The ministers of commerce and industry of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states have adopted on Thursday evening measures to check the soaring prices of foodstuffs in their countries. They decided, among others, to work with major investors in the agricultural sector in the region to ensure food security, GCC Assistant Secretary General Mohammad Al-Mazrou'i told reporters after the meetings. They asked the GCC Secretariat to notify the major agricultural investors such as the Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID) and the Gulf Investment Corporation (GIC) to work out a feasibility study on joint investment with a view to providing foodstuffs to the GCC citizens at reasonable prices, he said. The study could result in launching a fund or strategic partnerships between the government and private investors in the field of agricultural development, he further said. King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, had earlier called for ways to remove all obstacles facing the trade exchanges among the GCC members as well as acceleration of joint action. The measures were approved by the 39th meeting of the Commission on Commercial Cooperation and the 28th meeting of the Commission on Industrial Cooperation. __
