UNSMIL issues a statement on the economic and financial track

Libyan Cloud News Agency – Cairo

The United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) has released a statement about the Libyan economic and financial track in Cairo.

It said that 28 Libyan economic experts gathered in Cairo on February 9 and 10 for the second round of talks of the economic and financial track, one of the three intra-Libyan tracks UNSMIL is organizing – along with the military and political tracks – and endorsed by the International Conference on Libya held in Berlin on January 19.

Representatives from across the Libyan political and geographical spectrum participated in the meeting, in addition to representatives of the main Libyan financial and economic institutions as well as sector specialists and academic experts.

UNSMIL added that the participants agreed on the terms of reference for the Libyan Expert Economic Commission and its mechanisms.

The participants also agreed that Libya’s prolonged institutional fragmentation and divergent policies were negatively impacting the economy, particularly the banking sector, according to the statement.

The participants concluded that the Commission was needed to work on issues of immediate concern until a unified national government is established. 

“The Commission will focus on improving revenue management and distribution, particularly how to enhance transparency and decentralization, as well as working to address the urgent banking crisis,” the statement read.

The experts also examined challenges and opportunities for reconstruction and development. They will establish three working groups to tackle these problem sets in the coming weeks. 

The experts agreed to a next meeting in early March.