Trying to leave politics.

Trying to leave politics at the door Instead of focusing on key pan-Arab financial issues, the Arab Economic Summit's agenda now includes the Gaza conflict Arab leaders hold their first economic summit in Kuwait this week, aiming to boost cooperation amid deep political divisions exposed by the deadly Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip. The January 19 to 20 meeting was planned to be non-political, but Israel's war on Hamas and the failure of the Arab League to convene a separate emergency summit has pushed Gaza onto the agenda. Israel's unilateral ceasefire which went into effect early yesterday may reduce the immediate urgency of the summit's discussion on Gaza, but leaders will still be looking at the plight of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. In addition to political aspects, they will look at proposals for a multi-billion dollar fund to help reconstruct the battered enclave, which has been devastated by the three-week Israeli onslaught. Qatar on Friday hosted an Arab meeting on Gaza for which it failed to gather the needed quorum to turn it into an official Arab League emergency summit. Regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia had ignored Qatar's invitation and instead hastily organised a Gulf summit on Thursday addressing the Gaza crisis. "[The] Arab situation is in very big chaos... It is regrettable and harmful," Arab League chief Amr Mussa said, acknowledging the division in Arab ranks on the issue. The Emir of Kuwait said the Gaza issue will be at the heart of the Arab Economic Summit and he "will not accept holding a summit in Kuwait without discussing Gaza". Also on the agenda are ten major proposals aimed at boosting Arab economic cooperation and integration and bridging the wide gap between rich and poor Arab nations. They include a pan-Arab power grid, a pan-Arab rail network, setting up an Arab customs union, besides the other pressing issues of poverty, unemployment and Arab food security, and development of the health and education sectors. Kuwait's Finance Minister Mustafa al-Shamali said around 425 projects have been studied and selected to be reviewed at the summit and then offered for private sector investors to carry out. He said the summit intends to herald a new era in joint Arab economic action that has moved very slowly in past decades, producing largely insignificant achievements. Inter-Arab trade and investment remain very small, parity between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots' has only widened and most joint Arab economic projects have been either stillborn or short of expectations. Official reports show that Arab investments in other Arab countries amounted to less than 20 per cent of Arab investments in the US in 2007. The average unemployment rate in Arab countries reached 14 per cent at the end of 2007 with at least 18 million unemployed Arabs, according to the Arab League. Unemployment rates in some poor countries are much higher. The economic gap is striking, especially between the oil-rich Arab nations, which have accumulated more than two trillion dollars from oil revenues in the past six years, and poor Arab countries, which endure miserable conditions. Qatar's per capita income of $72,300, the largest in Arab world, is 80 times higher than the $900 in Yemen, the poorest Arab nation. Poverty topped 40 per cent in seven Arab countries, ten to 20 per cent in five countries and less than ten per cent in three nations, according to official Arab League reports. The 22 Arab nations have a total population of around 330 million, 61 per cent of them in the working age group of 15 to 65 years. Illiteracy affects 30 per cent of the population aged 15 years and above, affecting 15 per cent among males and a striking 40.6 per cent among women. The Arab economic summit is being held amid the global financial crisis that has hit the Arab world hard. Arab League officials estimate that Arab countries' losses from the crisis is $2.5 trillion so far.

E 2009 Al Sidra Media LLC 

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