The Director General of the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), Mahmoud Al-Futaisi, held a meeting to discuss Libya’s Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) with the U.S.A.
The meeting included the Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation at the Council of Ministers, the Director of the Investment and Private Sector Development Department at the Ministry of Economy, the Director of the Foreign Trade Department at the Ministry of Economy, the Director of the Americas Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the assistants of the Director General of the Council for Technical, Administrative and Financial Affairs and the Office of Cooperation International and Director of Economic Development Department.
Speaking exclusively to Libya Herald about the meeting, Al-Futaisi confirmed that the meeting focused on the background of the agreement, the difficulties and challenges, how to activate it, and the important role in consolidating the cooperation relationship between Libya and the United States in the fields of trade and investment.
TIFA signed in 2010
He said the TIFA agreement signed in 2010 was designed to provide venues for dealing with trade issues and help in building trade and investment relations between the United States and Libya. To this end, a joint council was established (in December 2013) to address a wide range of trade and investment issues, including market entry, intellectual property, and employment, with the United States submitting Libya in its request for accession to the World Trade Organization.
Need to activate joint trade council
Al-Futaisi stressed the need to activate the role of the joint council, which stopped working years ago, in activating the terms of the agreement to raise the level of trade between Libya and the United States of America.
TIFA, he explained, enables Libya to obtain technical assistance and technical advice from economic institutions in America to develop the performance of the Libyan economy. He said Libya had begun to implement open trade policies since 2010 and begun the search for more plans to implement the economic diversification programme, in addition to obtaining assistance in implementing the comprehensive economic development programme.
US-Libyan Trade and Investment Council agreed (libyaherald.com)
