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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20140107T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20140108T180000
DTSTAMP:20260414T220432
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SUMMARY:Social Currents in the Maghreb Working Group I
DESCRIPTION:On January 7-8\, 2014\, CIRS held its inaugural Social Currents in the Maghreb Working Group in Washington D.C. While much of the mainstream media and recent scholarship on the Maghreb has focused on the political and security dimensions of the region\, participants gathered over two days to discuss the social changes and fluxes in contemporary Morocco\, Libya\, Tunisia\, Algeria\, and Mauritania. The Working Group provided an avenue of deliberation on social issues that precede the recent political transformations of the region\, and sought to examine the complex trajectory of its existing societal conditions. \n \n \nAs highlighted above\, much of the recent debates on the Maghreb have revolved around political transformations\, and more specifically on their relation to Islamic movements in the context of the Arab Spring. While the historical trajectory of Islamic movements and parties has generally been accounted for\, the internal dynamics of political parties have largely been neglected in the scholarship. Working Group participants highlighted the dynamics between Islamists and leaders of various political parties as well as generational dynamics within the parties. Political parties and movements as a unit of analysis need to incorporate internal notions of ideological hybridity that not only challenge the status-quo of the country’s political landscape\, but also of the movements’ longstanding policies and strategies. These internal subtleties allude to the ideological innovation of Islamic movements that move beyond the traditional prism of analysis of “moderation through inclusion” or “radicalization through repression”. \n \n \nIn addition to political parties and political Islam\, participants discussed religious practice and the anthropology of Salafism and Sufism. In the context of the latter\, Sufi observances and religious pilgrimages by the Tijaniyyah who migrate from West Africa to the Maghreb\, have created economic and social networks that permeate the two regions. While the Tijaniyyah movement has largely expanded to West Africa\, these Sufi networks have also traditionally served as vital linkages of knowledge production. \n \n \nAnother thread connecting the Maghreb to West Africa and the Sahel is the transnational element of Amazigh movements. While most scholars have focused on political and social struggles of the Amazighs in Algeria and Morocco in isolation\, their movements have become increasingly transnational in nature as they incorporate other Amazighs or social groups such as the Tuareg\, in their politics. With these attempts to create transnational connections comes a sense of national ambivalence as questions of identity are pushed to the forefront with regards to “Africanity” and “Amazigh-ness”. These questions do not allude to deep ethnic tensions between a certain social group and their respective national counterparts\, but rather serve to highlight contemporary politics and how it emerges in a changing political system with relative political openings or closings. \n \n \nHybrid identities were also discussed in the context of the Haratine in Mauritania. The Haratine\, or people of slave descent\, currently experience different levels of political and social subservience. The Haratine are also not a homogenous group and identify themselves as Arabs\, Berbers\, African\, and Mauritanian. Identity\, which may also be used as a political tool\, directly affects the strategic alliances that the Haratine movement builds in order to further its political cause in Mauritania. While much of the movement’s emphasis has been on political and social subordination\, economic emancipation has not been effectively addressed by the movement nor experienced by the Haratine today. \n \n \nOther movements such as the Polisario in Western Sahara have not gained much footing in their political trajectory but have secured greater access to economic funds. Contrary to conventional wisdom about the armed movement\, the Polisario has increasingly diversified its portfolio of economic and developmental funding to include non-state sources beyond Algeria. Resources from civil society organizations and family members abroad broaden the Polisario movement’s economic base of support and simultaneously affect the activities and investments of the movement. \n \n \nIn addition to identity politics\, the politics of language and its historical\, economic and social salience were discussed. The language of instruction in Moroccan schools for instance\, has largely been caught between the