Al-Hogail chairs the extraordinary meeting of the Executive Office of the Council of Arab Ministers of Housing and Reconstruction

Today, His Excellency the Minister of Municipal Rural Affairs and Housing, Mr. Majid bin Abdullah Al-Hogail, chaired, via video conference, the extraordinary meeting of the Executive Office of the Arab Ministers of Housing and Reconstruction. The purpose of the meeting was to select members of the arbitration body for the Council's Award, which aims to stimulate competition among architects, engineers, housing stakeholders, research centers, and studies to develop initiatives and ideas to serve the construction and building sector in Arab countries.

During the meeting, Minister Al-Hogail welcomed the esteemed members of the Executive Office of the Arab Ministers of Housing and Reconstruction, noting that this extraordinary meeting was requested by the Arab Republic of Egypt, Palestine, and the Syrian Arab Republic to select members of the arbitration body for the Council's Award for the period 2024-2027.

The Minister of Municipal Rural Affairs and Housing emphasized that this meeting stems from the ongoing efforts of all member states to enhance Arab cooperation in the field of housing and reconstruction. The meeting aimed to discuss issues and topics of common interest, with the hope that its positive impact would benefit the peoples of the Arab region.

The Technical Secretariat of the Arab Ministers of Housing and Reconstruction stated that it had invited member states to nominate candidates for the membership of the award's arbitration body. This invitation was based on the decisions of the 40th session of the Council, which took place in Tripoli, Libya, at the end of last December. Additionally, the Federation of Arab Engineers and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization were invited to nominate representatives and experts for membership in the arbitration body.

The Secretariat confirmed that the selection of members of the award's arbitration body was approved after receiving nominations from member states. The selected members include Algeria, Libya, and Jordan for the category of architectural engineers, Saudi Arabia and Egypt for the category of civil engineers, and the Federation of Arab Engineers and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization for the category of organizations and associations. The United Arab Emirates was also chosen as an observer member of the body.

It is worth mentioning that the arbitration body consists of seven members for each session. The Scientific Advisory Committee proposes five engineers from the nominated candidates of member states, including at least three architects and at least one civil engineer. The representation of the Federation of Arab Engineers and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization is agreed upon between their secretariats, provided that the representative is an expert in Arab-Islamic heritage.

During its 40th session held in Tripoli, Libya at the end of last December, the Arab Ministers of Housing and Reconstruction reconstituted the Executive Office, with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia assuming the presidency for the years 2024-2025. The office also includes representatives from Algeria, Bahrain, Palestine, Qatar, Syria, Morocco, and the Union of the Comoros.