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06/11/2007 - Ministers from Middle East and North African (MENA) and OECD countries will meet in Cairo on 28-29 November to discuss progress in reforms to encourage investment and improve public governance in the MENA region.
The two-part event marks a new stage in the OECD-MENA Initiative on Governance and Investment for Development. The Initiative consists of two pillars: the Good Governance for Development (GfD) in Arab Countries Initiative and the MENA-OECD Investment Programme.
Launched in 2004 by Ministers from MENA and OECD countries, this Initiative provides a unique platform for north-south and interarab dialogue and co-operation. The Initiative has promoted a common language for understanding investment and governance challenges. It encourages economic growth, employment, good governance, as well as social and human development by investment and governance modernisation.
On 28 November, ministers from MENA and OECD countries will examine at the MENA Investment Ministerial ways to advance the investment climate in the region. Prior to the Investment Ministerial, a Business Forum on 27 November will feature an "enterprise matchmaking" event co-organised with UNIDO. This will also be the occasion for the presentation of the "MENA 500" companies publication, listing for the first time leading groups and companies across the region in a comprehensive survey.
On 29 November, ministers from MENA and OECD countries will analyse progress made with national governance reform agendas and acknowledge the Initiative’s contribution to governance modernisation. Ministers will be invited to adopt the Initiative’s strategic directions and programme of work for 2008-10. In its second phase (2008-10), the GfD Initiative will reinforce dialogue and capacity building activities in the modernization of the public administration and the judiciary in the Arab countries. The OECD will increasingly provide expertise in the implementation of national governance reform agendas.
The business forum and both ministerial meetings are open to journalists.
Details of the programme can be found at www.oecd.org/mena. For further information and to register for the ministerial conferences, journalists are invited to contact OECD's Media Division (tel. +33 1 4524 9700).
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