For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 9, 2004
G-8 Plan of Support for Reform
We welcome the desire and commitment to continue reform and
modernization expressed by leaders in the region. Through consultation
and dialogue with leaders and peoples in the region, and in response to
reform priorities identified by the region, including by the Arab
League, we have developed an initial plan of support for reform. The
initiatives herein offer a broad range of opportunities from which
governments, business, and civil society in the region can draw support
as they choose. This will be a dynamic process based on mutual
respect. It builds on our already strong bilateral and collective
engagement with the region and is intended to expand and evolve over
time. Today, in the spirit of partnership and in support of reform
efforts in the region, we commit to:
1.1 Establish together with our partners a Forum for the Future
to:
Provide a ministerial framework for our on-going dialogue
and engagement on political, economic, and social reform in a spirit of
mutual respect;
Bring together in one forum foreign, economic and other
ministers of the G-8 and the region on a regular basis;
Serve as a collaborative vehicle for expanding our
engagement in support of the region's reform efforts, in particular
toward the enhancement of democracy and civic participation, rule of
law, human rights and open market economy;
Be accompanied by parallel business-to-business and civil
society-to-civil society dialogues, whose participants will provide
input on reforms and work with the Forum's member governments on
implementation;
Encourage cultural exchange and cooperation.
The inaugural meeting of the Forum for the Future will be held in
the fall of 2004.
1.2 Launch a microfinance initiative to expand sustainable
microfinance in the region and increase financing opportunities for the
region's small entrepreneurs, especially women, including by:
Establishing a Microfinance Consultative Group, managed by
the World Bank's Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), that
would include G-8, regional, and other donors and partners, who would
meet regularly to review microfinance progress, coordinate efforts, set
benchmarks, help governments in the region establish a policy
environment conducive to sustainable microfinance institutions, and
exchange best practices;
Working with CGAP to establish in the region a Best
Practices Training Center, which will concentrate on improving the
policy and regulatory framework, disseminating best practice materials,
building management capacity, and training a new generation of
professional microfinance managers. The Center would draw from the
Microfinance Consultative Group's experience and guidelines;
Launching pilot programs in the region to help small
entrepreneurs open or expand their businesses and create new jobs; the
microfinance institutions would use the best practices center's
training opportunities to train local managers, staff, and, if needed,
government officials in "best practices;"
In conjunction with the countries of the region, pledging
to help over two million potential entrepreneurs to pull themselves out
of poverty through microfinance loans over five years.
Jordan has offered to host the Best Practices Microfinance Training
Center, and Yemen has offered to host the first microfinance pilot
program.
1.3 Enhance support for efforts in the region, including through
the appropriate multilateral institutions, to impart literacy skills to
an additional 20 million people by 2015 with the aim of assisting
governments in the region to achieve their objective of halving the
illiteracy rate over the next decade (a target consistent with a goal
of the January 2004 Beirut Conference on Education for All) including
by:
Training teachers in techniques, including on-line
learning, that enhance the acquisition of literacy skills among
school-aged children, especially girls, and of functional literacy
skills among adults;
Working to train, including through appropriate
multilateral institutions, 100,000 teachers by 2009, with a particular
focus on high-quality literacy skills;
Providing teacher training through existing institutions
and employing guidelines established in the "Education for All" program
administered by UNESCO;
Setting up and maintaining a regional network for sharing
experience and best practices;
Expanding and improving education opportunities for girls
and women, including by providing assistance to help local communities
have access to learning centers and schools;
Supporting community-based, demand-led adult literacy
programs and programs outside the formal education system that couple
literacy courses with lessons on health, nutrition, and entrepreneurial
skills.
Algeria and Afghanistan have offered to sponsor the literacy
initiative.