dual and seemingly contradictory goals of cultural and linguistic preservation (e.g. Arabic or Berber) and the necessity of equipping graduates with languages that meet global market needs (e.g. French or English). The language of instruction in the Moroccan education system is fragmented where Arabic is utilized in public primary schools and French in higher education. This tends to exacerbate the hurdles that socio-economically disadvantaged populations face in attaining social mobility as they move from one educational level to another. This linguistic fragmentation in the education system can be contrasted to the linguistic hybridity that is increasingly incorporated into the artistic expression of the youth. The incorporation of the Darija (colloquial Arabic) into cultural forms produced by youth serves as a means to deconstruct issues of identity and provides an underlying commentary on the language of politics as being distant from the everyday life; this artistic utilization of linguistic hybridity by youth was identified as an element of youth’s cultural and social entrepreneurship in the contemporary Maghreb. \n \n \nParallel to the politics of linguistic preservation\, participants discussed movements of cultural preservation\, specifically as it relates to Jews of North Africa. Jewish presence in Morocco and Tunisia has significantly diluted since the pre-independence era\, and concomitantly\, efforts to conserve and renovate Jewish heritage sites have been on the rise. While these preservation projects serve to keep the memory of the Jewish community in North Africa alive\, the politics of preservation also indicate that these movements seek to reify Jews to a past rather than an ongoing present. \n \n \nSports in relation to migration\, identity and political transitions in the Maghreb were also topics tackled by the participants. While Europe has been the main destination for athletes\, the GCC has more recently become a new lucrative destination for youth from the Maghreb. Issues related to reverse migration of athletes\, their sense of belonging\, and identity construction around religion and language are of interest in comparing the Gulf and Europe as prime sport destinations. Moreover\, with the political transitions in the region\, regimes have utilized sports for various strategic interests such as the promotion of reconciliation in Algeria or the rebuilding of the national sport system in Libya after decades of neglect by Qaddafi. \n \n \nThese societal threads\, from social movements by marginalized groups to the language employed by youth in artistic expression\, collectively shed light on the social underpinnings of the contemporary Maghreb.  \n \n \n\nRead the participant bios\nSee the working group schedule \nRead more about this research initiative \n\n \nParticipants and Discussants: \n \n \n\nOsama Abi-Mershed\, CCAS – Georgetown University\nLahouari Addi\, Centre de Recherche en Anthropologie Sociale et Culturelle (CRASC)\nMahfoud Amara\, Loughborough University\nNéjib Ayachi\, Maghreb Center\nZahra Babar\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar\nAomar Boum\, University of Arizona\nCharis Boutieri\, King’s College London\nAlice Bullard\, IRA-USA\nFrancesco Cavatorta\, Université Laval\nMehran Kamrava\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar\nRicardo René Larémont\, Binghamton University\nWilliam Lawrence\, George Washington University\nDwaa Osman\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar\nZekeria Ould Ahmed Salem\, University of Nouakchott\nPaul Silverstein\, Reed College\nLoubna Skalli-Hanna\, American University\nElizabeth Wanucha\, CIRS – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar\nAlice Wilson\, University of Cambridge\n\n \nArticle by Dwaa Osman\, Research Analyst at CIRS​
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/social-currents-maghreb-working-group-i/
CATEGORIES:Focused Discussions,Race & Society,Regional Studies
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DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20140120T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20140120T180000
DTSTAMP:20260414T220432
CREATED:20140915T061109Z
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SUMMARY:Sustainable Development for ‎Economies and Corporations
