The first economic forum under Agadir free trade agreement was held from December 12-13 and was attended by delegates from Jordan, Tunisia, Egypt and Morocco.
This Arab-Mediterranean Free Trade Agreement forum was held in Tunis where member countries discussed plans to enhance their textile industries by exploring export opportunities and investments catered by the European Union.
The Agadir Agreement was actually signed in 2004 by Tunisia, Jordan, Egypt and Morocco but came into force recently to meet the objectives of encouraging trade between the member countries and the EU, implementing Euro-Mediterranean rules of origin to integrate economies and to attract foreign direct investments for the 120 million consumers of the 'Agadir' market.
With regard to the textile sector, the delegates concluded to enter into full time partnership instead of contract to overcome the shortcomings that have plagued the industry. In spite of having ample scope for boosting trade and development the member states have remained uninformed about the available alternatives.
However, after the discussions, the countries agreed to explore untargeted markets like the Scandinavian countries to further their respective trade purposes. When compared to past records, the volume of trade between member states has increased to US $675 million dinars in 2007 from the $320 million dinars in 2004.
All in all it was unanimously felt that there was a need among thecountries to adopt a more flexible attitude to promote a smooth exchange of goods trans-nationally.
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