JPRS ID: 10315 NEAR EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORT

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• Collection: JPRS
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00850R000500030024-7
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• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: November 1, 2016
• Sequence Number: 24
• Content Type: REPORTS

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ruK urr~~iwL u~~ urt,Y
JPRS L/ 10315
10 February 1982
- Near Ec~st North Africa Re ort
p
~CFOUO 5/82~
- FBIS ~OREIGN BROADCAST INFORMATION SERVICE
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JPRS L/10315
~ 10 ~'ebruary 1982
i
~ NEAR EAST/NORTH AFRICA REPORT
(~'OUO 5/82)
CONTENTS
" INTER-ARAB AFFAIRS
PI~O's Ad-Dajani Criticizes UK Mideast Stand
(Fd ward Mortimer; TH~ TIl~IES, 26 Jan 82) 1
Hague Court Hearing Arguments on Tunisian-Zibyan Sea Frontier
(Samir Gharbi; JEU?1E AFRIQUE, 21 Oct 81) 3
PERSTAN GUI,F AREA
Gulf Insurance Firms Viewed in Light of Iran-Iraq War
(AI,-WATAN AI,-'AF~ABI, 13-19 Nov 81) 5
ISRAEL
Kimche Predicts No~�mal U.S.-Israeli Relations
(Christopher Walker, Edward Mortimer; THE TIl~IES, 18 Jan 82).. 8
KUWAIT
Economy 17iscussed in Light of Iran-Iraq War, Decreased Oil
Production
(AI,-WATAN AI~-'ARABI, 20-26 Nov 81) 10
I,IBYA
Briefs ~
, Improving Relations With France 13
' OMAN
Composition, Role of New Consultative Council I7iscussed
(Ahmad Hafiz; AI,-WATAN AL-'ARABI, 13-19 Nov 81) ll.~
SUDAN
EC Funds Development Projects
- (MARCH~S TROPICAUX ET MEDITERRANEENS, 2~ Dec 81) 18
- a- [III - NE & A- 121 FOUO]
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INTER-ARAB AFFAIRS
- PLO'S AD-DAJA?JI CRITICIZES UK MIDEAST STAND
_ PM261235 Lond~:sn THE TIMES ~.n Engliah 26 Jan 82 p;'
[Edward Mortim~r dispatch: "Britain Upsets Both Iarael ~nd PLO"]
[Text) Beirut, 25 Jan--A British foreign secret~ry's lot is not a happy one, or
- not in the Middle East anyway. In Israel Lord Cart;~eton is likely to encounter
demonstrations by Israelis infuriated by what they regard a~ ~:is "undisguised
support for many of the aims of the Palestine Liberation Organization."
Yet at PLO offices in Beirut the visiting British ~ournalist is greeted by a
barrage of complaints about Lord Carrington's performance, particularly during
the second half of last year, when he was preaident of the EEC ~ouncil o.f.
Ministers.
The complaints were ~oiced with particular earnestness, more in sorrow than ~n
anger, by Dr Ahmad Sidqi a1~Da~ani, the PLO executive member responsible for
European Arab dialogue.
- When Britain assumed the EEC presidency in July, Dr ad-Dajani said in an inter-
view that the Arabs were optimistic about Lord Carrington's personality, but
the six monrhs passed "without any small positive deed from the presidency towards
a comprehensiv~ settlement."
He ~sked why Lord Carrington kept imposing conditions on him and Mr Yasir 'Arafat,
the PLO chairman, whereas the foreign secretary was not going to visit Israel,
without conditions, "after Israel has annexed Golan, has bombed Beirut, has
tortured our geople, and so many things?"
Dr ad-Dajani asked why Lord Carrington had not continued the contacts with the
PLO leadership maintained by his predecessors in the EEC chair.
The demand for "a signal towards recognition of Israel" was unreasonable, Dr
- ad-Dajani said, since Israel did not recognize the PLO and its leaders had
declared frankly that they would have no dealings with the PLO even if it did
recognize Israel.
