Interview with Nader
Al Sayed,Program Manager of the North South Consultants Exchange (NSCE)
Dr. Nader Al Sayed,
as Program Manager of NSCE, could you please indicate to us some relevant best practices
you were involved in beyond the Euro-Mediterranean partnership, in particular
among subjects from the Southern shore of Mediterranean Sea? Which kind of
collaboration (in terms of governance, transferability, main outputs &
results, etc), has been developed? What have the limits been?
North South
Consultants Exchange (NSCE) has been involved for over twenty years now as a
local developmental consultancy firm in the Middle East and North Africa. NSCE
has already implemented various developmental endeavors in some South
Mediterranean countries such as Egypt, Morocco, Mauritania and Lebanon. Our
thematic focus lies in the fields of microfinance (and Islamic microfinance),
water and wastewater management, governance and capacity building to local
ministries and authorities, eco-tourism and socio-economic research.
The most prominent
best practice NSCE has contributed to achieve and transfer is the design of Islamic
microfinance products and services in Senegal. Funded by the Islamic
Development Bank (IDB), the still ongoing project has succeeded in identifying
new segments of microfinance beneficiaries interested in alternative and non-traditional
types of microcredit.
Between the burden of
the past and the ideas for the future
How do you think that
the burden of the past, in particular the colonial condition, has influenced the
relations between Europe and Mediterranean?
While the colonial
burden influenced the relationship between colonial European powers (most notably
France and Great Britain) and freshly independent South Mediterranean nations
in the 1960s and 1970s right into the 1980s, the relationship between South
Mediterranean countries and the EU is relatively stable now (of course a
generalization is not perfectly correct here, there are differences between
these countries in their relationship to the EU and individual European countries).
However, “neocolonial resentments” emerge from time to time as a reaction to
certain European policies, e.g. when it comes to restricting immigration to
Europe or with regard to subsidizing European agricultural products, thus
limiting the access for agricultural products from the South to be exported to
Europe. Such practices contribute to drawing a picture that colonialism is returning
through the back door.
The aforementioned
negative images of Europe can be gradually removed only with more transparency and
by following a political path that acknowledges South Mediterranean countries
as equal partners, and not merely as beneficiaries of development aid that –in
many cases- fosters autocratic structures.
Nowadays, when dealing
with geopolitical relations, the reciprocal impression between partners is
important. How do the Southern Mediterranean countries see their European neighbors
and EU, and how does the latter view the former?
Despite the
"neocolonial resentments" that might arise from time to time on the
South Mediterranean side vis-a-vis European politics, an overall positive
impression dominates the perception of Europe in the South Mediterranean
countries. Europe is generally admired for its democratic political systems,
for its fair elections and for sticking to a relatively high standard of human
and citizen rights. Although the economies of almost all European countries
(especially countries like Greece, Spain, Italy or Ireland) have severely
suffered from the negative consequences of the most recent financial crisis,
the EU is still perceived by the populations in Southern Mediterranean countries
as a heaven for employment and a good quality of life. Furthermore, the EU is
valued for its technological advance in the various fields of science.
On the other side,
South Mediterranean countries are viewed by the EU as a natural extension of an
integration process that started more than forty years ago with a handful of
European countries and that has reached 27 countries so far (with Bulgaria and
Romania being the newest members in the European club). Although an expansion
of the EU to the South and South-East cannot be expected in the coming few
years, it does play a role in the strategic considerations of European politicians
(the debate on Turkey's access to the EU stands as a good example). Of course
economic aspects play a vital role in this respect: a tax-free zone including
the EU and its South Mediterranean neighbors would have benefits for both
sides. The EU would have greater access to export their native products to
large emerging markets in Egypt, Morocco, Turkey etc. and South Mediterranean
countries would also benefit from greater access to promote and export their own
products.
Common values for a renewed
partnership
Considering the
importance of cultural dialogue, from which common values could a partnership between North and
South countries be built on?