1.4 Enhance support for business, entrepreneurship, and vocational
training programs to help young people, especially women, expand their
employment opportunities, including by:
Carrying out programs, in alliance with business partners
in our countries and in the region, to provide 250,000 young people
with hands-on entrepreneurial training;
Sponsoring or supporting seminars for outstanding
executives, especially women, to enhance their skills through
short-term business programs and more focused, industry-specific
sessions;
Carrying out or sponsoring corporate apprenticeship
programs, in cooperation with local businesses and chambers of
commerce, to increase internship opportunities for the region's young
men and women;
Encouraging exchanges of engineers and support for
vocational training initiatives.
Bahrain and Morocco have offered to sponsor the entrepreneurship
and vocational training initiative.
1.5 Establish with willing partners in the region a Democracy
Assistance Dialogue that will, under the auspices of the Forum for the
Future, bring together in a collaborative and transparent environment
willing governments, civil society groups and other organizations from
G-8, EU and others, and countries in the region to:
Coordinate and share information and lessons learned on
democracy programs in the region, taking into account the importance of
local ownership and each country's particular circumstances;
Work to enhance existing democracy programs or initiate new
programs;
Provide opportunities for participants to develop joint
activities, including twinning projects;
Promote and strengthen democratic institutions and
processes, as well as capacity-building;
Foster exchanges with civil society groups and other
organizations working on programs in the region.
Turkey, Yemen, and Italy will co-sponsor the Democracy Assistance
Dialogue and host the first meeting later in 2004.
1.6 Establish a Broader Middle East and North Africa Private
Enterprise Development Facility at the International Finance
Corporation (IFC) to assist the region's efforts to improve the
business and investment climate and increase the financing options for
the region's small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs), including by:
Combining and expanding in terms of funding and geographic
reach the IFC's two regional facilities to create a new USD$100 million
facility that will cover the entire region, funded by contributions
from G-8 countries, countries within the region, and other donors. Our
Finance Ministers will convene a meeting to this end with interested
countries;
Leveraging existing expertise, experience, and financial
resources of the IFC;
Providing technical assistance to interested countries
working on improving their business and investment climate;
Encouraging the IFC to increase the focus of its regional
investment portfolio on SMEs;
Providing an appropriate mix of technical assistance and
financial instruments.
1.7 Establish a regional "Network of Funds" that would bring
together representatives from development institutions based in the
region and from international financial institutions for the purposes
of:
Coordinating better existing programs and resources;
Supporting through technical assistance regional efforts to
build institutional capacity and improve the investment climate;
Exploring the voluntary pooling of new and existing
resources to target financing to SMEs and large cross-border projects.
1.8 Establish with partners in the region a Task Force on
Investment, comprised of business leaders from the G-8 and the region,
including from the Arab Business Council, to assist the region's
efforts to improve the investment climate, including by:
Identifying impediments to investment;
Recommending concrete proposals for change, and quantifying
where possible likely benefits;
Working with countries in the region interested in pursuing
reforms and supporting their reform efforts;
Reviewing and reporting on progress of reform in the
region.
***
In addition to the foregoing initiatives, we will seek
opportunities to increase coordination of our respective ongoing
activities that are available to support reform in the region. We
commit to intensify and in partnership and dialogue with governments,
business, and civil society, expand these already strong individual and
collective engagements. These activities respond to reform priorities
identified by the region, including by the Arab League Summit Tunis
Declaration, the Alexandria Library Statement, the Sana'a Declaration,
and the Arab Business Council Declaration.
Deepening Democracy and Broadening Participation in Political and
Public Life
Tunis Declaration: "We...assert our firm determination... to
pursue reform and modernization in our countries and keep pace with
rapid global change by fostering democratic practice; by broadening
participation in political and public life; by strengthening the role
of all components of civil society, including NGOs; by envisioning the
society of tomorrow; by expanding women's participation in political,
economic, social, cultural, and educational fields; by enhancing their
rights and status in society; and by pursuing the promotion of family
and the protection of Arab youth."
Alexandria Library Statement: "Democracy is a system in which
freedom is both fundamental and paramount. As such it yields true
sovereignty for the people who govern themselves by means of political
pluralism, ensuring regular transition of governing authority. It is a
system that is founded upon a total respect for the rights of the
people to freedom of thought, organization and expression."
