A thirst for change: An Arab view

The title of this book echoes the famous slogan, “Yes, we can”, used by Barack Obama during his first presidential campaign. These three words inspired not only American citizens but also men and women across the world. Obama’s candidacy was carried by an unprecedented wave of hope and change. Mohamed Bin Issa Al Jaber is also convinced that Arabs have an innate ability to change by modernizing and at the same time preserving their Arab and Islamic culture.
“Yes, the Arabs Can Too”, is a translation of the Arabic original first published in 2009, however its lessons are just as valid today as they were then.
“Indeed, they have taken on an extra urgency in the light of the author’s prescient diagnosis of the Arab peoples’ thirst for democracy, freedom, human rights and proper citizenship in their own countries” says Professor Michael Worton in his foreword.
From the very first pages, the author speaks the language of truth. He does not hesitate to highlight the backwardness of the Arab world still attempting to enter its industrial age while Western countries have already entered into the new era of information technology and digital information. This communications revolution has played the role of a catalyst. Under its impulse, companies have shot in the lead and have implemented global strategies resulting in the internationalization of trade. This has triggered fluctuations in external demand and increased the competition in both domestic and foreign markets.
Mohamed Al Bin Issa Al Jaber, a prominent businessman and philanthropist, draws on both, his life and his personal experience, to present his vision for the Arab world. Al Jaber believes that Arab countries like China, Brazil and India should implement “a strategy for culture and intellectual values” in its academic and technical arenas. The Arabs still need to nurture home-grown technical and digital talent, scientific innovation as well as a productive and revitalized economy.
“The integration of Arab markets into an Arab Common Market would make the region more attractive for international investors and create opportunities for work and income” suggests Al Jaber who on the other hand defines globalization as the accelerating process by which economies are integrated into a market arrangement of international scope. It consequently affects the basic functions of the economy, that is, production, consumption, and services, and its financial aspects, i.e. currency and capital.
Globalization however has brought undeniable benefits such as the free exchange of goods, ideas and knowledge. However in many countries, a growing gap has emerged between an economy which is becoming increasingly more international, and the social and political institutions. At this point, an important question concerning the State and its link to the globalization process comes up: “Isn’t the state on the losing side in this era of globalization. And hasn’t the management of the economy been transferred de facto from the state to corporations, banks and international financial institutions?”
We have never lived in such a materialistic society. We are now judged according to the job we have, the house we live in and the lifestyle we can afford. But this is closely connected with the implementation of this new liberal ideology. This economic liberalization led to insane profits which were made on the stock-market, this liberal trend also created the emergence of a wave of millionaires and legions of people were drawn in to the maelstrom of easy wealth creation. Low interest rates and new financial instruments took place without proper regulation and this led directly to the real estate crisis which deprived more than one and a half million American families of their homes.
Al Jaber rightly concludes that the free-market economy which regards everything as a commodity to be bought and sold is no longer triumphant. In 2009, he specifically underlined the public mistrust in corporate chiefs and corporate governance. Presently, some of the world’s biggest companies are under pressure from investors who have lost their loving feeling for conglomerates to become smaller.
The author has added five appendices. The last of these appendices consists of large extracts from an excellent interview he gave to Al-Iqtisad Wa-l A’maal (Economics and Business magazine). It sheds light on the author’s character. His basic weakness has always been his high level of good faith and excessive trust in people. “My strengths are clarity of vision, truthfulness in my dealings, and skepticism of unrealistic aspirations and fantasies”. Asked about his philosophy of business, he explains: “I had to achieve my objectives by being open in all my dealings and by getting my message across clearly. We were transparent, a crucial factor in dealing with others. In my opinion it is important not to take rash decisions and to be strictly truthful in one’s relationships. These are the foremost human qualities”.
Besides his business, Al Jaber is most dedicated to his humanitarian work. He has set up a Foundation which serves the people of the Arab region. It awards scholarships to Arab students to study in Britain, Austria or France with an obligation that they return to serve their home country.
Both a philanthropist and a businessman, Al Jaber known for his adherence to the law and his reliance on transparency, shuns greed which cannot be controlled. “The greedier people are the more they lose” he says warning his fellowmen that it is important to “stay level-headed and eschew extremes of behavior” because “our societies suffer from exaggerated egotism and emotion”.
Al Jaber has written a book which reflects his ethics and his philosophy of business. Its most resounding quality is that it has been written by a man who is honest, a rare quality nowadays. He says what he believes in and does what he says.
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