Egypt, S.Arabia step up trade ties through coordination council talks    Egypt reviews progress on $200m World Bank-funded waste management hub    Egypt urges Israel to accept Gaza deal amid intensifying fighting    SCZONE showcases investment opportunities to eight Japanese companies    Egypt, ADIB explore strategic partnership in digital healthcare, investment    SCZONE, Tokyo Metropolitan Government sign MoU on green hydrogen cooperation    Egypt welcomes international efforts for peace in Ukraine    Al-Sisi, Macron reaffirm strategic partnership, coordinate on Gaza crisis    Contact Reports Strong 1H-2025 on Financing, Insurance Gains    Egypt, India's BDR Group in talks to establish biologics, cancer drug facility    AUC graduates first cohort of film industry business certificate    Egyptian pound down vs. US dollar at Monday's close – CBE    Egypt's FM, Palestinian PM visit Rafah crossing to review Gaza aid    Egypt prepares unified stance ahead of COP30 in Brazil    Egypt recovers collection of ancient artefacts from Netherlands    Egypt harvests 315,000 cubic metres of rainwater in Sinai as part of flash flood protection measures    Egypt, Namibia explore closer pharmaceutical cooperation    Fitch Ratings: ASEAN Islamic finance set to surpass $1t by 2026-end    Renowned Egyptian novelist Sonallah Ibrahim dies at 88    Egyptian, Ugandan Presidents open business forum to boost trade    Al-Sisi says any party thinking Egypt will neglect water rights is 'completely mistaken'    Egypt's Sisi warns against unilateral Nile measures, reaffirms Egypt's water security stance    Egypt's Sisi, Uganda's Museveni discuss boosting ties    Egypt, Huawei explore healthcare digital transformation cooperation    Egypt's Sisi, Sudan's Idris discuss strategic ties, stability    Egypt to inaugurate Grand Egyptian Museum on 1 November    Greco-Roman rock-cut tombs unearthed in Egypt's Aswan    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Arab world needs jobs, better governance, investment: WEF

DEAD SEA: The popular uprisings that have swept the Arab world this year have slowed economies across the region, and jobs, better governance and investment are needed, speakers at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Jordan said on Saturday.
Jordanian King Abdullah said at the opening of the forum on unemployment, economic stagnation and other problems — some of which sparked the uprisings across the Middle East and North Africa — that the region needs to create 85 million jobs soon.
"This year's events have opened the way to positive change, but in many places, also created painful economic dislocations. Strategies are urgently needed, and they must take place across the board — in economic life, in politics and policies, in social life and cultural values," he said.
In Yemen, for example, where two in three people survive on less than $2 per day, 40 percent of the population suffer from illiteracy and high unemployment.
"The biggest challenge facing the Arab world…is better governance and investing in education that allows us to compete and raise living standards," said Mohamed Al-Shaya chairman of Kuwaiti Shaya group.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) recently said that the uprisings have cost the most affected countries more than $55 billion, but the resulting high oil prices have strengthened other producing countries.
It said countries that had seen the bloodiest confrontations — Libya and Syria — were bearing the economic brunt, followed by Egypt, Tunisia, Bahrain and Yemen.
"In the short term it is like major surgery and then recuperation, but in the long term it will lead to stability and it will make the region attractive to investors," Ismail Tahboub, CEO of Jordan Dubai capital investment firm, told Reuters.
The unrest has badly damaged tourism and foreign investment in the Middle East, undermining economic growth.
But investors said the region would eventually prosper.
"We are witnessing a period of transition but it is mainly positive," said Danny E.Sebright president of the US-UAE Business Council.
"Anytime you have a reform movement looking for transparency and openness, the outcome will be positive at the end of the day," he told Reuters on the sidelines of the conference.
In Egypt, nine months of turmoil has knocked some 4.2 percent off gross domestic product with public expenditure rising to $5.5 billion as public revenues fell by $75 million.
The impact of unrest is hard to ascertain in Syria, but the IMF report suggested a total cost to the Syrian economy of some $6 billion or 4.5 percent of GDP.
Tunisia has lost some $2.0 billion from its GDP, roughly 5.2 percent, and the government has increased expenditure, pushing its fiscal balance into the red.
"In the long term the Arab spring is good, but in the short and medium term its effect is very negative," said Iman Bibars, head of the Cairo-based Association for the Development and Enhancement of Women, citing record-high unemployment as well as inflation.
"Democracy takes time."


Clic here to read the story from its source.