MENA Investment Ministerial Meeting 2006

Investment for development: making reforms work 

Dead Sea, Jordan, 13-14 February 2006

With economic development and job creation in many countries of the Middle East and North Africa likely to hinge on increased domestic, regional and foreign investment, ministers from MENA countries in charge of investment policy reform met with their OECD counterparts in Jordan on 13-14 February to discuss ways to create a more attractive environment for private enterprise.

The two-day MENA Investment Ministerial Meeting reviewed recent policy reforms in the region and set new targets for further action. Ministers were invited to adopt a Declaration on common principles and good practice for attracting investment to MENA countries.

One highlight was a Business Forum in which the private sector were given an opportunity to express their views on key elements for a successful region-wide reform strategy. This was also an occasion for the announcement of a number of “investor of the year” awards honouring successful investment projects in MENA countries.

The meeting followed more than a year of discussion and analysis of specific issues in MENA countries, as part of the MENA-OECD Investment Programme. The Programme is part of a two-pronged initiative on “Governance and Investment for Development”, led by the governments of the MENA region and also including the "Good Governance for Development” initiative.

Meeting documentation

• Attracting Investment to MENA countries - Common Principles and Good Practice, Ministerial Declaration and Business Statement [ عربي / English / Français ]
• Opening Statement by H .E Mr. Sharif Ali Zu’bi, Minister of Industry & Trade
  Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan; Chair of the MENA -OECD Investment Programme
• Opening Statement by The Hon. Donald J. Johnston, Secretary-General of the OECD - 13Feb
• Opening Address by The Hon. Donald J. Johnston, Secretary-General of the OECD - 14Feb
• Speech by Dr. Kiyohiko Toyama, Vice-Minister (Parliamentary) for Foreign Affairs of Japan
• Business Statement
  - Statement [عربي  /  English / Français ] 
  - Annex [ عربي / English / Français ] 
• List of Companies selected for the Awards
• Concluding Statement

    Background documents

• Preface
• I. Investment Climate and Regulation of International Investment in MENA Countries
• II. Inventory of International Investment Agreements concluded by MENA Countries
• III. Business Ethics and Anti-Bribery Policies in Selected Middle East and North AfricanCountries
• IV. Investment Programme Assessment of Challenges Faced by MENA Investment PromotionAgencies and Development of Investment Promotion Guidelines for the MENA Region
• V. Incentives and Free Zones in the MENA Region: a Preliminary Stocktaking
• VI. Proposals on Policy Considerations in the Use of Investment Incentives in the MENA Region
• VII. Recommendations on Frameworks to Support Development of National Tax Policy Reform Agendas
• VIII. Diversifying MENA Economies to Improve Performance
• IX. Challenges for Reform of Financial Markets in MENA Countries
• X. Promoting Women’s Entrepreneurship in the MENA Region: Background Report and Policy Recommendations
• XI. Entrepreneurial Finance for Job Creation in the Arab World: Elements for Strategy
• XII. Corporate Governance Agenda
• XIII. Fostering an entrepreneurial business environment for firm creation and SME growth in the MENA region

See also:

• OECD news release of 14 February 2006 [ English / Français / Arabic ]
• OECD news release of 11 January 2006 [ English / Français ]
• Articles published in the media