09 May 2003
White House Outlines Proposed Middle East Initiatives
(White House Fact Sheet, May 9, 2003) (690)
Following is a White House fact sheet on a proposal to establish a
U.S.-Middle East Free Trade Area within a decade, along with other
initiatives aimed at promoting growth, education, and freedom and
justice:
(begin fact sheet)
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Columbia, South Carolina)
May 9, 2003
FACT SHEET
Proposed Middle East Initiatives: Promoting Economic Growth
"Across the globe, free markets and trade have helped defeat poverty,
and taught men and women the habits of liberty. So I propose the
establishment of a U.S.-Middle East free trade area within a decade,
to bring the Middle East into an expanding circle of opportunity, to
provide hope for the people who live in that region."
-- President Bush
-- May 9, 2003
To re-ignite economic growth and expand opportunity in the Middle
East, the President outlined proposals to:
-- Establish a U.S.-Middle East Free Trade Area within a decade.
Building on our free trade agreements (FTAs) with Israel and Jordan,
the United States will take a series of graduated steps:
-- Help reforming countries become members of the World Trade
Organization;
-- Negotiate Bilateral Investment Treaties and Trade and Investment
Framework Agreements with governments determined to improve their
trade and investment regimes;
-- Complete our negotiations on a free trade agreement with Morocco by
the end of this year;
-- Launch, in consultation with Congress, new bilateral free trade
agreements with governments committed to high standards and
comprehensive trade liberalization; and
-- Provide assistance to build trade capacity and expansion so
countries can benefit from integration into the global trading system.
Work with our partners in the region to:
-- Establish a Middle East finance facility to help small- and
medium-sized businesses gain access to capital and generate jobs;
-- Reform commercial codes, improve the climate for trade and
investment, and strengthen property rights through a new initiative
for commercial law in cooperation with U.S. and Middle Eastern law
schools and jurists, and business-to-business contacts; and
-- Promote transparency in public finances, help countries fight
corruption, and support financial sector reforms based on
international best practices.
Promoting Education and Knowledge
"Making the most of economic opportunities will require broader and
better education, especially among women who have faced the greatest
disadvantages."
-- President Bush
-- May 9, 2003
The President outlined proposals to:
-- Grow our successful partnership with Morocco and Yemen to expand
their girls' and women's literacy programs to other interested
countries.
-- Partner with countries to help empower parents and local
communities to give them a greater voice in how their children are
educated. Expand a successful program in Alexandria, Egypt, to other
Egyptian cities and other interested countries in the region.
-- Partner with countries to provide incentives, such as vouchers, to
families that send their girls to school, building on successful
programs in Morocco and Egypt.
-- Secretary of Education Paige will be hosting the Egyptian Minister
of Education and four governors in Washington next week to discuss the
success of this project.
Promoting Freedom and Justice
"The history of the modern world offers a lesson for the skeptics: do
not bet against the success of freedom. Freedom has advanced because
the desire for liberty and justice is found in every human heart. And
the men and women of the Muslim world, one-fifth of all humanity,
share this hope of liberty."
-- President Bush
-- May 9, 2003
The United States proposes to work with partners in the region to:
-- Establish a regional forum on judicial reform. Supreme Court
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has agreed to head a team of American
jurists to Bahrain to help launch this effort this fall.
-- Establish regional campaign schools to provide training in
leadership and organizational skills for women seeking elective office
across the region. The first of these will be held this fall in Qatar.
-- Begin media training and media law projects that include
participants initially from Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco,
Saudi Arabia, and Tunisia.
-- Provide training for new parliamentarians and support for civil
society organizations through groups like the National Democratic
Institute and International Republican Institute in partnership with
organizations in the region.
(end fact sheet)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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