Under the patronage of Mr. Abdelilah Benkirane, Chief of Government of the Kingdom of Morocco, the city of Rabat is hosting a high level meeting organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) in cooperation with the other regional commissions of the United Nations on 5-6 February 2013. The meeting is carried out with funding from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Ottawa, Canada.
Organized in partnership with the Ministry of General Affairs and Governance, the meeting will open at 9:00 am on Tuesday 5 February with a statement by Ms. Rima Khalaf, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of ESCWA on behalf of the UN regional commissions, and by the Moroccan Chief of Government, Mr. Abdelilah Benkirane.
This event entitled “High-Level Meeting on Beyond Populism: Economic Challenges and Opportunities in Democratic Transition” is gathering a number of high-level Arab and international political leaders, policymakers and development practitioners with relevant experience in the fields of democratic transition and socioeconomic reform. The High Level Meeting provides decision makers in emerging democracies in Arab countries with an opportunity to interact with world leaders who encountered similar challenges.
The Meeting is intended to provide a forum for an exchange of views and experiences between participants; provide policymakers and practitioners with global best practice and lessons learned in relevant areas; examine different ways to manage people’s expectations in the short and medium term without taxing the future; identify key mechanisms for restoring confidence and building consensus around options for economic growth and social justice based on the experience of other countries; explore the potential role of regional and international intervention, support and cooperation on prospects for democratic transition and addressing short-term challenges; promote South-South cooperation and networking; and identify the priority needs of member countries and their expectations of the United Nations and other donors.
Two Themes for Discussion
Two main themes will be discussed by the Meeting: “From Autocracy to Democracy: The Voices of the Many and Decisions of the Few”; and “External Support and National Sovereignty: Navigating the Minefield.” Each of the themes will include a number of relevant subthemes, which will listen to three regional and international speakers.
The Meeting will conclude with a round-table discussion reflecting the regional perspective on translating political strength into economic vision and action. Participants in this panel will discuss the long-term vision they have for their countries as they transition into democratic governance and the optimum political, economic and social strategies that will be pursued in service of that vision. They will consider the opportunities and obstacles to achieving a fully democratic Arab world in this decade and the impact of the regional context as well as the role of regional cooperation and integration in the process.
The Meeting’s sessions will be a closed brainstorming to facilitate the exchange of ideas and in-depth discussions except for the opening, which will be attended by the media, the diplomatic corps, and a number of leaders from civil society organizations.
It is worth noting that ESCWA is one of the five UN regional commissions. It provides a framework for the formulation and harmonization of sectoral policies for member countries; a platform for congress and coordination; a home for expertise and knowledge, and an information observatory. ESCWA aims at supporting economic and social cooperation between the region’s countries and promoting development process in order to achieve regional integration.
Libya, the Kingdom of Morocco and the Republic of Tunisia became members of ESCWA in September 2012. By this new membership, the number of ESCWA countries rose to 17, including: Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, The Sudan, The Syrian Arab Republic, The United Arab Emirates and Yemen.