatar |
| Image:Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Saudi Arabia | Image:Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg United Arab Emirates |
| Official languages | Arabic |
| Population | 35,869,438 |
| Formation of GCC | May 25, 1981 |
| Other information | |
| Currencies1 |
Bahraini Dinar (BHD) |
| GDP | $536,223 |
| Official Website | http://www.gcc-sg.org/ |
| Note 1: Currency to be unified in 2010 | |
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (Arabic: مجلس التعاون لدول الخليج), formerly named and still commonly called Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) (مجلس التعاون الخليجي) is a regional organization involving the six Persian Gulf Arab States with many economic and social objectives in mind. Created May 25, 1981, the Council is comprised of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
It should be noted that not all of the countries neighboring the Persian Gulf are members of the council. Specifically, Iran and Iraq are not members.
Yemen is currently (as of 2006) in negotiations for GCC membership, and hopes to join by 2016. [1]
Among the stated objectives are:
- Formulating similar regulations in various fields such as economy, finance, trade, customs, tourism, legislation, and administration
- Fostering scientific and technical progress in industry, mining, agriculture, water and animal resources
- Establishing scientific research centres
- Setting up joint ventures
- Encouraging cooperation of the private sector
- Strengthening ties between their peoples
- Establishing a common currency by 2010
Contents |
[edit] Secretaries-general of GCC
- Abdullah Bishara (Kuwait) : 26 May 1981 - Apr 1993 .
- Fahim bin Sultan AlQasimi (United Arab Emirates) :Apr 1993 - Apr 1996.
- Jamil ibn Ibrahim AlHujailan (Saudi Arabia) : Apr 1996 - 31 Mar 2002.
- Abdul Rahman ibn Hamad AlAttiyah (Qatar) : 1 Apr 2002 - current.
[edit] Comparison with other Regional blocs
| Regional bloc 1 | Area (km²) | Population | GDP (PPP) ($US) | Member states 1 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| in millions | per capita | ||||
| EU* | 3,977,487 | 460,124,266 | 11,723,816 | 25,480 | 25 |
| CARICOM | 462,344 | 14,565,083 | 64,219 | 4,409 | 14+1 3 |
| ECOWAS | 5,112,903 | 251,646,263 | 342,519 | 1,361 | 15 |
| CEMAC | 3,020,142 | 34,970,529 | 85,136 | 2,435 | 6 |
| EAC | 1,763,777 | 97,865,428 | 104,239 | 1,065 | 3 |
| CSN | 17,339,153 | 370,158,470 | 2,868,430 | 7,749 | 10 |
| GCC | 2,285,844 | 35,869,438 | 536,223 | 14,949 | 6 |
| SACU | 2,693,418 | 51,055,878 | 541,433 | 10,605 | 5 |
| COMESA | 3,779,427 | 118,950,321 | 141,962 | 1,193 | 5 |
| NAFTA | 21,588,638 | 430,495,039 | 12,889,900 | 29,942 | 3 |
| ASEAN | 4,400,000 | 553,900,000 | 2,172,000 | 4,044 | 10 |
| SAARC | 5,136,740 | 1,467,255,669 | 4,074,031 | 2,777 | 8 |
| Agadir | 1,703,910 | 126,066,286 | 513,674 | 4,075 | 4 |
| EurAsEC | 20,789,100 | 208,067,618 | 1,689,137 | 8,118 | 6 |
| CACM | 422,614 | 37,816,598 | 159,536 | 4,219 | 5 |
| PARTA | 528,151 | 7,810,905 | 23,074 | 2,954 | 12+2 3 |
| Reference blocs and countries 2 | Area (km²) | Population | GDP (PPP) ($US) | Political divisions | |
| in millions | per capita | ||||
| UN | 133,178,011 | 6,411,682,270 | 55,167,630 | 8,604 | 192 |
| Canada | 9,984,670 | 32,507,874 | 1,077,000 | 34,273 | 13 |
| China (PRC) 4 | 9,596,960 | 1,306,847,624 | 8,182,000 | 6,300 | 33 |
| India | 3,287,590 | 1,102,600,000 | 3,433,000 | 3,100 | 35 |
| Japan | 377,835 | 127,333,002 | 3,910,728 | 30,615 | 47 |
| Russia | 17,075,200 | 143,782,338 | 1,589,000 | 8,900 | 89 |
| USA | 9,631,418 | 296,900,571 | 11,190,000 | 39,100 | 50 |
| 1 Including data only for full and most active members 2 The first two states in the World by area, population and GDP (PPP) | |||||
[edit] See also
- GCC logo
- Persian Gulf Arab States
- Iran-Arab relations for information on Iran's relations with Arab countries
- Euro-Mediterranean free trade area (EU-MEFTA)
- Middle East Free Trade Area (US-MEFTA)
- List of Trade blocs
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf Secretariat General
- English language translation of the Charter
- GCC Trade Exchange
- Flag of The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf
- A new fiscal framework for GCC countries ahead of monetary union, Chatham House, May 2006
- Border security in the Gulf States (extract) June 2006ar:مجلس التعاون لدول الخليج العربية
de:Golf-Kooperationsrat es:Consejo de Cooperación para los Estados Árabes del Golfo fr:Conseil de coopération du Golfe lij:GCC ru:Совет сотрудничества арабских государств Персидского залива