Sana'a Declaration: "Democratic systems protect the rights and
interests of everybody without discrimination, especially the rights
and interests of disadvantaged and vulnerable groups... The basics of
democratic systems are reflected in periodically elected legislatures,
representing the citizens in a fair way and ensuring their full
participation, in executive bodies that are responsible and committed
to principles of good governance and in an independent judiciary..."
Arab Business Council Declaration: ". . . Improving the standards
of living in the Arab world necessitates focusing on . . . Respecting
the rule of law and enhancing transparency . . . reducing red-tape and
corruption . . . Promoting adequate institutional and legal
mechanisms
. . . Developing the Arab judicial system . . . [and] Activating the
role of women and youth in society."
2.1 Supporting efforts to ensure free and transparent elections by
cooperating with willing countries, including by assisting independent
election commissions, and voter registration programs and supporting
civic awareness programs, with a particular emphasis on women voters.
Representative G-8 activities include:
Canada is supporting preparations, including voter
registration, for free and transparent elections in Afghanistan.
The European Union is supporting the preparation of
Palestinian elections by providing international elections experts and
financial assistance to the independent Palestinian Central Election
Commission.
France is providing support for parliamentary elections in
Yemen in order to assist the authorities in strengthening the
democratisation process in the country.
Italy provides technical assistance to, and support of,
electoral processes in Afghanistan and Yemen.
2.2 Supporting and encouraging parliamentary exchanges and
training to build the capacity of the region's parliaments and
consultative bodies, particularly with regard to drafting legislation,
implementing legislative and legal reforms, and representing
constituents. Representative G-8 activities include:
The United Kingdom has a three-year project in Bahrain to
improve the capacity of parliament, including a youth parliament.
2.3 Supporting regional efforts to expand women's participation in
political, economic, social, cultural, and educational fields and by
enhancing their rights and status in society including by supporting
training for women interested in running for elective office or
establishing or operating an NGO; and bringing together women in
leadership positions from G-8 countries and the region, including in
workshops. Representative G-8 activities include:
Canada supports Egyptian organizations working on issues of
basic education and employment to include focus on the fuller
participation of girls and women.
France supports the development of women's rights in
Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Jordan, Palestinian Territories and Lebanon
in cooperation with UN Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), in order to
strengthen efforts to develop their participation in society and to
make them aware of their rights.
Germany is supporting partners in Jordan, Morocco, and
Yemen in promoting gender equality, including through increasing
women's access to professional opportunities and participation in
public life.
Japan is providing support to empower women in Jordan,
Egypt, and the Palestinian Territories in order to enhance their
leadership role in the society.
The United States is funding regional women's campaign
schools in North Africa, the Levant, and the Gulf that provide
political skills training and assist women who wish to enter into
electoral politics.
2.4 Assisting the region in pursuing judicial reforms and in
ensuring an independent judiciary, including by: supporting judicial
exchanges and workshops as well as training for judges, attorneys, and
law students; providing technical assistance for judicial
administration and legal code reforms; and the establishment of
grassroots legal aid centers. Representative G-8 activities include:
The European Union is supporting the establishment of a
Palestinian Constitutional Court and a National Legal Training
Institute, thereby contributing to judicial reform.
France is developing a specific co-operation program in
Syria in order to respond to the demand of the authorities to reform
the administrative and judicial systems.
Italy supports in Afghanistan reconstruction of the
judicial system, a survey on the state of law, establishment of
itinerant courts, and training of judges and lawyers.
The United Kingdom is strengthening the capacity of
Jordanian national institutions, including the judiciary, to tackle
family violence, child abuse, and sexual assault through a rights-based
approach.
2.5 Supporting the region's efforts to reinforce the freedom of
expression, thought and belief, and to encourage an independent media,
including by: sponsoring exchanges, training, and scholarships for
journalists. Representative G-8 activities include:
France is helping to modernise the national radio in
Lebanon through training and scholarships for journalists and to create
a specific academic program in the Egyptian university to train young
journalists.
