Economic Pillar

Regional Programs

The following lists both ongoing and completed programs that appear first under MEPI’s Economic reform pillar to which they relate. They involve two or more countries in the Middle East or North Africa. (Additional reform pillars are noted within parentheses, as appropriate.)

Beyster Institute      

Middle East Entrepreneur Training in the U.S. (MEET US) – This program provides skills training, professional networking, and alumni support systems to increase the managerial and entrepreneurial leadership skills for growing companies. The program, which takes place in the United States, helps promising executives, managers, and entrepreneurs throughout the Middle East and North Africa realize their aspirations to build successful, growing enterprises that will contribute to economic growth and community well being.

Booz-Allen    

Technical Assistance for Trade – In this program, Booz Allen Hamilton provides expert technical analysis of existing trade institutions and legal and regulatory regimes as identified during bilateral discussions in support of Trade and Investment Framework Agreements (TIFA) and Free Trade Agreements (FTA) with the U.S. Government. Following the identification of any weaknesses and/or desired restructuring, the program will help governments throughout the Middle East and North Africa eliminate these gaps.

Chugach 

MEFC Due Diligence – led by Chugach System International, this program involved conducting of a legal, corporate structure, and accounting and economic governance due diligence of the proposed Middle East Finance Corporation (MEFC).  Upon completion of the due diligence review, reports were compiled for the use of the MEFC’s board and management.  Changes to the original conception of MEFC required to accommodate the facts discovered on the ground were incorporated into a revised MEFC concept paper.

CLDP

Commercial Law Development Program – the Commercial Law Development Program of the U.S. Department of Commerce supports countries in the Middle East and North Africa in their efforts to accede to the WTO.  This program provides technical assistance in areas such as intellectual property rights, sanitary policies, standards and metrology, and the translation of submissions to the WTO Working Party to help develop and implement liberalized economic policies consistent with future WTO obligations.

CLDP

MEFTA Support for FTA and WTO – in this program, the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) reviews trade laws and regulations to assure compliance with existing WTO and FTA obligations in Algeria, Bahrain, Morocco, Tunisia, the UAE, and Yemen. After identifying areas of non-compliance, CLDP develops an action plan and schedule of recommended changes to help bring these governments' legal structure into compliance with their obligations. This might include technical assistance to support the development of a market-based economy or to support the negotiation of a free trade agreement.

FSVC 

Partnership for Financial Excellence Part I – this technical assistance program, led by the Financial Service Volunteer Corps (FSVC), helped strengthen the financial systems of Egypt, Jordan, and Morocco by promoting investment and employment growth in those countries.

FSVC 

Partnership for Financial Excellence Part II – Through the Financial Service Volunteer Corps (FSVC), this program provides technical assistance to strengthen the financial systems of selected countries in the Middle East and North Africa. This second part of the program includes regional training promoting dialogue among market participants and supervisory authorities in the region.  It builds on the foundation laid by FSVC in Part I, which included work to improve commercial banks’ capacity to provide credit and other financial services, particularly to small and medium-sized enterprises; strengthen the region's central banks; facilitate the eventual privatization of large state banks; and invigorate the region’s securities markets.

Treasury       

Partnership for Financial Excellence – U.S. Department of the Treasury regulators implemented a supervision training program for junior to mid-level bank supervisory staff. U.S. participants included the U.S. Federal Reserve, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and Treasury. Treasury's Office of Technical Assistance placed resident and intermittent advisors throughout the region to provide sustained assistance to Ministries of Finance and Central Banks, with the advisors focusing on Government Debt and Capital Markets, Financial Institutions and Regulation, and Financial Crimes.

JAI     

Economic Education and Job Skills Training in the Middle East – In this program, Junior Achievement International (JAI) is collaborating with MEPI, USAID, and several major corporations and private sector companies throughout the Middle East and North Africa to develop self-sustaining Junior Achievement organizations.  The organizations help some 100,000 young students gain the skills required to build and succeed in their nations’ economies and to become productive and participative citizens.