Mr 'Arafat and the PLO leaders' had made it abundantly clear 3n recent years that
their aim was a peaceful settlement, including an independent Palestinian state.
~ 1 ~
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INTER-ARAB AFFAIRS~
HAGUE COURT HEARING ARGUMENTS ON TUNISIAN-LIBYAN SEA FRONTIER
Paris JEUNE AFRIQUE in French No 1085, 2Z ~ct 81 p 27
[Article by Samir Gharbi: "A Smell of Gasoline"]
[Text] The final Tunisian-Libyan confrontation over delimitation of their maritime
frontier began on 16 September in The Hague International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Contrary to those that preceded it in ~.S76 and 1977, in the open sea, t~his has
been very peaceful. Indeed, courtesy is compulsory in this "warld tribunal"
established by the United Nations in 1945. One of the comm~n expressions is
"our eminent adversaries," another, "~rat.e~na1. countries." But to get to this
point it took 8 years of fruitlesa negotiations (1968-1976) followed by a serious
crisis. At .last resort, on 10 June 1977 wisdom won out: the two governments
signed a compromise calling on the ICJ to decide not only "the principles and rules
of international law which could be applied" to delimit the continental shelf,
but also to "clarify a practical way" which would enable experts of the two
countries to mark the frontier "without any otfficulty."
The matter is very complicated. It fnyolvea acientific, economic, ~uridical,
and historical facts. The issue is especially crucial to Tunisia since the dis-
puted zone is rich in petroleum.
Following the lU June 1977 compromise, each government submitted to the court the
documents necessary to support its position (memorandum, counter-memorandum, and
reply). It is the oral proceedings now underway in The Hague, with an initial
- stage of Tunisian testimony (16-25 September) and Libyan testimony (beginning
29 September) b~ore 15 independent judges, presided over by Nigerian Taslim
_ Olawale El.ias.
. On the two sides there are some 50 lawyers, experts and advisers; British,
American, French, Italian, Tunisian, and Libyan. Moet are outstanding specialists
in international law, geology, geomorphology, physiography, and oceanography...
Some are from such prestigious universities as Cambridge, Paris, Geneva, Cornell,
etc. But the positions they are defending on behalf of the government which
hired them result in very different lines leading from the land border point, Ras
A,jdir. The Tunisian representatives maintain that the predominar,t orientation of
Tunisia's coast is east. However, the opposing party considers this direction
~ to be "abnormal" and "accidental" and thus negligible in relation to its own
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- PERSIAN GULF AkEA
GULF INSURANCE FIRMS VIEWED IN LIGHT OF IRAN-IRAQ WAR
Paris AL-WATAN AI,-'ARABI in Arabic No 248 13-19 Nov 81 pp 68-69
[Article: "Three Billion Dollars Lost Annually by the Arabs Because of Ineurance"]
[Text] Llnyds Has Increased Its Insurance Premiums on Shipment
from and to the Gulf Area.--on the Basis of Reports Thrust into
It~ Hands by the CIA.
The Gulf Arabs have been concerned about the insurance and reinsurance sector ever
since the British company Lloyds, the largest insurance company in the world, began
to artif icially raise the insurance rates for insurance against the dangers of war
and unrest in the Gulf area--a situation which has led to negative inflationary
consequences as far as the prices in the Gul.z nations are concerned. This report
- deals with Arab reactions to the policy of Lloyds during the last few years.
Doha--The events which took place in Iran, and then the outbreak of the Iran-Iraq
- war, have led to rapid changes in the f ield of insurance and reinsurance trans-
actions in the Arab world, especially in the Gulf area.
Both government-owned and private local insurance companies in the area are
striving to absorb most or some of the estimated $3 billion of money which every
year is learin~ the Arab world in the form of insurance paymente to foreign insur-
ance and reinsurance companies. At the head of this list is the British company
Lloyds, whose annual income is estimated at $4.76 billion.
