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AN AGENDA FOR CHANGE
Security officials must have been sweating bullets. If the visit of a single dignitary warrants street closures, security checks and random shakedowns, one can only imagine the stress level associated with gathering over 1,100 world leaders, government officials and high-profile business personalities in Sharm Al Sheikh for the World Economic Forum on the Middle East last month. With a string of terrorist attacks on Sinai resort towns still fresh on everyone’s minds, security officials were taking no chances – going so far as to relocate any Egyptian found in the Red Sea city without a good reason to be there.
But on May 22, as the forum wrapped up, security officials were able to exhale. The conference went off without a hitch and the “City of Peace” shone under the spotlight. The issues discussed – which included the effects of globalization, education initiatives and nuclear weapons proliferation, to name a few – were incorporated into an agenda for the betterment of the region. But implementing this agenda is another matter.
After all, one of the biggest obstacles in the region is the reluctance to embrace change. If that were not the case, issues such as gender equality, red tape and regional integration would have had less appeal.
It was promising, however, to see that regional leaders spoke frankly and constructively on the issues. Jordan’s Queen Rania highlighted the potential contribution of women and the opportunity costs of failing to close the gender gap. Orascom Telecom head Naguib Sawiris – the champion of the private sector – urged governments not to “meddle” in free trade – a comment of particular relevance in light of the recent cases of Dubai Ports and Mittal Steel. And Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid pressed for regional economic integration, noting: “If we are not integrated as a region, if we don’t have good channels between ourselves, how can we say we’re ready to be globally competitive?”
While it all makes sense, there’s a reason why these issues appear year-in year-out on conference agendas. Let’s hope in the near future they won’t need to.
CAM MCGRATH
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