The Arab Planning Institute is a non-profit regional organization whose primary mission is to advance the cause of economic and social development in Arab countries through training, research, consultancy, expert-group meetings, and publication.
In 1980, the contribution of the UNDP ended, and the Arab member countries declared the API an independent, regional and non-profit Arab Institution for a twenty-year period, renewable thereafter for successive five-year terms. Currently, the Institute includes most of the Arab countries as members. Its membership, according to the API’s establishing agreements, is to remain open to other Arab countries wishing to become members. The API will, nonetheless, pursue its policy of rendering services to all Arab countries regardless of membership status.
The API’s main objectives are: to provide the necessary knowledge-based and experiential skills that will empower Arab countries to keep pace with the cutting edge of development, economic management and planning; facilitate the process of research and data retrieval for Arab decision- makers and researchers; increase the quality of studies and research skills of those specializing in development, economic management and planning, in the Arab countries; create an Arab cadre of multi-level specialists in the areas of economic and social development; establish a venue for experts to meet and exchange ideas about important economic and social development issues for the Arab countries; generate specialized publications and data bases related to the economic and social development in the Arab countries.