Saudi- Workshop focuses on issues about industrial development and mining 

(MENAFN - Arab News) Around 31 representatives from 10 Arab countries partook in an Arab workshop on "Mineral ores: Exploration, extraction, processing, manufacturing and marketing," which opened yesterday. Deputy Minister for Mineral Resources Sultan bin Jamal Shawli gave the inaugural speech at the workshop held at the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources' office in Jeddah.

The workshop will last for five days during which participants and experts from the faculty of engineering at King Abdul Aziz University (KAU), and the scientific Institute at the University of Mohammed V in Morocco will attend some 12 sessions. The workshop also has key speakers from Jordan, the UAE, Algeria, Oman, Egypt, Morocco, Sudan, Iraq, and Libya, as well as specialists from the Arab Mining Company, Deputy Ministry for Mineral Resources (DMMR), Saudi Geological Survey (SGS), Maaden Corporate, and KAU.

Shawli said: "The Kingdom continues to attain the leadership in supporting any Arab joint activity that helps in developing the country. So we are here under the umbrella of the Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to discuss the latest issues about industrial development and mining in order to contribute to the enhancement of the knowledge of Arab geologists and engineers working in mineral resources so that they can perform their tasks more positively and smoothly, and collaborate with their colleagues in other Arab states," Shawli added.

He praised the efforts and support of the organizing committee and the scientific committee for organizing the workshop, which will hopefully be an example of development of Arab technicians and expertise.

"This workshop will tackle the main issues involved in any mineral mining process comprising several stages from the prospecting, exploring of mineral resources to the extraction and manufacturing of a product of value-added. The speakers also will focus on other important issues concerning the best methods of collecting and analyzing information and data, which can lead to better results in the mining and extraction process and finally result in more effective industries and uses of mineral ores. Furthermore, the sessions here will also deal with the profound impact of marketing on the economic return of the mining projects."

The director of Mineral Resources at the Arab Industrial Development and Mining Organization (AIDMO), Al-Munir Abu Sbai'a said that the mineral exploration activity in the Arab World was still modest and insufficient compared with other promising mineral potentials located in the Arab states. He noted that this poor level attributed to the sluggishness and weakness of the financial allocations required to uplift such important activity and stressed the lack of expertise and competencies in this field. In most Arab countries, he said, the available geological data and the related legislation don't primarily account for the attention of the international companies specialized in exploration and investigation of mineral resources. Moreover, there is a remarkable low level of spending on such activities and the needed researches of development," Abu Sbai'a

Said. Abu Sbai'a presented a certificate of appreciation to Shawli for hosting the workshop.

By MOHANNAD SHARAWI