Citizens in the Middle East have made it abundantly clear that they will no longer tolerate authoritarian rulers who have curbed freedoms, mismanaged economies, and allowed corruption to permeate society. Following political transitions in Tunisia and Egypt, calls for reform are reverberating across the Middle East – from Bahrain to Jordan, and from Lebanon to Yemen.
What is not clear is whether the transitions underway will remove one class of corrupt cronies and authoritarian rulers, only to retain the same social contract between leader and citizen – with the people continuing to look to government to provide jobs and welfare rather than to provide a conducive environment for entrepreneurship and market-based prosperity. The perilous populist policies that are being demanded, considered, and adopted in the current fervor may result in capital flight, loss of more jobs, economic turmoil, and a return to unilateral decision-making.
In his Economic Reform Feature Service article, CIPE Regional Director for Africa and the Middle East Abdulwahab Alkebsi focuses on Tunisia, arguing that the private sector’s immediate and dedicated engagement in reforms is crucial for Tunisia to transition into a democracy, attain its development goals through private sector-led job creation, and gain its place as the economic powerhouse of the region.
Article at a glance
- Populism and centralized decision-making authority threaten to undermine Tunisia’s transition to democracy.
- Rather than turning to the government for unilateral decision-making and to the public sector for employment, reforms should remove legal barriers that prevent the private sector from becoming the engine for job creation.
- To be successful, Tunisia’s transition must encourage participation from a broad range of society, including business associations, other civil society organizations, and political parties.
Read the full article here:
http://www.cipe.org/publications/fs/pdf/022811AA.pdf
Published Date: March 01, 2011