During the last 2 years, Lloyds, in particular, has resorted to setting high
insurance premium rates for insurance against the dangers of war and unrest for
ships and f reight entering or leaving the Gulf arsa,
For example, for an oil tanker carrying 250,000 tons of freight costing $30
million, the insurance premium now is $30,000, that is, 0.1 pereent, when the
tanker is in Iranian waters for 7 days. When the tanker is in Iraqi waters for
14 days, the insurance premium is $22,500, that is, 0.075 percent.
Lloyds based its arbitraiy de~isions to increase the premiums for insurance for
commercial traffic in the Gulf area on reports, leaked to the company by the CIA,
concerning so-called operations wt?i~ch armed Palestinian organizations had decided
- to embark upon. These operations supposedly involved, for example, hi~acking an
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foreign countriea--through ineurance agencies and branchea. [They said that] for
this reason it was necessary to develop the Arab inaurance sector so that this ~
sector's capital and revenues could be invested in the implementation of develop-
ment projects in the Arab countries--especially since insurance is considered to
be one source of f inancing.
i4
COPYRIGHT: 1981 AL-WATAN AL-'ARABI
9468
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ISRAEL
KIMCHE PREDICTS NORMAL U.S.-ISRAELI RELATIONS
PM181423 London THE TIMES in English 18 Jan 82 p 1
[Di~patch by Christopher Walker and Edward Mortimer: "U.S. Israeli Relations
'Nearly Normal
_ [Text] Jerusalem, 17 Jan--Only a month after the furore caused by Israel's
annexation of the Golan Heights, diplomatic relations with the United States
- have returned almost to normal, according to Mr Da.vid Kimche, director genera~. .
of the Israeli ~oreign Ministry.
In an interview with THE TIMES, Mr Kimche predicted that the substance of the
� recently-cancelled memoxandum on strategic cooperation would be revived, and he
disclosed that Mr Alexander Haig, the American secretary of state, had chosen
to deliberately overlook the Golan issue during his talks here last week.
"I was in all the meetings with Mr Haig except the one when he was alone with the
prime ministsr and the Golan issue did not come up," Mr Kimche said. "The
feeling is that we are more or less back to business as usual. Relations are
- very much better than before the visit. I think Mr Haig has convinced everybody
that whatever happens, the foundations are so strong in our relationship that we
can overcome such difficulties as existed."
_ Mr Kimche's ~bservations confirm the impression of many diplomats nere that
Mr Menachem Begin, the Israeli prime miniater has succeasfully weathered the
brief storm in re?atiu:~s with America caused by the intro~duction of the Golan
law and the subsequent tirade which he directed against the Reagan administration.
The head of the Foreign Ministry also said that there was no question of the
shortlived memcrandum on strategic cooperation being "dead and buried." The
claim came as something of a surpriae as the Israeli side recently declared the
- memorandum nullified after America's suspension of it is a saaction against the
~ Golan annexation.
Mr Kimche argued that strategic cooperation between Israel and America was con-
- tinuing, and the only thing that had been held in abeyance was the meeting of
committees from the two sides which had been scheduled to take place this month.
~
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KUWAIT
ECONOMY DISCU~SED IN LIGHT OF IRAN-IRAQ WAR, DECREASED OIL PRODUCTION
Paris AL-WATAN AL-'ARABI in Arabic No 249.20-26 Nov 81 pp 64-65
[Article: "In Kuwait the Private Sector Is Active, But the Economy Relies on
Government Expenditures"]
[Text] Capital Which Had Fled the Country Has Returned Even
Though the Iran-Iraq War Continues.
The Decrease in Oil Production Has Not Affected allocations
for Development.
The Kuwaiti economy is expanding in various areas and directions. Inside Kuwait,
investment is being diversified--from petrochemical industries to truck production.
