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Coll 54/1(S) 'Middle East (Official) Committee: Reconstruction' [‎57r] (117/940)

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The record is made up of 1 file (468 folios). It was created in 20 Mar 1949-13 Dec 1949. It was written in English. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .

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-12-
m
f
All stations on the litoral should be linked by a high
tension cable*
The estimated cost of the Short Term Plan is,
(i) £L 25 - 35 M for hydro-electric power,
(ii) £LU - 6 M for thermal stations.
(g) A Long Term Plan should include hydro-electric
development on the Litani River which is expected to develop
15,000 kws. This plan should also provide for a National Grid.
No reliable estimate of the cost of the Litani scheme is
available but the figure of £ 10 , 000,000 sterling has been
mentioned.
Two attempts have been made to interest British capital
in the development of hydro-electric power* The first was
made by the company involved in the development of the Ibrahim
River scheme* The British group has owing to certain
anomalies in the administration of the company been unfortuna
tely obliged to'retire, at least temporarily. The second was
by a Mr. Maasry who is seeking (and has virtually been
promised) a concession for the development of five rivers
including the Litani River,.
French interests and in particular those involved in the
Banque de Syrie et du Liban are also studying a hydro-electric
development especially on the Litani River where French
engineers are at present engaged in survey work. They are at
present hostile to the ,: Maasry scheme ,, * It is believed that
attempts had been made by French financiers to interest the
International Bank in the Litani development, and there are
indications that the sponsors might be disposed to use Jewish
capital, in which case a proportion of the power developed
might be exported to Israel* It is noteworthy that under the
Hays plan it is proposed to construct a dam and power station
•n the upper waters of the Hasbani River, i.e. within Lebanese
territory. There is however an alternative Lebanese plan for
the diversion of the waters of ffiasbani into the Litani if
irrigation of the Beqaa Valley results in reducing the flow
in the lower reaches of the Litani.
19. Tourist T rade.
There is no doubt that the tourist trade could be
developed. Its development depends partly on circumstances
which are within the power of the Lebanese Government to
control, e.g. better organisation, improvement of accommo
dation and amenities, better publicity, special tourist rates
etc., and partly on circumstances outside their control, for
example exchange difficulties and high prices. The Govern
ment have already employed a Swiss expert to advise on develop
ment.
Before the war a thriving tourist trade was built up but
this has declined for a variety of reasons; high cost of
living, exchange difficulties and improved communications with
Europe from the Middle Eas'c countries which provided the bulk
Of pre-war tourists. Tourists were mainly summer visitors but
there are also considerable possibilities for winter sports.
/The number

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Content

The file contains papers relating to the Middle East (Official) Committee. It consists of: papers circulated to members of the Committee, received by the External Department of the Commonwealth Relations Office (CRO); a few items of CRO correspondence with the Foreign Office, the Cabinet Office, and Commonwealth governments; and a register of papers received or sent by the CRO relating to the Committee, with internal CRO correspondence (at the back of the file).

The file includes agendas for meetings of the Committee, and minutes of the meetings on 28 April, 5 May, 5 July and 19 July 1949. Matters discussed and recorded in the minutes include: the reconstitution of the Committee; the re-settlement of Arab refugees from Palestine; the report on Economic and Social Development in the Middle East by the Working Party of the Committee; the future work of the Committee; the Conference of HM Representatives in the Middle East to be held in London from 26 to 29 July 1949; United States President Truman’s ‘Fourth Point’ (Truman’s message of 24 June 1949 to the United States House of Representatives, communicating a ‘Recommendation for the Enactment of Legislation to Authorise an Expanded Programme of Technical Assistance for Underdeveloped Areas of the World’); and further studies of the Working Party.

The file also includes the following papers prepared by (or approved by) the Working Party of the Committee: draft, revised and interim versions of the report on Economic and Social Development in the Middle East; papers relating to the economic and social development of Iraq, Syria, Greater Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan , Egypt, the Lebannon, Saudi Arabia, Cyrenaica, Tripolitania, Eritrea and Somalia, and the Colony of Aden and the Aden Protectorate; and a paper on Middle East oil.

In addition, the file includes other papers relating to matters discussed at the meetings, and the following subjects: Transjordan Used in three contexts: the geographical region to the east of the River Jordan (literally ‘across the River Jordan’); a British protectorate (1921-46); an independent political entity (1946-49) now known as Jordan ; irrigation development in Iraq; Persia’s [Iran’s] Seven Year Plan for development; informal conversations on social and economic affairs in the Middle East between representatives of the Foreign Office, the Treasury, the British Embassy in Washington, and the United States State Department; the work of the Development Division of British Middle East Office; a survey of the oil resources of the Middle East; and economic development in Cyprus in relation to the Middle East.

Extent and format
1 file (468 folios)
Arrangement

The papers are arranged in approximate reverse chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.

Numbers in red pen on the top right hand corner of items in the file refer to entries in the register of papers received and sent by the Commonwealth Relations Office at the back of the file.

Physical characteristics

Foliation: the foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover with 1, and terminates at the last folio with 468; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio.

A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.

Written in
English in Latin script
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Coll 54/1(S) 'Middle East (Official) Committee: Reconstruction' [‎57r] (117/940), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/L/PS/12/4756, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100043455634.0x000076> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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