The United Kingdom is supporting a three-year media
training project with BBC World Service Trust in Syria, Lebanon, Egypt,
and Morocco.
2.6 Encouraging the region's efforts to foster the democratic
process, promote good governance, transparency and anti-corruption
efforts, including by: encouraging adoption and implementation of the
United Nations Convention against Corruption; technical assistance for
the reform and modernization of public financial management and
procurement practices and for efforts to combat money laundering and
terrorist finance. Representative G-8 activities include:
Italy supports electronic government, including the
development of e-procurement and e-accounting systems in public
administration in Jordan and Tunisia.
Germany is supporting partners in Yemen and Mauritania in
reforming and modernizing public financial management systems including
through capacity-building of national, regional, and local government
and parliamentary bodies.
Japan is providing assistance through UNDP for the
capacity-building of the administration of the Palestinian Authority,
including its Prime Minister's Office.
The United Kingdom is supporting a major program of public
administration and civil service reform for the Palestinian Authority,
which aims to restructure and streamline the Palestinian Authority to
meet the needs of a modern democratic state.
2.7 Supporting efforts to strengthen the role of all components of
civil society, including NGOs in the region's reform processes,
including by: providing assistance to strengthen the participation of
all segments of society, supporting the efforts of institutions to
strengthen the foundations of citizenship; encouraging exchanges among
civil society organizations, including labor unions and collaborating
on cultural projects and programs. Representative G-8 activities
include:
The European Union supports the Arab Women Organization and
the Jordanian Women's Union.
France is financing social development funds in Morocco,
Tunisia, and the Palestinian Territories, specifically designed to help
NGOs, associations, and communities, to develop small social
development projects that respond directly to the basic needs of the
population and enhance their capacities to play a leading role in the
development of the country at local level.
***
Building a Knowledge Society to Combat Illiteracy and Advance
Educational and Technological Systems
Tunis Declaration: "We also assert our firm
determination...to...intensify efforts aimed at the development and
progress of educational systems, at disseminating knowledge and
encouraging its acquisition, and at combating illiteracy in order to
ensure a better tomorrow for future generations of Arab youth.
Alexandria Library Statement: "Participants recommend . . .
eradicating illiteracy - especially among women - within a ten-year
period... acquiring, spreading, and producing knowledge... to achieve
(the building of) a society of knowledge... revitalize civil and
governmental translation institutions on two fronts: translations from
Arabic to all recognized languages and from all languages to Arabic...
modernize the information technology infrastructure in the Arab world."
Sana'a Declaration: "The practice of democracy and human rights
and enhancing their understanding require overcoming potential threats
to the form and substance of democracy, including... inadequate
education."
Arab Business Council Declaration: "Governments need to take
additional measures to improve the efficiency and quality of the
education offered in their educational institutions... better align the
knowledge and skill outputs of their educational systems with the
changing and evolving needs of the global economy... Expand the
capacity for knowledge acquisition by greater investment in IT
infrastructure... "
3.1 Assisting countries interested in improving and reforming
their education systems, including by: supporting efforts to improve
the quality of education, fostering community participation in
education, increasing the planning capacity of education ministries,
facilitating community partnerships; and supporting construction and
rehabilitation of schools. Representative G-8 activities include:
Canada supports the education reform strategy of the
Jordanian Ministry of Education to re-engineer primary and secondary
education to meet the needs of the knowledge economy.
Germany is assisting partners in Egypt, Jordan, Yemen, and
the Palestinian Territories in improving national basic education
systems, including through the enlargement of existing and the
construction of new elementary schools.
Italy supports a development programme for promotion of
Education for All, and training graduates in Afghanistan and Libya.
Japan is providing support to construct 30 primary and
secondary schools in Yemen, which will benefit about 18,000 children.
The United Kingdom has provided long-term support to the
Egyptian Government to help them re-orientate their nation-wide adult
literacy program toward a demand-driven community-based approach.