In other countries Kuwaiti investments are participating in the exploration for oil
in the U.S. and marketing of oil in the islands of the Pacific. This report pre-
sents general, but sufficient, information about the economic activ'_ty going on in
this extremely vital Arab nation.
Kuwait--Once again the Kuwaiti economy is demonstrating its steadfastness in the
face of shocks and crises. The Iran-Iraq war, which ia occurring very close by,
has been a trial and test case for it.
Today they are saying here th~.t the war is no obstacle to investment in, and
expansion of, industrial and commercial proaects. Proof of this is the fact that
the capital which fled [Kuwait] at the beginning of the Iran-Iraq war has mostly
already returned to the local market.
The amount of daily business conducted here reFlects the tiemendous amount of
economic activity going on in this small Arab nation which sits on one shoulder of
the Persian Gulf. For example, the port area of Mina' al-Ahmac~i received 3 million
shipped items during the f irst half of this year, and this is a record figure when
compared to previous years.
The government is normally interested in investing in petroleum industries such as
petrochemical industries. Today Kuwait possesses expertise which is ahead of the
expertise poss~ssed by all of the other Gulf nations in this field. This expert-
ise is being drawn on ir~ the implementat:!.on of ~oin Gulf projects [in this field].
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The fact that the Kuwaiti economy depends on government expenditures doea not deny
the fact that the private sector plays a large role. One can assert that the
Kuwaiti private sector, unlike the private sectors in other Arab nacions, has cc!n-
tributed toward anchoring the country's industrial base within the framework of
diversification of the economy. The economy has not at all been restricted to
commercial or financial projects which bring rapid and guaranteed profits.
There has been a decrease in oil revenues because of the decrease in oil prices
and cutback in production. It is estimated that Kuwait's income from oil this
year will be about $12.3 billion. In spite of this fact, the national budget has
not been aff ected and its total f igure amounts to only $10.5 billion, which is
less than the oil income figure. And this figure does not include income
investments.
Another indication of the vitality and expansion of the Kuwaiti economy,
particularly in the fiel.d of industry, is the fact that the 1981/82 budget includes
large allocations for the production of electricity and for desalini2ation of water
in order to cover the growing and expanding needs of industrial projects.
Problems With Oil Customers
Oil production has greatly decreased. Lately production has gone down to 900,000
barrels a day, as compared to, for example, 3 million barrels a day in 1972.
Kuwait has b een confronted with many problems with its consumer custamers,
especially with Japanese companies which import the ma~or share of Kuwait's oil
production and which have put pressure on Kuwait to low~r its prices.
One of the causes of the dispute has been the fact that the decrease in oil
production has led to a decrease in Kuwait's production of liquid gas, 80 percent
of which is also exported to Japan. As a result of this Kuwait has embarked upon
purchasing gas at low prices from Saudi Arabia and Australia and reexporting the
gas, after liquefaction, to Japan at the previous prices. This is something which
has not pleased the Japanese.
Kuwait is fully aware of the problems involved in production and pricing and of
how difficult it is to cooperate with its customers. For this reason Kuwait is
- trying to diveraify its oil economy and open up broad fields and opportunities in
this area both inside Kuwait and in other countriea.
In Kuwait the government-owned Kuwait Oll Company, as well as this company's
- branch companies and establishments, is participating in vital pro~ects such as
drilling f or oil, gas accumulation, and the construction of oil ref ineries or the
development of existing refineries. Whereas in 1980 Kuwait exported about 75
percent of its crude oil production, in 1984 it will be able to ref ine about half
of this production locally.
At the head of the list of huge petroleum projects which will soon be implemented
is the project dealing with the development and modernization of the Mina'
'Abdallah refinery, the estimated cost of which will be $800 million. Worldwide
bids for th is pro~ect will be received until next 7 December. There is also the
project dealing with the development of the Mina' al-Ahmadi ref inery, the contract
I
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for which has been awarded to a Japanese company. T:~e estimated cost of this
project will be between $500 million and $700 million.
