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| Africa North |
| Maghreb leaders mull state role in boosting entrepreneurs |
| 2009-12-15 |
| [Maghrebia] Maghreb leaders are re-thinking how bureaucrats and entrepreneurs can work together in a post-crisis global economy riddled with pitfalls, according to participants in a December 11th-12th forum held outside Tunis. The Arab Institute of Entrepreneurs organised the event, called Enterprise Days, in the coastal city of Sousse, 150km from Tunisia's capital. Participants from Tunisia, Morocco, Europe and the wider Arab world cast a critical eye on the relationship between the state and private enterprise, particularly in the wake of the global financial crisis. "Absolute liberalism, which gives the market free rein, without regulation, and which rejects any state role, has become widely debatable and is likely to be abandoned," Tunisian Prime Minister Mohammed Ghannouchi said during his opening address at the forum. Ghannouchi also proposed "exceptional" programmes to help emerging economies that have been slammed by the global downturn. Under such programmes, global financial institutions and major economic conglomerates would offer those countries additional financing on easy terms. |
| Posted by:Fred |