The first Arab Economic, Social and Development Summit will open in the Kuwait City on Monday. The following are the basic facts about the summit.

The two-day summit is the first for the 22-member Arab League to exclusively devote to Arab economic, development and social matters. Seventeen heads of state have confirmed to attend the summit, together with politicians, businessmen and intellectuals from all the 22 member states of the Arab League. The UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will also be present at the summit.

The summit, under preparation for nearly two years, was decided by a resolution issued at the annual Arab Summit in Riyadh in March 2007, taken upon by the joint initiative of Kuwait and Egypt, as Arab leaders found that Arab national security has been affected by the economic and social underdevelopment.

The summit is set to work on promoting Arab action in the economic, social and development sectors, among which inter-Arab trade, infrastructure, health, education, poverty and unemployment are determined as priorities. In face of the ongoing global financial crisis, the summit will also discuss ways to reduce the negative influence of the crisis which has led to the sharp fall of oil prices and major revenue for many Arab nations.

The summit will select from more than 400 projects and proposals the secretariat has received those that can benefit all the Arab nations, to improve power linkage, roads and railways networks, food security, health and education in the Arab world. In an effort to promote the Arab economic integration, an agreement on the Arab Customs Union plan is likely to be reached.

Following the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, the Gaza situation is believed to top the agenda of the summit. Arab leaders are expected to review the latest developments in the impoverished enclave, and to find a solution to end the Gaza conflicts, in which more than 1,300 Palestinians have been killed and over 5,500 wounded since the beginning of the Israeli attacks on December 27, 2008.

At an emergency meeting on Saturday, Arab foreign ministers agreed on an urgent plan to save the Palestinian population of the Gaza Strip based on political, economic and humanitarian aspects. Reports said the plan will be put forward to the upcoming summit for approval.

(Xinhua News Agency January 20, 2009)