The Federal National Council, headed by His Excellency Saqr Ghobash, Speaker of the Federal National Council, is participating in the fourth session of the Marrakech Parliamentary Economic Forum for the Euro-Mediterranean and Gulf Region, from 19 to 20 June 2026, at the Palais des Congrès in the city of Marrakech. The forum is hosted by the House of Councillors of the Kingdom of Morocco, in partnership with the Parliamentary Network of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
The forum opens with a high-level inaugural session attended by speakers of parliaments and regional and international parliamentary unions, alongside a number of ministers, officials, experts, and representatives of international financial institutions.
The forum's programme includes a number of key sessions covering global challenges to economic integration, free trade, and public debt; stimulating investment in artificial intelligence and establishing a Euro-Mediterranean and Gulf AI hub; as well as a special session on Africa entitled "The African Continental Free Trade Area and Linking Euro-African Value Chains: Towards an Integrated Space for Co-production, Investment, and Economic Resilience."
The forum also discusses boosting job creation through the blue economy, the role of micro, small, and medium enterprises and start-ups as drivers of innovation and youth employment, and addressing the effects of climate change on food security.
The forum aims to strengthen parliamentary dialogue on economic and development issues of mutual interest, explore ways to support economic and trade integration among Euro-Mediterranean and Gulf states, and chart prospects for cooperation with the African continent.
The forum will witness the signing of a number of agreements and memoranda of understanding, most notably a memorandum of understanding between the House of Councillors of the Kingdom of Morocco and the Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and a memorandum of understanding between the Association of African Senates and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean on strengthening Euro-Mediterranean-African parliamentary cooperation.
The Federal National Council delegation participating in the forum comprises Said Rashid Al Abdi, Aisha Rashid Leitim, Dr Ahmed Eid Al Mansouri, Salem Hamad Al Ameri, Hashima Yasser Al Afari, and Sultan Salem Al Zaabi, members of the Federal National Council, along with Tariq Ahmed Al Marzouqi, Assistant Secretary-General for Speaker's Affairs.