On the international level Kuwait is boldly striving to participate in a vast ,
number of pro~ects and investments in various parts of the world. For example,
the Kuwait Oil Company is participating in two pro~ects dealing with drilling f or
oil in the U.S. It is also participating in a project dealing with providing both
crude and refined oil to the islands in the Pacific. The company is also partici-
pating in a Gulf project dealing with hydraulic dredging in the sea and a project
dealing with constructing a refinery in Malayaia.
Such enormous economic act~vity requires the support of a modern and vital banking
sector. The fact is that Kuwait possesses such a banking sector. In fact Kuwait
was able to avoid the shocks and anarchy in the banking f ield which has been
experienced by a number of the other Gulf nations during the last few years. The
Kuwaiti commercial banking sector is basically dominated by six large main banks--
_ as compared to, for example, the presence of 50 banks in the UAE. Kuwaiti banking
capabilities have reached the le�~el where foreign banks are no longer permitted to
be active tn the local market. Kuwaiti banks possess the necessary capabilities
and skills and are also utilizing the most modern methods of banking technology.
Right now Kuwaiti banks are busily engaged in expanding their building or in
constructing other large buildinga.
Last year asseta in Kuwaiti banks were estimated at about 7 billion dinars ;$25
billion), that is, an increase of 29 percent over 1979. And this increase took
place in spite of the flight of some of the capital after the outbreak of the
Iran-Iraq war.
Although the banks' interest rates on loans do not exceed 10 percent, Kuwaiti
capital prefers to operate in thE local market, particularly in the f ield of real
estate, construction, and the stock market. These low interest rates have led to
the fact that foreign banks are taking out loana from the Kuwaiti banking market,
since interest rates 3re higher in other countries. As a result of this we have
seen the ocr.urrence of congesti.on in f inancial liquidity. However, the situation
- has improved this year after the Central Bank intensiffed its control [over banking
transactions].
Kuwaiti investments abroad are noted for being flexible; fast-moving, and bold--
unlike, for example, Saudi investments which are noted for being cautious. The
local market occupies second place as far as government investments are concerned.
It absorbs only 27.6 percent of them, whereae the Arab cr,arket only absorbs a very
small amount of them--only 5.2 percent.
Nevertheless official (Kuwaiti] f inancial institutions--with the Kuwait Fund for
Arab Economic Developmen~, which was established 19 years ago, lieing at the head
- of the list--have participated in about 177 pro~ects in 62 Arab and Middle Eastern
countries. Recently this organization's capital was increased to 2 billion dinars
($7.3 billion).
COPYRIGHT: 1981 AL-WATAN AL-`ARABI
9468
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rvn v��ri~.iHa. a~oc v~.a.~
. LIBXA
BRTEFS
Ir!PROVING RELATIONS WTTH FAANCE-~Tfie French government thinks that the Libyan attitude
is no longer one of destabilizing foreign governments; it fias therefore decided to
take a series of steps to normalize its relations with Tripol~. This is the gist of
- a statement issued on 11 December by the ministry of Foreign Relations. France is
thus taking a position orposed to U.S, policy; Washington is asking U.S. citizens~
" to lcave Libya. Mr Claude Cheysson, French minister of Foreign Relations said in
Brussels ~n 10 December that it would be a mistake to isolate Libya. The French
foreign office feels that it is time to try to establish normal relations with Libya.
