Arab Human Development Report 2002
By UNDP
July 23, 2002

From the Atlantic to the Gulf, people-- women, men and children--are the real wealth and hope of Arab countries. Policies for de- velopment and growth in the Arab region must focus on freeing people from depriva- tion, in all its forms, and expanding their choices. Over the last five decades, remark- able progress has been achieved in advancing human development and reducing poverty. However, much still needs to be done to ad- dress the backlog of deprivation and imbal- ance.

Looking forward, much also needs to be done in order to empower the people of the Arab region to participate fully in the world of the twenty-first century. Globalization and ac- celerating technological advances have opened doors to unprecedented opportuni- ties, but they have also posed a new risk: that of being left behind as the rate of change ac- celerates, often outpacing state capacity. Development is being reinvented by new mar- kets (e.g., foreign exchange and capital mar- kets), new tools (e.g., the Internet and cellular phones), new actors (e.g., non-governmental organizations, the European Union and World Trade Organization) and new rules (e.g., multilateral agreements on trade, ser- vices and intellectual property).

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