JEDDAH, 23 February 2007 — This year’s three-day Jeddah Economic Forum opens at the Jeddah Hilton tomorrow with a formal dinner reception for participants, with the support of Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed.
The fifth annual event organized by the Jeddah Marketing Board of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, with “economic reform” as the central theme, will bring together some global leaders to deliver their respective discourses on various topics.
The theme of the first session on Sunday is “Strategies for economic reform - universalism vs particularism. Following JEF Chairman Sami Bahrawi’s welcome address, the session will be introduced by Alastair Steward, broadcaster ITN, UK, and will feature speakers including Commerce and Industry Minister Dr. Hashim A. Yamani and Jeddah Mayor Adel Fakeeh.
The day’s second session will focus on “Flexicurity in reform: A balanced social agenda,” with welcome remarks from BBC broadcaster Sue Macgregor, followed by presentations by Turkish Prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, former Supreme Allied NATO Commander General Wesley Clark and Prince Turki Al-Faisal.
Monday’s first session will be on “People are at the center: Social responsibility and citizenship initiative,” which will feature speakers including Asya Al-Ashaikh, founder of Tamkeen Development and Management Consulting; European Commissioner of Trade Rt. Hon. Peter Mandelson, and a video presentation on the Red Sea by leading businessman Tarek Taher.
The day’s second session will be on “The legal structure must keep up” with speakers including Italian Minister for Trade and European Affairs Dr. Emma Bonino, former Canadian Prime Minister Rt. Hon. Jean Chretien, and Luxembourg Minister of Justice and Treasury Luc Frieden.
Tuesday’s first session will focus on “Changing the global energy paradigm,” featuring lectures by Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa, McKinsey Global Institute’s Amadeo Di Lodovico, and Rachad Itani, executive partner of Xenel-Balderrie.
The day’s second session will mark the culmination of the session. It will dwell on “Privatization: The indispensable tool,” with speakers including Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Mohamed Najib Abdul Razak, Saudi Arabian Airlines Director General Khaled Al-Mulhim and London Business School’s Professor Zeger Degraeve.
The closing keynote address will be delivered by former Polish President Lech Walesa.
This time, media coverage of JEF will take a new dimension with the introduction of “Jeddah economic media awards,” designed to recognize the best press handling of the annual event. The winning journalist or journalists will receive a crystal plaque and cash prize of SR100,000, the media evaluation committee of the JEF told a press conference at the JCCI yesterday.
University students are also given their fair share. A JEF collegiate business venture award 2007 has also been instituted for the best business plan for ventures that can be successfully launched and developed by university students in the Arab world.