The French declarations will no doufit ease the rapprochement between Paris and Tripoli
that began after Libyan troops were evacuated from Chad. The director of poli*ical
- affairs at the Quai d'Orsay, Mr Jacques Andreani, recently visited Tripoli for conver-
sations with Libyan leaders. France had frozen its relations with Tripoli at the
beginning of the year and set two conditions for normalizing its relations with Libya:
the evacuation of Col Qadhdhafi's troops from Chad, which was complete3 last month,
- and the restoration of tfi e French embassy buildings in Tripoli. The embassy was
sacked last year, and repairs are presently under way. [Text) [Paris MARCHES TROPICAUX
ET MEDITERRANEENS in"Fxench No 1384, 18 Dec II1 p 3361] 8782
CSO: 4519/88
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OMAN
COMPOSITION, ROLE OF NEW CONSULTATIVE COUNC IL DISCUSSED
Parls AL-WATAN AL-'ARABI in Arabic No 248 13-19 Nov al p 34
[Article by Ahmad Haf iz: "Qabus Says: 'Our Confident Steps Are Inspired by
Realism"']
[TextJ As is the case with most of the Arab Gu1P nations, the Sultanate of Oman has
come tQ have a consultative council. This c ouncil is tantamount to a particular
formula for practicing democracy in the absence of representative councils.
AL-WATAN AL-'ARABI's correspondent in Muscat attended the inauguration ceremony of
the Consultative Counc il, and recorded thes e initial remarks which he sent out in
the form of a letter.
Muscat--Eleven years after he took over rule of his country, Sultan Qabus has
undextaken a new democratic step in his ccun try which has the ob~ective of having
the Omani people exercise some type of control over their own destiny. This step
was the inauguration, on Tuesday 3 November of this year, of the Sultanate's f irst
Consultative Council "which will share its o pinions with the government concerning
issues in the developmental, economic, and social realms which the government
~ presents to it for discussion," according to the wording of the decree establishing
the council.
Since Oman is the second-largest Gulf nation in terma of area and population,
observers consider th is step to be of specia 1 importance because it constitutes an
extension of the ecoLiomic, social, and political ateps takan by the Sultanate during
the last 10 years--after its emergence from the atmoaphere of the Middle Ages.
What are the special f eatures and functiona of the Consultative Council?
1. It consists of 45 members. About one-third of these members are members o� the
government who represent the government (represenCatives from the public service
ministries). There are exactly 17 such memb ers, including 10 members who are in the
council by virtue Qf the functions which they perform and 7 who are there because
of their personal status. According to the chairman of the council, Khalfan ibn
Nasir al-Wahaybi, th is is being done in ord er to guarantee a permanent presence f or
members of the government in the council's sessions. The reason for this is to have
the council members and the people in the government be well acquainted with each
other and to have members of the government permanently and continuau$ly be present
- during the council's debates so that they can always keep the government abreast of
economic and soc ial problems and issues and their various aspects.
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1'VL\ Vi i avitau vvu v.�ui
2. About two-thirds of the council,members (28 members) have been choaen on the
- basis of being representatives for the inhabitants of Gmun's various regians. They
are both large-scale businessmen and people engaged in public service in Muscat
and the other large cities of Oman. These members of the council representing
Oman's regions a;-e chosen on the condition that they permanently reside in their
~ regions, rather t~an in Muscat, except when the council is in session.
3. The decree establishing the council determines that the council shall have four
annual sessions distributed throughout the 12-month period. The purpose of this
is to guarantee that the council continue to be active throughout the year. .
4. The council's sessions shall be closed sessions. The purpose of this is to
guarantee that the council members--without having to keep up appearances--engage
in serious discussion dealing with the issues brought before them.
5. The members of the council shall serve for 2 years, after which they may be
permitted to serve another term.
