DR. TAHER E JEHAIMI Secretary for Planning

United World: How is the Ministry of Planning contributing to the economic changes in the country?

Mr. Jahaimi: Our domestic policies are geared towards creating a more prosperous and competitive economy. The Ministry of Planning prepares the budget for development projects. We have two kinds of budgets in Libya; one is for salaries and current expenditures (which is under the Ministry of Finance), the other is for investment, which falls under the Ministry of Planning. In preparing the budget, we consult with all other departments and with the provinces. It is a rather lengthy process that needs to go through the General People's Congress, where it needs to be ratified. Once the budget is approved, it becomes a law and then the Ministry of Planning is in charge of supervising its implementation. Evaluation reports are conducted twice a year and recommendations are made to enhance performance so that budget goals are achieved.

Our other task in the present is the preparation of the five-year plan for the country; which will hopefully be ready in the beginning of 2006. It is here where we articulate the medium-term objectives of the economy and propose policy guidelines. We are fortunate enough this time that we do not need to worry too much about providing the financial requirements of the plan thanks to rising oil revenues. But we need to assess our absorptive capacity to ensure that our investment decisions are wise and our implementation is efficient. Some of our young people do not seem to like to take up hard-labor positions in areas like construction, agriculture, or the industries. So many jobs are being taken by non-Libyans while young nationals remain unemployed or under-employed hoping for government jobs. Our population is young and growing rapidly. We estimate that we need about 450,000 new housing units over the next ten years or so. A wide-ranging credit program has been launched to help create jobs in the private sector and to provide soft loans to help young people build their own new homes. Programs to increase production capacities in steel and cement have also been started to facilitate expansion in constructions. Our local market is not flexible enough or resourceful enough to provide the requirements of large construction programs so foreign specialized companies may be invited to participate. The establishment of a Housing Authority is also being discussed.

United World: How do you inform or attract foreign companies in participating in the housing and construction sector?

Mr. Jahaimi: The bidding is a public process and all qualified companies can participate. Some interested parties have already begun to inquire about the program and offered their services. American companies do not seem to be familiar with the economy of Libya outside the oil and gas sector. I have previously told American officials whom I have met with that American companies should start familiarizing themselves with other sectors if they are to compete in the future for contracts.

United World: You gave a speech at the United Nations not long ago about some key aspects in the country that are of importance to the economy. Could you tell our readers about that?

Mr. Jahaimi: I spoke before the 13th session of the UN's Commission on Sustainable Development whose theme this time was water and sanitation. This is a critical sector for us; Libya is a dry country. We don't get enough rain and have no rivers. Desertification is a big problem. We have found water sources underneath the desert in the deep south and south east of the country. These water resources are being tapped through the Great man-made river project. It is a costly program, but at least coastal cities and towns get their water needs from it. We also have other projects like building dams to try to gather as much rainwater as we can. Naturally, this is not enough, so we are looking to acquire more desalination plants, in an effort to meet the rising demand for water and of course, to diversify our sources of supply. Our plan calls for upgrading the planning of water and sanitation schemes for the cities and towns across the country. Most of our population has access to safe drinking water and over 40% of our households are connected to a sewer scheme. We estimate that eight billion Libyan dinars (roughly $6billion) will be spent on water and sanitation projects in the next five years. Most of these are medium-sized projects. We feel that we need to acquaint ourselves with world class technologies and learn from the successful experiences of other countries so that our sector is well planned and fitted to high standards.

United World: The discourse in Libya towards the United States has changed recently. How do you foresee the future of US-Libyan relations from an economic and cooperative perspective?

Mr. Jahaimi: Libya faces a real challenge because it has set high goals for itself; a lot of work needs to be done if we are to attain these goals. We aim for good education, health, agriculture and infrastructure. Much of our budget nowadays is invested in infrastructure, upgrading and maintenance of our road network, hospitals and educational institutions. We need to acquire technology and information technology that allows our young people to become qualified for better job opportunities. Diversification is very important for our economy. Oil will continue to be dominant, but we need to invest in creating other viable sources of income.

At one time, we had 4000 Libyan students in the United States; this was a long time ago and it stopped in the 1980s. We recently had a delegation of educators from the US in Libya and they said they were excited and looking forward to resuming a student-exchange program. I think it's a very important step in relations between the two countries. American companies have been working here since oil was discovered in the late 1950s. They played an integral role in developing this sector. Of course this progress was interrupted for political reasons for decades. The business relationship between Libya and the United States is gradually resuming. The Libyan economy is open and promising. There are already many major American companies represented in Libya. You would be surprised to know that the average Libyan knows more about the US than the average American does about Libya. The world is truly globalizing, trade is expanding, communication and information are spreading. Libya's oil is important not only to Europe but also to America. All these aspects and there are others should be put into context when considering the future of Libyan-US relations.

United World: Thank you for your comments.