Yemeni Minister of Planning Abdulkarim Al-Arhabi to visit Finland

Press release 403/2006
4 October, 2006

Yemeni Minister of Plannning Abdulkarim Al-Arhabi will visit Finland on 5 October. Al-Arhabi, in charge of international cooperation, will meet with Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Paula Lehtomäki. The ministers’ talks will address the international donors’ conference on Yemen slated for 15 - 16 November in London, as well as the EU/Yemeni cooperation.

In the course of his visit, Minister of Planning Al-Arhabi will also meet with State Under-Secretary for development cooperation and development policy Marjatta Rasi.

The co-operation between Yemen and the EU, one of its major international partners, is based on the cooperation agreement which entered into force in 1998. The priorities established in the EU/Yemen aid programme are the reduction of poverty and good administration. Since 2004 EU and Yemen have also been engaged in a regular political dialogue which addresses, among others, Yemen's internal development, human rights, security and the fight against terrorism and current regional issues. The next meeting of the political dialogue is slated for 20 November in Sanaa.

Additional information: First Secretary Leena Pylvänäinen, Unit for the Middle East and North Africa, tel 09 1605 6278