In the speech in which he inaugurated the council, Sultan Qabus underscored the
attributes of the Omani experience which stresses patient hesitation and delibera-
tion, when faced with the prospect of change, rather than a policy of adventurous
leaps. He told the council members: All of our experience and actions have been
the result of the reality of our situation in Oman and have been in conformity with
the traditions and values prevalent in our Islamic society. The reason for this
is that human experience everywhere and at every time has conf irmed, and still
conf irms, the fact that merely following the traditional approach is a sterile
approach, but also the fact that when any society tries to make leaps above the
practical realities of its situation and objective circumstances, this always leads
to enormous dangers. For this reason, we re~ect the traditional approach and we
also re~ect the approach geared toward taking big leaps. We pxefer our realistic
approach in our thinking and our application in view of the fact that the course
which we have chosen has proven its soundness and usefulness. We do not take any
step until we have made a profound study and are completely convinced [of the step
to be taken]. When we undertake an action, we observe and keep an eye on the
results of this action. Our guide in this process is that of responding to the
logic of development and change, opening up our country to the vast possibilities
- of such development and change, and striving toward our ob~ectives with conf ident
steps."
It is clear from the Sultan's speech that he meant to close the door to criticism .
which could be directed at this limited experiment in democracy in the Sultanate--
if the criticism were made on the basis of the criteria of development and change
in the Western countries or other older experiments in democracy. All.the council
members are concerned. A third of them will be representing the government and
will have the right to vote on [the council's] deciaions. Furthermore, the de-
cisi~ns which the council will be taking will not be binding. They will only be
advisory in nature. Sultan Qabus also said in his speech that, if one views the
council on the basis of Omani society's "ob,jective circumstances and actual real
situation," taking into account the fact that Oman is more than 90 percent illit-
erate after the long centuries of backwardneas which it endured in a atate of
darkness and total isolation f rom the rest of the world up ti11 1970, in addition
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to the fact that the exercis~ of democracy, in the modern sense of the word, is
something which the Omani people have never known at all, then using the criteria
_ of modern democracy when criticizing Oman's experiment becomes an approach which
is def initely not objective.
The President of the Council Talks
The question remains: What exactly are the functions of the Consultative Council
in a country such as the Sultanate of Oman with its distinctive characteristics?
I asked this question of the man who was chosen to be the f irst president of the
Omani Consultative Council, Khalfan ibn Nasir al-Wahaybi. He summarized the actual
role of the council as follows: "The council will be, in the most general and
comprehensive sense of the word, a channel ~f communications between our citizens
and our executive bodies for the purpose of achieving as many of our~Omani people's
hopes and aspirations as possible--via responsible and conscious discussion
between the members of the council and the government or executive authority."
"The council will engage in studying the ministries' plans and other matters which
will be presented to it. These will include, for example, reviewing the laws and
regulations which have been in force in Oman and which have come into force since
1970--the year that Sultan Qabus took over rule of the country. The council will
also bring up and discuss problems of our citizens with representatives of the
government and will reach agreements on establishing solutions for them."
~
What exactly is the relationship between the council and the various ministries?
"The council will not keep track of and follow up on the ministries' programs
because each ministry is implementing its programs within the framework of a policy
which has been set for these programs. But there will be a type of assessment of
what the ministries have achieved and wh~t they have failed to achieve. The
council will assess whether or not certain given proposals have been implemented
or not, and, if they have not been implemented, the council will asse.ss the reasons
for their not being implemented. In any case, we have just begun oizr work, and
the course of our work itself will lead to a clarif ication and determination of
many matters which are still not clear to us at the present time."
Does the council have the authority to conduct hearings with government officials?
- "Yes. One of the powers which the council has is the authority to conduct hearings
with government officials when holding its sessions or even when not holding its
sessions. But these will not be hearings in the traditional sense in parliaments
[elsewhere in the world.] These hearings will be conducted by means of delegating
members of the council to seek clarification from a government official concerning
matters having to do with the policy of his ministry or concerning other officials.
It will also be possible to officially summon a government official to the council
in order to ask him about what has happened or has not happened concerning a
certain matter, and the hearing will remain within the framework of the sub~ect
being discussed."
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-
Do the council members en~oy any immunities?
