Author: M Barbu

Middle East and North Africa Transition Fund

https://www.menatransitionfund.org/overview

In May 2011, the G8 launched the Deauville Partnership as a response to the historical changes underway in several countries in the Middle East and North Africa region. The Deauville Partnership was launched as a long-term, global initiative that provides Arab countries in transition with a framework based on technical support to: (i) strengthen governance for transparent, accountable governments; and (ii) provide an economic framework for sustainable and inclusive growth.

To support the countries in transition to formulate policies and programs and implement reforms, the Deauville Partnership set up the MENA Transition Fund.

The Transition Fund demonstrates a joint commitment by G8 members, Gulf and regional partners, and international and regional financial institutions to support the efforts of the people and governments of the Partnership countries as they overhaul their economic systems to promote more accountable governance, broad-based, sustainable growth, and greater employment opportunities for youth and women.

The Transition Fund has been designed to be rapid, flexible, and responsive so that Partnership countries can quickly call on it in support of a combination of diagnostic analyses, technical advice, and implementation of targeted policy initiatives. Through the Transition Fund, a modest amount of official finance can catalyze much larger changes that will help enable transitions to new, sustainable economic models.

The Transition Fund is a broad-based partnership providing grants for technical cooperation to help transition countries strengthen their governance, social and economic institutions by developing and implementing home-grown and country-owned reforms.

Consistent with its knowledge-sharing and transformational objectives, the Transition Fund emphasizes funding for technical cooperation proposals that leverage and complement support from other partners where relevant, in particular, bilateral donors, academic institutions and policy research institutions, regional and international organizations, industry and labor associations, and other civil society organizations.

South-South partnerships are encouraged (i.e. those between developing/transition countries) including from outside the MENA region, as well as institutions with regional experience focusing on technical cooperation or knowledge sharing.

The Transition Fund focuses on cross-cutting, multi-year projects as well as projects with short-term impacts that are country-owned.

“Technological and human-centred solutions to protect public spaces against terrorist threats”

15, 16 and 17 July 2020
10:00 – 11:30 CEST

The PRoTECT Consortium is organising the 2nd PRoTECT seminar on the protection of public spaces on 15-17 July. It will include three online sessions of a duration of 1h30 each.

Local and regional authorities in Europe have taken a number of steps to prevent terrorist attacks and protect their citizens. Developing common guidelines and exchanging good practices are key in order to achieve sustainable and effective solutions. In correlation to these considerations, local authorities can play a significant role in improving the protection of public spaces, mainly if they are able to identify the vulnerabilities of such spaces and acquire knowledge about existing solutions, both technological and human-centred, that meet their needs.

The online seminar will feature exchanges on best practices and technologies developed by law enforcement agencies, local authorities, European-funded projects and the private sector. It will give local authorities insights on what criteria to consider when selecting a solution to protect their public spaces. The project’s five partner cities will share their experience in using the PRoTECT tool and in selecting a solution for demonstration.

Law enforcement agencies, municipal representatives, local security practitioners responsible for the protection of public spaces, and industrial, national and European stakeholders are invited to take part in this event. You can participate in either all three sessions or any of your choice. . Registration is compulsory for each of the three sessions.

The seminar will be divided in three sessions:

Session 1 – Panel:
The protection of public spaces at policy and strategy level

How to cooperate with a wide range of stakeholders in order to mitigate emerging challenges in protecting public spaces?

15 July, 10:00 CEST

The EU Action Plan and the working document on Good Practices to Support the Protection of Public Spaces state that the co-production of public space protection is key, particularly in the context of terrorism. Preventing and mitigating terrorist threats require raising awareness among local and regional authorities and training them. Furthermore, it is important they cooperate with each other as well as with the private sector. Increased cooperation is also needed between the local, regional and national levels of governance. What avenues for cooperation exist at the European level regarding the protection of public spaces? How can cities best access funds and training? How can we support peer to peer exchanges among EU cities? How to make such coordination and cooperation effective? What are the challenges for the different actors in operationalising a joint action?

Session 2 – Case studies:
The protection of public spaces at practitioner level

Existing practices used at the local level for the protection of public spaces

16 July, 10:00 CEST

“There is no one single solution available, conversely, multiple methods and techniques can be put in place to guarantee safety and security in public spaces. The techniques range from architectural design in order to rethink the design of public spaces keeping security into account in continuity to emerging technologies such as AI and predictive surveillance. Moreover, whenever new technologies could appear to be expensive in cost and questionable regarding privacy, or when it could be difficult to rethink and re-project public spaces, building an action plan in order to mitigate, prevent and manage crime events would be a viable solution” (PRoTECT Best Practices and Technologies).

This session will present an overview of the PRoTECT best practices and case studies implemented by cities for the protection of public spaces.

Session 3
The PRoTECT project’s perspective on the protection of public spaces

How to assess technologies to protect public spaces? The PRoTECT Technology Assessment Framework. Public announcement of the selected solutions for demonstration in the five PRoTECT partner cities

17 July, 10:00 CEST

Devising hypothetical threat scenarios in specific public spaces that are potential soft targets for a terrorist attack can greatly help municipalities assess existing solutions to prevent or mitigate such attacks. The PRoTECT Technology Evaluation Framework (TEF) is a unique tool for evaluating such solutions and/or technologies, which local authorities can tailor to their specific needs and vulnerabilities. This session will present the Request for Information procedure to identify potential solutions to be demonstrated in the five PRoTECT partner cities, the use and application of the TEF, and the technological solutions selected by municipalities.

Mosques, Museums and Politics: The Fate of Hagia Sophia

When the caustic Evelyn Waugh visited the majestic sixth century creation of Emperor Justinian, one subsequently enlarged, enriched and encrusted by various rulers, he felt underwhelmed. “‘Agia’ will always win the day for one,” he wrote of Istanbul’s holiest of holies, Hagia Sophia, in 1930. “A more recondite snobbism is to say ‘Aya Sofia’, but except in a very sophisticated circle, who will probably not need guidance in the matter at all, this is liable to suspicion as a mere mispronunciation.”

France abandons Haftar, attacks Wagner

After having been one of the European countries to provide the greatest diplomatic and logistic support, and remaining silent regarding the thousands of deaths and massacres committed by its troops, France has finally abandoned General Khalifa Haftar. But isn’t it too late? And why now? French President Emmanuel Macron, who has bet on Haftar to defend the interests of his country and its oil companies in Libya, is now on the verge of losing his last cards.