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<\/a><\/p>\nAt their annual conference, members of the Euro-Mediterranean Forum of Economic Institutes (FEMISE) raised the future of Mediterranean economies, which are being wooed by Europe and the world\u2019s major powers.<\/p>\n
Can Mediterranean countries avoid the cost of major structural change, plus a veritable industrial policy? This was the question put to members of FEMISE, during the FEMISE annual conference held\u00a0in Rome on 24-25 November 2010. For\u00a0Mustapha Nabli<\/strong>, vice-president of the World Bank and responsible for economic development, one need only observe the most recent examples of development of emerging countries to conclude that they can. From Malaysia to Korea, not to mention China, Asian development has been based on sound economic decisions. \u201cThe type of partnership proposed by Europe has not produced significant effects in Mediterranean countries\u201d, retorts Mustapha Nabli. \u201cStates should not focus their efforts on growth; rather, there should be investment in industry and support given to the efforts of the private sector to compensate for failures in new markets and help businesses work better\u201d. Thus, Mustapha Nabli is convinced that MENA countries should continue with their efforts, drawing on successful examples.<\/p>\n By way of illustration, the president of the Science and Technology Policy Institute (STPI),Suk Joon Kim<\/strong>, highlighted the strategy that enabled South Korea to achieve its current level of development. \u201cKorean GDP has seen uninterrupted growth since the 1960s\u201d, says Suk Joon Kim. \u201cMy country pays very close attention to international trade, and it was in this area that it found its first keys to its development. Over time, we have moved from heavy industry into high-tech\u201d, he explains. \u201cSince then, we have been committed to green growth with ambitious short-term objectives\u201d.<\/p>\n While it has been able to balance its economy, Turkey must still resolve some major problems: \u201cOur GDP per capita has hardly changed since the 1980s\u201d, laments\u00a0Esen Caglar<\/strong>from the Economic Policy Research Foundation of Turkey (TEPAV). \u201cMoreover, our SME are not developing in a satisfactory manner. Unemployment remains very high, while at the same time brain drain is depriving us of essential skills\u201d.<\/p>\n What tools, then, could be used to develop the economies of the Mediterranean? Simon Neaime<\/strong> of the American University of Beirut suggests action on the monetary policy front, a course of action that enabled Egypt to weather the crisis. Jean-Louis Reiffers, for his part, recalls that governments always play a role in great economic success stories. \u201cIt is no longer a question of choosing between openness and industrial policy, says the president of the FEMISE scientific committee. \u201cThe future lies in the development of public-private partnerships (PPP). At the same time, solutions must be studied in terms of financial policies and labour productivity\u201d.<\/p>\n Representing the European Commission,\u00a0Pierre Deusy<\/strong> praises the development model proposed by Europe for countries in the South: \u201cThe model goes beyond economic measures to put in place a global model for society\u201d, he says. \u201cThis societal convergence, which is restrictive for countries in the South, is the basis of our partnership\u201d.<\/p>\n Mustapha K. Nabli:\u00a0New Thinking on Structural Transformation, Diversification and Industrial Policy, and the Euro- Med Partnership<\/a><\/p>\n Suk Joon KIM:\u00a0Korean Industrial Policy and the Role of Science and Technology<\/a> (PPT File)<\/p>\n Esen Caglar:\u00a0Structural transformation in Turkey: With or without industrial policy?<\/a><\/p>\n Simon Neaime:\u00a0Implications of the Global Financial Crisis on MPCs<\/a><\/p>\n Mohamed Chafiki:\u00a0Un Maroc en devenir: des transformations et une\u00a0ambition arrim\u00e9e aux changements du monde<\/a><\/p>\n Khalid Sekkat: Industrial Policy:\u00a0The Experience of Developed Countries<\/a> (PPT File)<\/p>\n Michael Gasiorek:\u00a0Crisis and Recovery Measures: Trade and the Med countries<\/a><\/p>\nAvailable Presentation to download:<\/h5>\n