In an exclusive interview Nader Fergany, lead author of the Arab Human Development Report, speaks about the internal and external challenges facing the Arab region The UNDP issues an annual Human Development Report (HDR) which indexes all the countries of the world. How would you explain this sudden interest in devoting an entire report to the Arab region? Is this interest relevant to the 11 September attacks on the US? The report has absolutely nothing to do with the 11 September attacks on the US. Work on the report started a year and a half ago. Actually, on 11 September it was already in its third draft. There has been a long standing interest in the Arab region and the UNDP is one of the very few international organisations that have a separate bureau for Arab states. What initiated the report, in my opinion, was the assignment of an energetic lady as the director of the Regional Bureau for Arab States. It was she who started asking the same questions that Arab thinkers have long posed: Why is the Arab region lagging behind in terms of development? This report will be the first of a series on Arab human development, attempting to find solutions to the region's problems. The report has been widely praised for adopting an unprecedented, liberal, sometimes even harshly honest, approach. What, in your opinion, differentiates this report from previous studies on the region? I wouldn't describe the report as "harshly honest", rather, it is honest enough to initiate a serious debate on issues of development in the Arab region. The report is novel in concept, authorship and regional focus -- not to mention, of course, its candour. It provides us with a broader picture of development issues, written essentially by Arabs for Arabs, which is a major change. The report is also the first to tackle human development issues from a multi-dimensional perspective emphasising issues of freedom and institutional governance. It distinguishes itself from other global human development reports that have restricted the concept of human development to issues of human resources. The report took Arab scholars 18 months to produce, tackling areas of great sensitivity to policy- makers. What were the main challenges facing researchers in this difficult task? The main challenge was the lack of data on various aspects of human development, especially issues pertaining to the acquisition of knowledge and good governance. It was a difficult task, of course, and we were aware of the fact that this report could be misused. The second major difficulty was for the research team to maintain the delicate balance between being objective and candid on the one hand, and not being antagonistic to Arab regimes on the other. The comprehensiveness of the report also constituted a further challenge to researchers. Were official institutions cooperative in providing data? In some countries, officials were highly uncooperative. Other countries were more helpful, but were constrained by the lack of available data. Sensitivity on the part of Arab governments was especially highlighted in the small survey we conducted on Arab youths and their perceptions of human development issues. It was impossible to conduct the poll in some countries while it proved extremely difficult in others. Some observers think that the report was launched at a critical time, with the Arab region already under US scrutiny. They allege that its launch at this time has provided material for some biased foreign media coverage. Was this issue of timing a matter of concern for your team? The timing of the launch was unrelated to current events. The report was supposed to have been launched earlier, but was postponed because of the aforementioned difficulties. Our overriding consideration in the report was that it be used as an instrument for promoting human development in the region. It is only natural that some people would read the report through their own biases. However, it is extremely important to realise that whatever the US or Israel try to do, we, as Arabs, have the right to assess our own situation and initiate processes of reform from within. You should not stop your efforts for internal reform just because others will misuse what you do. On the contrary, I think that when the region is under scrutiny from abroad, which is unacceptable by definition, it becomes even more important that the region shows that it stands on its own -- that it has an internal dynamic for change and reform. The report has been interpreted by some foreign newspapers as clear evidence that it is deficits within Arab society, not the Arab-Israeli conflict, that constrain human development in the region. How do you see this? I believe that the Arab-Israeli conflict is a major impediment to development in the region. Occupation destroys human capabilities and welfare, not only in the occupied territories, but throughout the entire region. Moreover, I think that the US response to the 11 September attacks have been detrimental to human development in the Arab region, as well as inside the US itself. This is why the report's main message regarding the expansion of freedom should be directed at the US administration as well as Arab regimes. The fact that Iraq is a candidate for the same scenario that took place in Afghanistan is a major threat to human development, not only in Iraq, but in the region as a whole. The extent of destruction and suffering that the US sanctions have inflicted