Middle East WEF opens with call for economic unity

Dead Sea: Israeli warplanes struck in Gaza and rival Palestinian factions continued to clash - a violent counterpoint to the discussions on Arab economic unity underway at the World Economic Forum on the Middle East at the Dead Sea.

More than 1,000 delegates, including 16 heads of state, gathered for the annual conference held this year in Jordan. The event is focusing on the economic benefit of developing cultural and religious diversity in the Arab world.

While most of the early speakers talked of diversifying economic bases and increasing gender representation in the workplace, King Abdullah Ibn Hussain of Jordan instead zeroed in on Palestine during his welcome speech. He did not address the renewed fighting between Fatah and Hamas.

According to King Abdullah, three of every five jobseekers in the Occupied Territories cannot find work, and the Arab-Israeli conflict is wreaking economic havoc on Palestinians from all walks of life.

After telling the gathering that there is a historic opportunity to end the Arab-Israeli conflict this year, King Abdullah went on to warn that the one thing the region lacks, from the Atlas Mountains to the Empty Quarter in Saudi Arabia, is water.

"If we do not commit the necessary investment ... we won't be fighting for peace, we'll be fighting to survive," he said.

The forum will continue through tomorrow, with sideline events tackling everything from corporate governance to alternative energy.

Heavy UAE involvement

His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, is scheduled to speak today on leadership and education in the Arab world, and two of the five co-chairs of the World Economic Forum on the Middle East are from UAE-based companies.

Saeed Al Muntafiq, executive chairman of Tatweer, a member of Dubai Holding, and Khaldoon Al Mubarak, CEO and managing director of Mub-adala Development Company, both spoke highly of the economic diversification process which is already underway in the UAE.

"A significant chunk of [the UAE's gross domestic product] is from the non-oil sector," Al Mubarak said, adding that the education sector, however, still needs significant development.

"Output of educational sectors in the region don't match the requirements of the economic sectors," he said.

Al Muntafiq added that the Middle East and North Africa need to encourage entrepreneurship and create an Arab corporate value system.

"Maybe we need to establish a minimum standard for Arab corporate governance," he told the delegates.