Brussels, 15/10/2010 (Agence Europe) - The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (CCG) will not have a single currency for another ten years as the plan is being constantly delayed, and it is advisable to step back to learn from the “mistakes made” by Europeans in the management of their single currency, said Mohamed Salisu, the economist from Bahrain who is adviser in a Gulf investment bank, and who was cited by local press agencies after his return from a technical seminar on currencies more than one week ago in Brussels, attended by an ECB (European Central Bank) representative, Michael Sturm.
“The crisis within the eurozone gives the six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council time to study the mistakes made and to establish an appropriate framework” before taking up their own plan of a single currency. The economist considers that the European experience could even be a “model for other regions of the world but with a few exceptions”. He does not believe, however, as reported by the Kuwaiti agency Kuna, that the euro is faced with the risk of “collapse” thanks to the safeguard mechanisms in place.
The European experience is mainly valid for the Gulf countries “in terms of intensification of (internal) trade, strengthened regional cooperation and the development of a financial market”, he said. (F.B./transl.jl)