His Excellency Kamal bin Ahmed Mohammed, Minister of Transportation, headed the Kingdom’s delegation to the 16th meeting of the GCC Ministerial Transportation and Communications Committee Meeting, which was held on 26 September 2012, as well as the 17th meeting of the GCC Transportation and Communications Undersecretary Committee Meeting held from 24 to 25 September 2012.

Both meetings were held at the General Secretariat in Riyadh and were attended by the ministers of transportation and communications from the GCC states.

The topics on the agenda for discussion focused primarily on the establishment of a unified GCC rail network linking the capitals of each of the GCC states.

The project is expected to strengthen the economies of the Gulf States, and contribute to sustainable growth both nationally and regionally. It will also lead to enhanced economic integration and facilitate further trade between the Gulf States.

The ministers also touched on the possibility of extending the technical cooperation agreement with the World Bank and discussed a unified traffic control guide for the GCC.

The committee meetings also explored and discussed the topics of regional shipping operations and sea ports, as well as the establishment of a GCC transportation database and the related dialogues held with other countries and international economic groups.