São Paulo – Arab and South American ministers approved an action plan in cooperation at meetings yesterday and today (2), in Brazilian capital Brasília. According to ambassador Gilberto Moura, head of the Regional Mechanisms Department at the Itamaraty, who participated in the meeting alongside the Brazilian minister of Social Development and Hunger Alleviation, Patrus Ananias, one of the measures approved was the establishment of an Internet site to bring together the best social practices developed in countries in both regions.
According to Moura, the site should be produced in at the International Policy Centre for Inclusive Growth (IPC-IG), an organisation connected to the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), with the support of the Ministry of Social Development and Hunger Alleviation. “The MDS works in close cooperation with IPC-IG,” said the diplomat.
Another initiative is the promotion of training seminars in the practices that are of greatest interest to the nations involved. “These two actions are going to generate great exchange of experiences,” said Moura. A committee will also be created to accompany the execution of an action plan.
The meeting this week is part of the unfolding of the Summit of South American-Arab Countries (Aspa), which has already had two editions. Social development is one of the main areas of bi-regional cooperation defined by the participating countries. Currently, the general coordination of the Aspa initiative is in the hands of Brazil, on the South American side, and of the League of Arab States.
Minister Patrus Ananias pointed out, through his press department, the importance of international cooperation in the social area. He spoke about the results reached by Brazil in recent years, among them 19.4 million Brazilians leaving the range of extreme poverty and the 15.3% reduction in infant mortality.
Agreements
The Family Purse, a program for income transfer developed by the government of Brazil, which reaches 12.4 million families, has generated interest in other countries. During the meetings, Brazil signed agreements for social development cooperation with Lebanon, Palestine, Oman and Jordan, according to the Ministry of Social Development.
At the meeting in Brasília, programs promoted by different countries were presented. Egypt, for example, presented a system that is similar to the Family Purse. Egypt is the Arab country with which Brazil most exchanged experiences in the area.
The next meeting of social area ministers should take place in Lebanon, in 2012.
*Translated by Mark Ament