on Iraqi people, particularly children, have resulted in grave losses in human development. The major thrust of the report, however, is that reform initiated from within is the only guarantee for sustainability. We have every right to be sceptical of a reform initiated by a US government that has consistently adopted a biased stance in the Arab-Israeli conflict. Why, then, didn't the report focus more on the Arab- Israeli conflict as a major impediment to development (The report includes only five paragraphs on the issue in its foreword)? Frankly, the report team didn't have absolute freedom in producing this report. There was always a process of negotiation between the report team and the UNDP. Certain issues were considered to be very sensitive since the report carries the emblem of the UN. But that was not the only consideration. The mere fact that the report refers to the Israeli occupation as a major obstacle to human development, and includes a strong quote by Hanan Ashrawi on the topic, was considered sufficient to make the point. Again, we definitely do not want to appear to be blaming our developmental problems entirely on an external factor. We firmly believe that building Arab capacities is the right answer to the Arab-Israeli conflict. The foreign media has tended to forge direct links between the overall frustrating Arab environment profiled in the report and the rise of 'terrorism'. Do you find the two are inter-related? Injustice that cannot be addressed through peaceful and effective political mechanisms is an invitation to violence. This applies equally to the repressive political regimes in the region, the Israeli occupation and the injustices inflicted on Arabs by an unconditionally biased US administration. The report has received considerable attention in the Western media. How does this compare with the attention it received in the Egyptian and other Arab media? I must complain that the report's coverage in the Egyptian local media was very disappointing, despite the fact that the report was officially launched in the Cairo headquarters of the Arab League. Choosing Egypt for the launch was no coincidence. We hoped that the report would draw more attention when released in the region's largest country. But the lukewarm attitude of the Egyptian media has unfortunately left the door open for one of two interpretations: either that the press is not free, or that the report is not interesting enough. The latter explanation, however, is very unlikely in light of the report's extensive coverage in the foreign media. How far do you think the report applies to Egypt? The three deficits mentioned in the report are applicable to Egypt. Egypt represents about one quarter of the overall Arab population, so any trends that apply to the Arab region as a whole are likely to apply to Egypt simply by sheer force of numbers. But, in my opinion, these deficits are especially prominent in Egypt. The long standing emergency laws are a case in point. Other problems include the restrictions placed upon civil society, NGOs, labour unions and political parties and the restraints exercised on freedom of expression in the form of press laws. Women in Egypt suffer from deprivation in terms of human capabilities, most notably in the area of basic education. Women also suffer a high level of deprivation in the area of effective utilisation of their human capabilities in economic and political activities. But income poverty still affects 20 per cent of the Egyptian population. Many people still suffer from a severe lack of basics like potable water, sewerage networks and educational and health services. How can freedom be regarded as a solution to these problems? Freedom in itself is an objective and people who are not free to express their grievances and find a way out through good governance will remain marginalised forever. Freedom gives poor and marginalised people the opportunity to improve their conditions. Why does the report lay so much emphasis on Internet and Computer Technology (ICT) at a time when it admits that 10 million children are still out of school. Does this emphasis not distract the focus from basic educational priorities? You have to combat illiteracy, but you cannot afford to fall behind in terms of access to ICT if you want to compete in a rapidly globalising world. Additionally, ICT can be instrumental in forming more effective programmes to combat illiteracy. Who are the poor, in your viewpoint? Poverty is a question of capability. A person is poor when he has no access to education, health care or is deprived from effectively utilising his or her capabilities in social, economic and political activities. Income poverty is, in fact, a result of capability poverty: if a person is illiterate and unemployed, his or her income will be low. A person who is not free is poor. A woman who is not empowered is poor. And a person who has no access to knowledge is poor. The report is supposed to mark the start of a series of country-specific studies aimed at helping governments formulate better human development policies. How far do you think Arab policy-makers will be receptive to the idea? If policy-makers are really concerned about the interests of their countries, then they should take the message of this report very seriously. They will need to participate effectively in the process of debate and social innovation which is aimed at building human development within their countries.