Although involved in
many brutal conflicts that lasted for many years, the East and the West share a
common and rich history of cultural and humanistic achievements. The
"West" has profited from characters like Averroes, Avicenna or Ibn
Kaldun while ancient and modern European philosophy and science has for sure
influenced the Middle East up until now. It is exactly this joint humanistic heritage
that should be the fundament for cultural exchange based on shared human
values: freedom, equality, fairness and the belief that both Europe and its
non-European Southern neighbors have much more similarities than differences.
The belief in a common vision and future where both regions are treated as
equal partners will do the rest in bridging separating differences.
The role of migration
In the framework
traced by the latter two questions, could migration have a role? And, how could
the EU policy of “selective immigration” and the problem of “brain drain” that
Southern countries have to face with be compatible ?
I do believe that it
is legitimate for the European countries to select the “types” of immigrants
they need in their local markets. Most recent trend analysis have shown that
there is an increasing demand in Europe for highly skilled and educated workers
and technicians: physicians, engineers, graduates from natural science
faculties and others. At the same time, no one can deny that the influx of
highly educated and experienced immigrants to Europe corresponds with a decline
of qualified and well-established personnel in Southern Mediterranean countries.
Some kind of “scientific compensation” has to be negotiated between the EU and
its Southern neighbors, e.g. in form of more intensive scientific exchange
between the EU and other Mediterranean countries, through the provision of
capacity building programs to local universities and research centers or by
increasing the amount of scholarships provided to extraordinary students and
researchers from non-EU Mediterranean countries.
What does the
Mediterranean Area represent for the external borders of Southern Countries (for
example African countries, the others Arab countries, and so on)?
The Mediterranean
Area is, maybe, the most important trade region for almost all South
Mediterranean countries ranging from Morocco in the West to Croatia in the South-East
of Europe. Furthermore and referring to some Arab countries like Lebanon or
Iraq, the Mediterranean Area stands for peace, stability and normality.
Although many EU
countries do not have ethnically and socially uniform societies, they succeeded
in establishing strong political systems that integrate all ethnic groups and
social strata under the umbrella of democracy. This experience is still missing
to a large extent in countries like Iraq and Lebanon. For them, the EU
represents the hope for a better political (and thus better social and
economic) reality.
The Barcelona process
It’s a shared opinion
that the results of the Barcelona process haven’t been satisfactory. Do you
agree? If not, could you tell me why? On the contrary, if so, could you tell me
please what the limits have been?
According to the
Barcelona Declaration, the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership should achieve the following
objectives:
• The definition of a
common area of peace and stability through the reinforcement of political and
security dialogue.
• The construction of
a zone of shared prosperity through an economic and financial partnership and
gradual establishment of a free trade area by 2010.
• The rapprochement
between people through a social, cultural and human partnership aimed at encouraging
understanding between cultures and exchanges between civil societies.
In all aspects there
is still room for improvement in terms of political, economic and
socio-cultural integration. In terms of economic integration, the free trade
agreement has to get its final shape, subsidies have to be removed on both
sides gradually, and local agricultural producers from the South have to be
trained and supported to export their products to the EU. On a cultural level,
it would be great to see much more initiatives like the Anna Lindh Foundation
bringing together young people from both sides to exchange their experiences
and hopes.
The path to a successful
integration of the Mediterranean area
Considering the three
pillars of Euro-Mediterranean partnership: political, economic and socio-cultural;
if you had to decide where to start, what would you concentrate on first? Why?
The reconciliation of Europe, a continent that
witnessed an extensive number of brutalities and rivalries, especially between
Germany and France, started as a European Economic Community in 1957 after the
Treaties of Rome were signed (before that the European Steal and Coal Community
was established). The process of economic integration went hand in hand with
the sociocultural interpenetration. The European Political Cooperation was
introduced in 1970 after the economic and socio-cultural integration had
started, and until now, political integration has not been completely
finalized. In the supranational system of the European Union, there are still
many policy fields that are regulated by national governments themselves and
not by the EU Commission or Parliament, such as Foreign and Security Policy.
Thus, the integration of the Mediterranean Area should follow the same
successful and gradual path: economic integration in parallel with
socio-cultural integration, followed by political integration.Article from Plural Magazine #1
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Francesco Barilli and
Alessandra Trimarchi