DESCRIPTION:R. Seetharaman\, Group Chief Executive Officer of Doha Bank‎\, delivered the first ‎CIRS ‎Monthly ‎Dialogue of 2014 with a lecture on “Sustainable Development for ‎Economies ‎and ‎Corporations”‎ ‎on January 20\, 2014‎. Drawing on his experience as the head of a major ‎financial institution\, he explained how\, as a result of the global financial crisis\, ‎economic ‎systems ‎all over the world ‏have been shaken to their core and forced to undergo massive ‎transformations ‎at a fundamental ‎level. These global financial institutions have had to align ‎themselves according to a new world ‎order of financial market re-regulation in the interest of ‎creating ‎more ‎conservative\, cautious\, and sustainable global economies. ‎ \n \n \nSeetharaman adumbrated the unprecedented circumstances that affected global financial systems ‎over the past few years\, including the liquidity crisis that turned into a funding and solvency ‎crisis where entire nations such as Greece and Iceland experienced far-reaching economic ‎collapse. In these cases\, he argued\, politics and economics did not speak to each other on the ‎level of convergence that they should have. The liquidity crisis was addressed by unstable and ‎short-term solutions\, such as printing more money to improve the cash flow and to stabilize stock ‎markets\, but this was ultimately unsustainable. The problem was patched up on a superficial level\, ‎but the fundamental roots of the economic crisis remained. Because “we live in an ‎interconnected\, interdependent world\,” currency markets and commodity markets are ‎intertwined\, and what affects one affects the other. ‎ \n \n \nReeling from years of global economic stagnation and recession\, governments\, corporations\, ‎and ‎financial institutions have realized that massive overhauls in the system are necessary\, ‎Seetharaman ‎explained. “This crisis is an opportunity for the new world order\,” he advised. The ‎type of rapacious corporate capitalism and market speculation that defined the last few ‎decades ‎of deregulated market economies have altered in form and substance. Similarly\, countries that ‎adhered to a socialist structure of economic governance have also ‎found it necessary to change ‎their financial structures\, and have been making concerted efforts to end their isolation and ‎connect with the global ‎economy. In fact\, Seetharaman said\, these two formerly oppositional ‎economic ‎philosophies are increasingly becoming intertwined for a more effective and sustainable ‎economic ‎reality. “Mixed economies are the game changers. We have seen the emerging markets ‎incrementally producing ‎over 60% of gross domestic product in terms of global growth\, and ‎these economies have to be an integral part of the order of inclusive growth. This is why the G7 ‎has become the G8\, and G8 has become G20\,” he said. ‎ \n \n \nBecause financial institutions operate as much on public money as they do on private shareholder ‎assets\, the public-private partnership model is the most sustainable way of moving forward\, ‎Seetharaman advised. Taking the example of Doha Bank\, Seetharaman argued that private ‎shareholder money accounts for approximately 11 billion\, and yet customer deposits account for ‎an enormous 35 billion. It thus becomes obvious that even if a financial institution is private\, it is ‎often\, in reality\, public. The global financial crisis revealed that the public is in fact an important ‎stakeholder whose investments must be protected and not gambled with. “Whether you run a ‎socially responsible mission as a corporate head or a country head\, you have to practice social ‎responsibility. That way\, you will take care of all the stakeholders\,” he explained.‎ \n \n \nIn conclusion\, Seetharaman argued that because of the increase in patterns of globalized ‎connectivity on all levels\, ‎whether in terms of financial markets or broader issues of climate ‎change\, governance systems all over the ‎world must attempt to adhere to the same ethical\, ‎socially-responsible\, and sustainable standards. At the universal level\, we need to “set new ‎initiatives that are responsive to see the ‎United ‎Nation‏‎’s ‎mission ‎for eradication of extreme ‎poverty\,‎‏ ‏gender ‎equality\, ‎‏economic ‎sustainability\,‎‏ ‏primary ‎healthcare\,‎‏ ‏education‏\,‏‎ global ‎collaborations‏‎\,” he concluded.‎ \n \n \nDr. R. Seetharaman (www.seetharaman.org)\, Group Chief Executive Officer of Doha Bank\, is ‎a ‎recipient of ‎multiple doctorates from leading universities of the world\, including a PhD in ‎Global ‎Governance by European ‎University and Doctorate of Laws by Washington College. He ‎is a ‎Chartered Accountant and holds certificates ‎in IT Systems and Corporate Management. He ‎has ‎been named “Best CEO in Middle East” and “World Leader ‎Business Person” and is a ‎recipient ‎of “The Gullands Excellence Award as a Phenomenal Banker.” A regular ‎commentator ‎on ‎international finance in global media outfits such as BBC\, CNN\, FOX\, CNBC\, Sky ‎News\, ‎ABC\, ‎and Bloomberg\, he has transformed Doha Bank as one of the best performing ‎Banks in the ‎Middle East region.‎Article by Suzi Mirgani\, Manager and Editor for CIRS Publications 
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/sustainable-development-economies-and-corporations/
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Race & Society,Regional Studies
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