Arab Business Leaders Discuss Reform

The Arab Business Council (ABC), which was established in 2003 under the aegis of the Geneva- and Davos-based World Economic Forum (WEF), held its annual meeting in Bahrain where about 180 senior business, government, media and academic leaders took part.This year's gathering focussed on three-related issues:

the mindset and education of young Arabs, who make up a majority of the population; the route to transforming paternalistic Arab political orders into more democratic and accountable governance systems; and the crucial role of religion, whether the roles of religious leaders and political mass movements, or the actions of small groups of terrorists who have used the language and symbols of Islam.

In their final communiqué which

reflected the gathering's concern about extremist and some violent trends among Arab youth, the ABC called on Arab governments to make the fate of the 180 million young people in the region their top priority.

ABC members called on the business community to work with educational authorities to improve curricula, develop better vocational and technical training, encourage entrepreneurship, and help young Arabs shape their identity and values.

( Via The Daily Star)