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Recent Presentations
Millennium Development Goals
Deficits that Affect the Arab world
Summary Egypt's
Future
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Deficits That Afflict the Arab World
Presented by Lowell Lewis on February 3,
2006 to the European League
Three deficits afflict the Arab world—freedom, women’s
rights and knowledge.
My lecture will cover the quality of education and
technological development in Arabic countries including Egypt’s relative
position. Lowell Lewis
The Arab Human Development Reports (AHDR) of 2002 and 2003
report that the great weaknesses of the Arab world are the lack of freedom, the
lack of knowledge and the lack of women’s empowerment. These reports were
written by Arabs about Arabs. Numerous reports by other organizations support
the views of the ADHR.
The Arab world has a long intellectual and educational
tradition. It has a tradition of expending human energy and resources on the
search for knowledge in all its forms. That is why, one thousand years ago, the
most developed part of the world was the Arab world. Teachers received good
salaries and scholarships were available to students. Funds came from both
government and private sources. There were no restrictions on women attending
classes and women also taught classes that included men. At that time Arab women
contributed strongly to the economic, political and social life of the empire
and excelled in medicine, poetry, oratory and other subjects.
Ancient Arab inventions
How ironic it is that at the beginning of the 21st century,
Arabs themselves now identify knowledge deficit as one of their major
weaknesses.
Countries we are discussing
Today most of the world including the Arab world recognizes
it is the knowledge gap rather than the income gap that determines the prospects
of a country in today’s world economy. However acquiring knowledge is not
enough. The economic advancement of a country today is due more to the capacity
to produce knowledge than the knowledge itself.
That means the simple memorization of facts and equations
is not enough. Education today must prepare students to be creative and to be
prepared to live and to continue to advance in the world they live in. Rote
memory of facts will not achieve this need.
SITUATION
Unfortunately, today, the common style of child rearing in
the Arab family is the authoritarian and over-protective. Hence children become
accustomed to suppressing their inquisitive and exploratory tendencies. Systems
of education based on rote memory do not help as much as systems that teach
creative thinking.
Freedom of expression and freedom of association are very
limited; more than half the Arab women are illiterate with the result that much
that goes on in contemporary life passes them by. The effect is seen in all
parts of society where women’s political and economic participation remains the
lowest in the world.
To achieve the desired social and educational goal all
components of the world must be involved; parents, local authorities (such as
municipalities) civil society, private sector, and government as a whole and not
just the ministries of education.
Efforts are being made to improve the educational system.
Most countries are making major efforts to break away from the rote memory and
authoritarian educational systems. Higher rates of enrollment are being
achieved, but unfortunately the efforts are still more numerical than
methodical. Despite the higher rate of enrollments and the growing number of
graduates, the educational system has not improved the quality and performance
of its graduates. Too often, the education system failed to match the skills
of its graduates to job market requirements.
In terms of overall economic growth and increasing per
capita income, the payoffs from education in the region have been disappointing.
Wages have also declined.
As a result, education has become a less attractive
investment option for parents and young people at a time when the region’s
economies require more and better skills.
The Arab language itself faces severe challenges. There is
a real crisis in vocabulary, usage, documentation and creativity. In addition
there is the new challenge of the computerization of the language. This problem
is made more difficult by the strong belief that students must be educated in
their own language. For scientific and economic concepts to be meaningful in
their own environment, students must learn in their own language.
Language is one of the cornerstones of human development
with emphasis on the use of Arabic plus learning foreign languages as well.
Unfortunately, facility with the English language is decreasing in the Arab
world.
There are successes. One of the most interesting
educational efforts is taking place in medicine. There are 3 med schools in the
Arab world playing a pioneering role in using a modern system of education. In
these 3 the student’s role is to analyze, research and derive information and
solutions and the teachers role is to motivate the student by posing question
and general concepts. They are in Bahrain, Egypt, and Sudan.
RESULTS
The result of the inadequate educational system is seen in
--the problems of unemployment,
--in the low level of creative research and technological
development, --in the weak economy, and
--in the lack of engagement with the modern world.
