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GULF STATES should implement a monetary union and single currency in phases, Kuwait's central bank governor said.
The six-nation GCC plans to launch monetary union and a single currency in 2010, although many experts believe the target date is too ambitious and unrealistic.
Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar signed an accord in June to create a joint monetary union council, a prelude to establishing a Gulf central bank and launching monetary union and a single currency. The remaining two members, the UAE and Oman, did not.
The UAE was upset at the Saudi capital Riyadh being selected to host the future GCC central bank, while Oman withdrew from the monetary union in 2007 saying it was not ready to meet the preconditions.
"Due to the limited progress achieved so far ... I believe that the best way is to work out an administrative plan for the monetary union and single currency and implement it in stages," Shaikh Salem Abdulaziz Al Sabah said.
He added that the administrative plan should focus on the institutional requirements of the union including financial, trade, statistical and common market policies. He also said that printing new banknotes would take three years to complete.
