Arab Business, a Player for Reform?

Tags: Civil Society in West Asia

Within the framework of its project on the role of the private sector in economic and political reform, the Arab Reform Initiative is publishing two policy papers.The project has examined to what extent the private sector is influencing the reform process in the Arab world, looking in particular at the sector’s independence; its relationship to the ruling authority; its ability to organize and lobby; its involvement in social, educational, and political change; and its place in the public sphere and the public debate, including the media.

The first policy paper, entitled “Has Arab Business Ever Been, or Will it Be, a Player for Reform?” by Giacomo Luciani and Steffen Hertog, explores to what extent the private sector is truly private in the Gulf Cooperation Council and asks whether the recent economic crisis can set the stage for potentially more mature interest group politics and a wider contribution of business to reform processes.