Two-day IMF moot in the Maghreb

The International Monetary Fund is organizing a two-day regional moot today in Morocco. The Fund has a message for the Arab countries: ‘reform’. It has pointed out that deepening frustration, rising social tensions and protests in the Middle East and North Africa are a strong indication of the fact that the aspirations of the people for opportunity, prosperity and equity remain unfulfilled. The International Monetary Fund is holding a two-day regional conference from Monday in Morocco with a message of reform amid growing “frustration” among the population of some Arab states. Jihad Azour, director of the IMF’s Middle East and Central Asia department, has been quoted as saying that “reforms are the key to address the fundamental problems that have plagued so many countries of the region for so long: low growth, high unemployment and corruption.”

The IMF warning recalls the outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2011. The popular movement that led to the ouster of strongmen such as Ali ben Zainul Abidin of Tunisia, Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Colonel Moammar Qadhafi of Libya was based on three key demands: bread, freedom and respect. Although the Arab Spring ultimately withered and waned on the doorsteps of the House of al-Saud, it became a permanent part of the Arab consciousness. All the Arab monarchies and sheikhdoms know well that they cannot reinvent the wheels of history.

Lahore Shahid Manto