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The extraordinary meeting of the Council of Arab Pharmacists Association was held during 25-27 April in Sanaa to discuss topical issues concerning Arab pharmacists and doctors alike.

Dr. Ahmed Sameer Al-Noori, President of the Arab Pharmacists Association, stressed the importance of "formulating a medicinal policy and a general strategy to establish a strong foundation to better serve the drug sector in the Arab world."

He added: "The pharmacist is responsible for drugs in terms of industry, dispensation, and administering. The responsibility must be carried out with high professional ethics, as medicines affect the very existence of a human being."The participants in the meeting discussed reports submitted by the previous meeting which was held in Tunisia and followed the extent of implementing its decisions and recommendations. Regarding the Arab world in general, the Arab Pharmacists Association emphasized its commitment to integrating the drug sector. As for Yemen, the Association expressed its admiration for this country's honorable positions.
The meeting called for the following:
- Establishing a common Arab medicine market
- Achieving Arab medicine security
- Developing the Arab medicine industry

The participant doctors and pharmacists commended Yemen's policy of openness to other Arab medicine markets. They also called for protecting the Arab medicine industry from any changes in world markets, especially when relevant WTO terms come into effect in 2005.
Dr. Al-Noori said: "We observed that in Yemen there are pharmacies run by unqualified people. Medicines are not like any other commodity. They are directly related to the health and life of the people who take them. Only fully qualified and licensed pharmacists can dispense medicines.
"We also visited the medicines factory in Yemen and feel very proud of what we have seen. There is a lot of cooperation between this factory and factories in Syria and other parts of the Arab world. Yemeni medicines are not subsidized by the state, yet they are sold at reasonable prices.
"The Arab Pharmacists Association has adopted a plan to compile a unified Arab pharmacopoeia."
Following this meeting, a permanent committee was formed to start work on this pharmacopoeia, which will include the specification of raw material imported by the Arab medicine industry. This will facilitate registering medicines produced in one country in all other Arab countries.
"The Arab Scientific Academy of Pharmacy was established. An Arab center for drug research and monitoring will be established in Libya," said Dr. Al-Noori.

Mr. Ali Obeid Al-Salami, Deputy Minister of Health, said: "Yemenis and the rest of the world aim to achieve administrative and financial reform. That is why we in Yemen always aim to provide the citizens with reasonably priced medicines, despite the Ministry's limited resources.

"We also aim to modernize our laws to go with the rest of the world.
"The other important thing is regulating the distribution of medicines and establishing regional warehouses within easy access of health establishments. That is why the Ministry of Health wants to get more participation by society to financially support the Ministry of Health."

Ahlam Al-Mutawakil,
Yemen Times

Over the last few days, I travelled to Jordan, Turkey and Egypt. I would like to share some anecdotes along the way.

On Board EgyptAir:
I flew back on EgyptAir from Cairo to Sanaa. On board the A 320, they showed us a half hour of cartoons. But the audio did not work. Can you imagine what a cartoon film without sound effects is like? But that is not the point.
Many passengers complained about the problem. What the hostess did was amusing. She pretended to be attending to the problem, but what she was actually doing was buying time. Her approach was logical, although irresponsible. If you wait long enough, the problem will go away. Actually, the passengers will go away!
That is what you call good service.

Transiting in Cairo:
On April 30th, I was transiting in Cairo. I was sitting in the cafeteria having dinner when a good-looking young woman approached me. She startled me with her, "Don't I know you?"
I responded I didn't think so, but that I didn't mind being known to the young woman. She too ordered her dinner and we started a conversation.
She explained that she was of Lebanese origin and that she was back from a vacation in Lebanon and Greece, and was about to catch her flight to South Africa.
Soon, I realized the downside to the encounter. She is an insurance salesperson. Patricia Shemali works for Old Mutual in Johannesburg. My American training had prepared me well to react correctly to insurance sales people.
But the bomb shell was yet to come.
She sells funeral plans. "You can choose from different policies," she went on," as she explained that Old Mutual has gone international. I was trying to find breathing room and some distance, as I tried hard to change the subject.
The conversation didn't quite turn out the way I had envisaged.

Turkish Television:
I was overwhelmed by the dozens of television channels in Turkey. It is much more than you would expect in any country, of a similar size. The Turkish movie industry must be active.
Many American and European movies are dubbed. They speak in Turkish. It was quite something to see cowboys talking tough in Turkish.

In the GAP:
In Ankara, I went to visit the vice president of the US$ 32 billion project being implemented in south-eastern Turkey. The regional integrated development project, known as GAP, is one of the construction wonders of our modern world.
But that is not the point.
The woman who was serving us tea at the vice president's office was deaf. I was gratified to see her fully integrated, and to see her colleagues unashamed to be associated with her. To me, that human integration says more about Turkey's development than the integration of the GAP.

At the Radisson SAS, Amman:
She came to talk to me about the many programs for the youth. It is all grouped under the Prince Hassan Prize, which is similar to youth rallies in the West. "We have about 3 million kids in schools. We want to offer them something, at least for the summer break," said Ms. Samar Kaldani, Director of the Program.
All the time, I kept thinking about Yemen's youngsters who do not find anything to do, except getting in trouble while roaming the streets. Will Yemen's ministers of education and youth and sports kindly consider their responsibilities.

By: Abdulaziz Al-Saqqaf,
Yemen Times.