19-21 December 2005
2:00–2:00
Beirut time
Impact of Globalization on the Social Situation in ESCWA Region
Location
- بيروت
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Globalization has posed a challenge to social policy and social development. Arab societies are undergoing radical changes that present a serious challenge to existing structures and their equilibrium. Social polarizations coupled with wide inequalities socially and economically are affecting the fabric of societies, creating the bases of social exclusion and crisis. Parallel to this situation is the high level of violence, as in Iraq and Palestine, exasperating social problems in the region. Yet this seemingly chronic state of crisis is matched by social policies that lack of coherence, shifting the need to focus on how to achieve integrated social policies, addressing the dichotomy of high crises and low policies. Within this context, there is an emerging consensus that globalization requires a new thinking about social policy with responses at the national, regional and international levels.
This meeting builds on the outcome of the international and global conferences, and will therefore focus on action to promote a globalization with a social development content. In this context, the meeting will offer a multifaceted perspective on the impact of globalization on Arab societies. Within this framework, the meeting aims to:
1. Provide a forum for experts to meet and exchange views on the impact of globalization on the social situation in the Arab region;
2. Identify the major factors of globalization affecting the social situation in the Arab region, and the primary issues and challenges emanating from this process;
3. Answer questions about how and in what way the Arab countries can maximize the benefits and minimize the costs of globalization;
4. Recommend an approach which promotes equity and social inclusion enabling Arab countries and societies to cope with globalization and make use of its opportunities.
Brazil and Uruguay