The United States is sponsoring "partnership schools" to
enhance the quality of primary and secondary education, and conducting
teacher training and providing classroom materials for early childhood
education in Morocco, Tunisia, Oman, and Qatar.
3.2 Building on the rich cultural heritage of the region, increase
availability of and access to textbooks and regional and world
literature, including by: supporting local capacity in textbook
publishing and translation; training teachers in new methods; and
supporting the re-issuing of the region's classic texts.
Representative G-8 activities include:
Japan is supporting school textbook publishing in Yemen,
through providing printing equipment which has capacity to print 10
million textbooks a year.
The United States is funding the translation of eighty
children's book titles and accompanying teachers' manuals for school
libraries in Jordan, Bahrain, and Lebanon, as well as American book
translation programs in Egypt and Jordan.
3.3 Assisting the region in enhancing its digital knowledge
including by public-private partnerships to provide or expand computer
access, supporting the introduction of innovative teaching methods to
classrooms, integrating computer-based technology into curricula, and
supporting "e-government" initiatives. Representative G-8 activities
include:
Canada supports the efforts of the Jordanian Ministry of
Education to introduce and integrate information and communication
technology into the national education system.
***
Accelerating Economic Development, Creating Jobs, Empowering the
Private Sector, and Expanding Economic Opportunities
Tunis Summit Declaration: "We also assert our firm
determination...To endeavor to pursue the upgrading of Arab
economies...in such a way as to strengthen the competitiveness of the
Arab economy and empower it to establish a solidarity-based partnership
with the various global economic blocs."
Alexandria Library Statement: "In a young and rising Arab world,
employment of youth, quality of education, social services and programs
supporting SMEs should be basic elements of the concept of
reform...Develop SME and micro credit programs to deal with
unemployment giving females the full opportunity to access financing...
Modernize Arab financial sectors generally, and banking sectors
specifically, encouraging the establishment of large banking entities
and modernization of Arab capital markets... Resolve problems that
hinder investment and remove obstacles to Arab and foreign
investment... enable Arab countries to effectively join the World
Trade Organization [and] positively integrate in the global economy by
increasing exports of goods and services..."
Sana'a Declaration: "The private sector is a vital partner in
strengthening the foundations of democracy and human rights; it has a
responsibility to work with governments and civil society to enhance
progress."
Arab Business Council Declaration: "In order for entrepreneurship
to thrive, policy makers need to create environments that allow market
forces to freely interplay, foster stability, and a high degree of
predictability in order to enable investors to make long-term
decisions... [including by] Enhancing accountability and securing full
protection of property rights... Removing restrictions on foreign
investment... Attaining a higher degree of global economic integration
through trade liberalization schemes, both in goods and services [and]
adopting trade policies that are based on internationally-agreed rules
and practices..."
4.1 Supporting vocational training programs to expand job
opportunities for the region's youth, including by: sponsoring
continuing education programs and training for workshops instructors
and master craftsmen. Representative G-8 activities include:
Canada supports the development of centers in the
Palestinian Territories providing a range of technical and vocational
training opportunities for Palestinian women to improve their economic
situation.
The European Union supports the Euro-Med Youth Program,
which has funded more than 600 projects and enabled 14,000 young people
and youth leaders to participate in international youth mobility
activities in the region.
Germany is assisting partners in Algeria, Egypt, Iran,
Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Yemen, and the Palestinian Territories in
developing new job-oriented approaches for apprenticeship training to
enable the region's youth to acquire better qualifications for
wage-based or self-employed activities.
Japan is providing technical assistance for an automobile
maintenance project in Saudi Arabia contributing to building capacity
for 600 workers.
The United States is supporting nine Junior Achievement
student chapters, directing the business internship program for Arab
women, and administering seminars for executives and mid-level managers
in Bahrain, Egypt, Oman, Lebanon, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and
Morocco.
