RIYADH, 18 April 2007 — The Kingdom is currently engaged in talks with neighboring Gulf countries to reach an agreement in which Saudis would be allowed to travel within the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) using smart ID cards.
According to the final declaration of the Al-Jaber Summit in Riyadh, the leaders of GCC countries have authorized the interior ministries in each country to work out agendas for meetings before a final proposal is approved on the issue at the next summit in Muscat.
A source at the Secretariat General of the GCC told Arab News that all six GCC countries had agreed that citizens would not need a passport when traveling between member countries. The regulations specified that Gulf citizens would use a “smart card” instead.
“Saudi Arabia objected to the idea of the current smart cards based on technical reasons,” the source told Arab News on condition of anonymity.
One of the reasons provided was that “not all machines are able to read the data stored on the smart card,” he added, saying that the Kingdom was currently holding talks with its neighbors to reach a solution on the matter.
According to GCC regulations, citizens of all GCC countries are allowed to travel freely between member states. They are also entitled to receive the same benefits as nationals of the country when applying for jobs in any GCC state.
The source said that currently, that regulation is being mandated in GCC states in the government sector. An exception is allowed on the hiring of top officials in each country where only nationals are appointed by the government. “However, GCC officials are still working on equal rights in the private sector,” he added.
The source also told Arab News that GCC officials were still working to meet the deadline at the end of this year to form a united GCC market. “The deadline has not changed. Officials are still working on the details,” the source said.
He said that inter-GCC trade had soared by 38 percent last year, a sign of increased cooperation in trade between member countries.
However, he mentioned that over the years, trade in nonpetrochemical products between GCC member states would not exceed 10 percent of the total.
“The main exports of GCC states are petrochemicals with the exception of Bahrain which imports oil from Saudi Arabia,” he added.
The interior ministers of GCC, which groups Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, Kuwait and the UAE, have been discussing the issue of smart card for the last several years.
“We have given member states a deadline before which they should all complete their national identity card schemes. Most of the member states have gone a long way in their programs,” an informed source said.
Several member states have completed their national ID schemes. Citizens of some GCC states are already traveling using their national identity cards under bilateral agreements.
Once the new system is fully operational, citizens of GCC states will be able to exit and enter the GCC countries without having to wait in queue to process their passports. The card will also replace the driving license, cash link cards, and health card.
