US embassy cable - 04AMMAN8135

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 008135 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/30/2014 
TAGS: PHUM, PREL, KDEM, KMPI, JO 
SUBJECT: ARAB MINISTERS LAUNCH REGIONAL GOOD GOVERNANCE 
INITIATIVE 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires David Hale for Reasons 1.4 (b), (d) 
 
1.  (U) Fifteen Arab ministers meeting in Amman, Jordan, 
along with representatives from the OECD and UNDP, announced 
September 26 the launch of a regional reform initiative 
focused on good governance and administrative modernization. 
The initiative is an outgrowth of commitments to reform made 
at the most recent Arab League summit in Tunis.  Six Arab 
countries will take the lead in planning and implementing the 
initiative focusing on areas in which they have been 
recognized as regional leaders:  civil service performance 
(Morocco), e-government (UAE), oversight of public funds 
(Egypt), public resource management (Tunisia), civil society 
and open media (Lebanon), and judicial modernization 
(Jordan).  Jordan also was tasked with preparing for a larger 
conference on good governance at the prime minister level to 
be held later in the year at the Dead Sea.  In this capacity, 
Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez stated publicly that the GOJ 
would hold talks with donor countries and Arab and 
international funds to aid reforms in the Middle East. 
 
2.  (C) Jordanian Minister of Justice Salah Bashir told 
Acting DCM that he was quite proud of the initiative and 
Jordan's leading role in it, joking that the GOJ had once 
again stolen an Arab leadership opportunity from Egypt. 
Bashir said that the good governance project was pushing for 
the same reform goals sought by the U.S. and G-8, but would 
be better received in the region because it was an 
Arab-generated initiative.  Separately, Manar Dabas, Acting 
Director of Foreign Minister Muasher's Private Office, told 
Acting PolCouns that Jordan would work for the inclusion of 
practical steps and concrete benchmarks in the resulting plan 
so as to give it some "teeth." 
 
HALE