4.2 Supporting development of small and medium-sized enterprises,
including through: assistance programs, targeted loan programs, and
technical assistance to improve the policy and regulatory framework.
Representative G-8 activities include:
Germany is supporting Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco,
Tunisia, Yemen and the Palestinian Territories in enhancing the
competitiveness of small and medium sized enterprises, including
through loan programs, training and the improvement of regulatory
frameworks.
The European Union supports a social fund for development
in Egypt, assisting 25,000 new enterprises creating 95,000 jobs and
helping 2,100 individuals with micro-credits for income generating
activities.
Italy supports financing for Small and Medium Enterprises
in the Palestinian Territories, Egypt, Algeria, Iran, Jordan, Tunisia,
and Pakistan.
4.3 Facilitating remittance flows from communities overseas to
help families and small entrepreneurs, including by: encouraging the
reduction of the cost of remittance transfers, and the creation of
local development funds for productive investments; improving access by
remittance recipients to financial services; and enhancing
coordination. Representative G-8 activities include:
Italy supports remittances transfer facilitation in
Morocco.
4.4 Supporting efforts in the region to create fair, secure, and
well-functioning property rights systems, including by: technical
assistance for policy and regulatory reform and the improvement of
property registries. Representative G-8 activities include:
Italy supports projects for social and economic reform with
the involvement of local authorities in the Palestinian Territories.
4.5 Promoting financial excellence and supporting efforts in the
region to integrate its financial sector into the global financial
system, including by: providing technical assistance to modernize
financial services, and to introduce and expand market-oriented
financial instruments; working with financial authorities to support
good economic governance, including anticorruption and anti-money
laundering efforts. Representative G-8 Activities include:
The United Kingdom is strengthening economic and financial
management in Yemen by helping the Ministry of Finance implement a new
budget formulation, execution, and monitoring system.
The United States, through the Partnership for Financial
Excellence, is training bank supervisors, placing resident advisors,
and supporting private-sector volunteers providing technical assistance
to commercial banks, central banks, and capital markets in Morocco,
Jordan and Egypt; regional activities are open to all cooperating
countries in the region.
4.6 Assisting regional efforts to remove barriers to investment,
increase investment, and stimulate economic reforms, including by:
providing technical assistance to improve investment climates; offering
training for officials on investor rights; facilitating investment
opportunities, including through investment treaties; and supporting
work under the new OECD/UNDP Middle East-North Africa Initiative on
investment. Representative G-8 Activities include:
In the context of the Barcelona process, the European Union
supports the establishment of a Euro-Mediterranean Free Trade Agreement
with a view to fostering regional economic integration, enhanced trade
flows and increased investments towards and within the region.
Canada supports Tunisia and Algeria in their efforts to
advance strategic regulatory reforms and to promote private sector and
investment infrastructure as they develop open economies.
4.7 Supporting the region's efforts to achieve economic
integration, promote intra-regional trade, and expand trade
opportunities in global markets, including by: providing technical
assistance for accession to the WTO; supporting intraregional trade
agreements; sponsoring regional programs on trade facilitation; and
facilitating development of local chambers of commerce. Representative
G-8 Activities include:
France, together with the European Commission, supports the
Euro-Mediterranean Action Plan on Trade and Investment Facilitation
established in March 2002 that aims to modernize customs, promote
foreign investments, assist applicants in the WTO accession process,
and support a regional free trade agreement before 2010.
Germany is supporting partners in Algeria, Lebanon, Jordan,
Morocco, Tunisia, and the Palestinian Territories in implementing free
trade agreements, facilitating WTO accession or supporting local
chambers of commerce.
Japan is assisting the Foreign Trade Training Center in
Egypt, which has been established to provide trade-related capacity
building of business people.
The United States is providing technical assistance to:
reach the goal of a Middle East Free Trade Area by 2013; support the
accession of Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Yemen to the WTO; aid seven
countries in complying with Trade and Investment Framework Agreement;
and enable Jordan, Morocco, and Bahrain to take advantage of their free
trade agreements with the United States.
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