"The members of the Consultative Council will en~oy immunity only when inside the
council. Outside the realm of the council, they will enjoy the rights which all
ordinary citizens enjoy, and they will also have the same duties as ordinary
citizens. This is so that a council member will not be allowed to commit any
violation on the basis of his immunity~"
When will the council actually begin functioning? And how many days will each
session last?
"The council has actually already begun to prepare for its f irst session which
will be held next January. During the f irst session the members of the Executive
Bureau will be chosen and a number of procedural and organizational rules will be
- established. Af ter that the council will begin to exercise the tunctions which
it was established for. The council will hold four [annual] sessions, and the
number of days that each session lasts will depend on the issues which have been
put on the agenda for discussion."
COPYRIGHT: 1981. AL-WATAN AL-'ARABI
9468
- CSO: 4404/154
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SUDAN
EC FUNDS DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS
Paris MARCHES TROPICAUX ET MEDTTERRANEENS in Frenc.h No 1885, 25 Dec 81 p 3423
[Article: "Frojects Financed by the European Community"]
[Textj The EEC is ready to help out financially in integrating the Egyptian and
Sudanese economies. Tfiis is tfie result of contacts made by EEC representatives in
Cairo last November. The amount of aid fias not yet been set, tiut it is known which
sectors it would lie applied to: roads, railroads, and work on tfi e Nile, i.e. essen-
tially transportation.
The EEC is also interested in many purely Sudanese projects, which are in the sectors
of agriculture and infrastructures, In agriculture, there are:
rural~development in Jabal Marrah (15 million ecus): This is a program for expanding
crops and improving the rural in�rastructure, road improvement and maintenance, and
a program in forestry and rural community development. Consultants: Hunting Technical
Services (Great Britain).
rice crop development in 'Uwayl ~5.75 million ecus): The initial 2 1/2-year phase
is intended to achicve a total i.rrigated area for rice production of 2,865 hectare"s.
Consultants: Euroconsult (Netherlands).
rural development in the Nubah mountains (6.65 million ecus): Harness tillage tech-
niques and im~roved farming systems are to be introduced at two selected centers of
the region. Consultants: Satec (France). ,
tea crop development in Upper Talanga (8.35 million ecus): Some 1,000 hectares of
tea plantations are to be established over 10 years ir. the province of Equatoria
(South Sudan). The second phase of this project has just started and will include,
notably, the construction of a tea factory. Consultants: Agrar und Hydrotechnik
(Germany). Bidding was recently opened for the factory (:see MARCHES TROPICAUX ET
MEDITERRANEENS 27 Nov 81 p 3175).
gum arabic cultivation: Restoration of gum arabic production is planned in the
Sudanese gum belt, as is a study for cultivating gum arabic in the province of North
Kordofan. Consultants: Gitec (Germany).
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~'V~\ V~ � ~~.~f1v VJV V~\LJ�
As for infrastructure projects, th~r~: are~
Juba airport construction (21.5 million ecus); Consultants: Naco GNetherlands).
Contractor: International Constructions Company CCCT) (France).
construction at the University of Julia, pfiase 2(7 million ecus): additional buildings
intended to house about 400 students; 3 lodgings of about 1,100 square meters each,
a restaurant and kitchen of 360 square meters, 3 classroon builc~ings of 1,850 square
meters, and 21 houses for the staff, each of 170 square meters. Bidding will be
opened in early 1982. Consultants: Iwaco (Netherlands).
construction of second-cycle technical schools: improvement and enlargement of 4 exis-
ting schools with a capacity of 324 students each. Consultants: GBWA (Ireland),
A local contractor to be appointed,
study of the Juba-Laboni road: Tecfinical studies will be made on improving 106 km
of roads in South Stidan. Consultants: Gitec (Germany),
study of widening tfi e the KI~artoum-Wad r9adani road: The study concerns restoring and
widening the present road, Tfie consultants are being chosen.
COPYRIGF{T: Rene Moreux et Cie, Paris 1981
8782
CSO: 4519/88 END
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