There is poverty and its corollary of unemployment. About
one in five Arabs live on less than two dollars a day and their economic annual
growth of 0.5% is dismal. Unless growth can be accelerated, the current figure
of 12 million unemployed could rise to 25 million by 2010;
A symbol of this lack of engagement with the modern world
is the fact that only 1.2% of the population uses a PC and 0.6% of the
population uses the Internet. Telephone line access in the countries is barely
one-fifth that of the developed world
EFFECT ON TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT
The lack of creativity is seen
in research output. Arab countries produced 26 research papers per
million people. This is comparable with other advanced developing countries,
but the average for developed countries is about 1200 papers per million people.
Arabic research activity continues to be far from innovative. Most of it is
applied research and only a small portion is related to basic research. Research
in advanced fields, such as information technology and molecular biology, is
almost non-existent. Most of what is produced in the Arab world is not
competitive with what international markets offer.
Stimulating research and development requires the political will to indigenize
science and establish the necessary infrastructure. This calls for greater R&D
outlays than the fractional sums Arab countries currently invest, which do not
exceed 0.2% of GNP.
The ratios spent by developed countries vary from 2.5% to 5%. Furthermore, 89%
of expenditure on R&D in Arab countries comes from governmental sources, while
productive and service sectors spend only 3%, as against more than 50% in
developed countries.
Disregard for intellectual property protection makes a poor situation worse.
Industrialized countries insist that knowledge be converted from a public good
to a private commodity through the instrument of intellectual property rights
which are now owned by the industrialized West. This now happens even in the
cases where the knowledge originated in a developing country, but was acquired
by institutions in the industrialized world. This is especially true in
medicine and pharmacology. Even medical doctors trained in the Arab world are
often lost to the western countries. In 1998 and 1999, 15,000 Arab doctors
migrated to the western countries.
THE LACK OF CREATIVE RESEARCH AND INVESTMENT
There are virtually no Arab innovations on the market, a fact that confirms that
Arab scientific research has not yet reached the innovation stage or that the
accomplishments of Arab R&D institutions remain incomplete, because they
do not reach the stage of investment.
No knowledge economy can take
off without substantial, targeted and risk tolerant investment. Until Arab
countries develop and connect the elements of their innovation systems,
technology transfer through investment will remain capped by certain
technological limits.
Without their own research and development system and their
own innovative business development , the Arab world remains dependent on the
outside world for its new technologies.
The common experience is that multinational companies
reserve the knowledge and skills intensive components of the production process
for themselves.
The Arab world which is obliged to purchase new production
capabilities whenever the technologies it owns become obsolete is currently, and
expensively, stuck at the wrong end of the technology ladder.
FUTURE HOPES FROM THE ARAB WORLD
.
Their hopes for the future are based on five goals that the ADHR calls the Five
Pillars of Society.
1. UNLEASHING AND GUARANTEEING THE KEY FREEDOMS OF OPINION, SPEECH AND ASSEMBLY
THROUGH GOOD GOVERNANCE
2. DISSEMINATING HIGH QUALITY EDUCATION TARGETED ON EDUCATIONAL OUTCOMES AND
LIFE-LONG LEARNING
3. INDIGENIZING SCIENCE, UNIVERSALIZING RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (R&D) IN
SOCIETAL ACTIVITIES AND KEEPING UP WITH THE INFORMATION AGE
4. SHIFTING RAPIDLY TOWARDS KNOWLEDGE-BASED PRODUCTION
5. ESTABLISHING AN AUTHENTIC, BROADMINDED AND ENLIGHTENED ARAB GENERAL KNOWLEDGE
MODEL
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EGYPT
AN EXAMPLE OF A MAJOR ARAB COUNTRY
Egypt
has the largest population of any Arab country and it has the second highest GDP
after Saudi Arabia.
It
ranks 2d in patents issued in the US among Arab countries,
8th in enrollment in scientific programs,
first in the number of scientific research centers outside of the university,
3d in the environment for investment, and
3d in euro-Arab cooperation projects.
When we think of
Egypt we think of the Nile river, the cities of Cairo and ancient Alexandria,
the pyramids and the pharaohs, deserts, cotton and its people. They are an
amazing people who have maintained a sense of humor to help cope with a hard
life.
The jokes and funny stories provide light entertainment to all classes of
people. The best jokes are the simplest and the spontaneous.
One such joke told by journalists (some say it is an actual story) is the
obituary which came in very late one night to be published the following
morning. The editor was tired and in a hurry to get home, so he wrote a note on
it saying "only if there is a space for it". There was.
The following morning the obituary was published that Mr. xx died recently..
may God let him into paradise.. “only if there is a space for him!!"
Doctors have similar stories about patients who speak on behalf of their
wives and take the pill regularly, then come back complaining that their wives
are pregnant again!
The simple jokes, however, are more common and widely used.
There are those about the village idiot:
A tourist asks
- Can you tell the quickest way to town please?
- Are you walking or driving?
- Driving.
- That IS the quickest way!
THREE THINGS ARE
FUNDAMENTAL TO SURVIVAL IN EGYPT: WATER -- The Nile,
WATER -- the Suez Canal
WATER – the Mediterranean Sea
WATER -- the Red Sea
Egyptians live mainly on a thin sliver of arable land
around the Nile River, which covers just four percent of the country's overall
territory. The rest of the country is desert.
The main difference between the land producing
lush green foliage and the infertile desert land behind it is that the green
land is irrigated. Egypt is categorized by world bank as LIVING
under water stress.
In
ancient times Egypt produced so much wheat that it was called the "Breadbasket
of the Ancient World." For centuries the Nile River would flood every year and
deposit a nice layer of top soil on all the farm land running alongside its
banks.
But in 1968
the Egyptian government with the help of the Soviet Union finished building the
Aswan Dam, thereby stopping the annual flooding. While the dam has had many
positive effects on Egypt, one negative result is that it has meant that more
and more farmers don't have this nice layer of top soil.
The
security of Egypt's water supply has become a growing concern following
statements by
a number of riparian states that they want to revise the 1929 Nile Basin Treaty.
This treaty was signed by Britain on behalf of its then colonies and gives Egypt
a veto over the use of Nile water. Moreover, the 1959 treaty between Egypt and
Sudan failed to include any of the remaining eight Nile basin countries. Egypt,
which relies on the Nile for more than 95% of its water, has always maintained
that both treaties are untouchable. However, the other Nile states are
increasingly questioning why they should abide by a colonial-era agreement that
hampers their development.
In
March Tanzania began building a 170-km water pipeline to supply dry inland towns
from Lake Victoria, a project that contravenes the 1929 treaty. Now Ugandan and
Kenya have said that they will not accept any restrictions on use of Nile water.
In response, the Egyptian government has stressed its willingness to extend
technical and financial aid to the Nile basin countries, but has so far refused
to back down.
Politics
Mr Mubarak’s announcement of freerer elections this past
year turned out to be as fraudulent as before, but it has energized and inspired
opponents of the regime, and has prompted greater assertiveness among usually
conservative lobbies.
The outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, the only opposition
movement with substantial popular support, took an increasingly assertive
stance, mobilized its supporters in public protests for the first time in three
decades. It won 88 seats out of the total 444.
The cabinet of the prime minister, Ahmed Nazif, which took
office in mid-2004, inherited an array of difficult economic challenges. Key
measures have included lowering customs duties and simplifying customs
procedures—a long-standing demand of investors, both foreign and domestic—as
well as sharp reductions in income taxes.
The customs
and taxation
reform measures
aim to
stimulate the
economy by
raising disposable
income and
reducing barriers
to investment
and production.
The government
is calculating
that the
short-term cost
in terms
of lower
revenue will
be more
than recouped
by a
widening of
the tax
net—as the
incentive to
evade is
reduced—and by
a more
rapid pick-up
in economic
activity, which
will both
raise the
tax income and
reduce pressure
on government
spending.
Nothing has been a bigger problem for Egypt’s financial balance than food
subsidies. In fact the cost of food throughout most developing countries is a
serious economic problem. The government cannot afford to subsidize food, but
if they do not the people cannot afford food at legitimate market prices.
Nothing will cause the fall of a government than food price increases. The
government of the King of Jordan almost fell in the 90’s when the price of bread
increased slightly. Every time the Egyptian government has tried to put food on
a world market price and raise wages to compensate, some economic issue has
slowed wage return and the subsidies had to be brought back.
The
new government is no different. Spending
on
subsidies
including
foodstuffs
and
transport
will
rise
sharply,
to
E£15.6bn,
up
from
E£8bn
in
last
year's
original
budget—the
subsidies
budget
was
raised
to
E£9.6bn
later
in
the
2004
fiscal
year
as
the
government
faced
rises
in
international
commodity
prices
and,
more
significantly,
sought
to
counter
rises
in
the
prices
of
basic
commodities
that
resulted
from
the
"float"
of
the
Egyptian
pound
in
January.
ECONOMIC ISSUES
Egypt's tourism industry, a key sector in terms of
employment and foreign-currency earnings. It has continued to perform strongly.
Arrivals totaled 1.8m in the first quarter of calendar 2004, 52% above the 1.2m
who visited Egypt in the same quarter last year.
Egypt
signed the Agadir Agreement on February 25th, a free-trade accord with Morocco,
Tunisia and Jordan. All four countries have Association Agreements with the EU.
The aim is to establish a free-trade area of more than 100m people, which will
enhance the countries' productive capacity and ability to export to the EU and
strengthen their bargaining power vis-à-vis the EU. The agreement, has been
strongly supported by the EU as a step towards the joint objective of a
Euro-Mediterranean free-trade area by 2010. It is open to all Arab Mediterranean
countries. Lebanon and possibly Algeria are expected to join shortly.
In
2004, EU and Egypt signed an accord regarding political, security, economic,
social and cultural ties. Far reaching trade liberalisation is the most
important part. The EU is already Egypt’s biggest trade partner. Egypt gets
duty free access to EU markets for their industrial goods; increases for
agricultural exports, and Egypt will phase out customs duties on EU products.
Education
In
the area of education, you can see that Egypt faces the same problems and the
same concerns of other Arab countries. An educator has said recently, Civilised
nations must have a culture associated with their history of scientific thought…
Our scientific life in Egypt needs to catch up with our past in order to acquire
the necessary strength, life and controls. We in Egypt transfer the knowledge
of others then leave it floating without any relationship to our past or any
communication with our land. It is a foreign commodity that is strange in its
looks, strange in its words and strange in its concep
Population growth rate almost 2%. Reducing the growth rate
is a major challenge for the government. More than half of the population is
under 24 years old which puts great pressure on the labor market and educational
facitlities.
In 1960 there were 2.7 m primary school students but by
2002 there were 7.2. High demands on the under funded education system. Women
left out and university degrees rose from 4.3 % in 86 to 7.3% in the late 90’s
Emphasis on rote learning, teachers poorly trained
and poorly paid so not producing students with the needed skills. In 15-24 age
group 79% of men are literate and 67% of women.
However, one clear lesson that has emerged is that structural reform as such
does not alter student achievement unless it is accompanied by substantial
changes in the curriculum (PPMU, 1998).
The MOE is committed to revitalizing learning through
developing classes in Arabic, English, mathematics, science, and social
science. It also integrates computer literacy programs for both students and
teachers through promoting the use of technology in teaching and assessment.
Internet use is constrained by cost, language, rates of
literacy, inadequate infrastructure and skills. GOE launched free internet
service, just pay for a local phone call. 5 m users in 2005 up from 535,000 in
2000.
The GOE has already invested heavily in the provision
and use of new technologies in order to revitalize teaching through the
provision of computer technology for classrooms.
The government plans to promote the authorization of
parent councils, which would include monitoring the quality of education at the
school and governorate levels. In addition, the government plans to develop and
implement a new school-funding methodology that encourages private sector and
community participation in obtaining needed physical resources and instructional
materials (World Bank, 1999b; Arab Republic of Egypt, 1999).
Their Secondary Education Enhancement Project (SERP)
consists of cooperation among groups with different interests: school managers,
teachers, parents, students, private-sector participants, and policy makers.
E. Conclusion
During the 1980s, Egypt experienced macroeconomic
imbalance, heavy external debt, distortion in the allocation of labor force,
over-staffing of government and public enterprises, unequal education and
employment opportunities, and a high unemployment rate, particularly among
secondary and post-secondary graduates. A combination of factors generated such
a dramatic situation, including the economic crisis of the 1980s, the limitation
of private economic activities, the labor force strategy (which guarantees a
government job to any university graduate), and the educational policy that
aimed to increase the proportion of technical secondary schools versus general
schools in order to restrict the university enrollment.
The
lack of access to productive assets, notably land in rural areas, and the
unavailability of alternative sources of steady income through regular wage
employment explain the persistence of chronic poverty among potentially
productive groups. By 1974-75, the proportion of poor households was 44% and
36% for rural and urban areas, respectively (World Bank, 1991, pp. xvi and 6).
Since
1985, the labor force has grown faster than the population. Its growth at an
average rate 5% per annum reflects the rising number of youths and women
entering the labor force, resulting mostly from births after the war with
Israel.