Casa Árabe in Training and the Economy

Transcription

1 CASA ÁRABE ANNUAL REPORT 2013

2 Casa Árabe in 2013 Casa Árabe continues to hold a unique position in the relations between Spain and the Arab world, and it plays a role at the forefront as an institution which facilitates dialogue and spreads knowledge. Our active public diplomacy has become further consolidated through conferences, debates, courses, seminars, exhibitions, publications, film series and monographic weeks. Similarly, Casa Árabe s organization of events in the political realm, including both those with a large outreach and those of a more discreet profile, holds a strategic place amongst our activities. Precisely, one central tasks which we perform is the integration of Casa Árabe s programs and activities with those of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation (MAEC), as well as with the embassies of Arab countries in Madrid and the various institutions which comprise the Casa Árabe Consortium (Spanish Agency of International Cooperation for Development [AECID], Municipal Government of Madrid, Municipal Government of Córdoba, Autonomous Regional Government of Madrid and Autonomous Regional Government of Andalusia). The institution s geographic location, with its headquarters in Madrid and Cordoba, coupled with Spain s role in the European Union and in the Mediterranean, puts Casa Árabe in a privileged situation which allows it to promote economic relations and analyze the sociopolitical changes affecting Arab and Islamic countries. The following fields created the backbone for Casa Árabe public diplomacy work in 2013: on the one hand, Training, Economics and Governance, and on the other, Culture, all in line with the international projection of the Spain Brand. We would like to highlight certain activities by area, and at the end of this introduction we have included a complete list of all the events which took place in Training and the Economy Within the current context of political transformation in Arab countries and economic crisis in Europe, it is essential to keep channels open for information and analysis, as well as for training and reflection, to make it possible to discuss the problems and challenges of the present day. In this sense, we would highlight the publication of The New Arab Capital: Main Roleplayers and Opportunities for Spanish Companies. As of April 10, 2013, a series of business conferences and meetings were organized, with the support of the Spain Brand, the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), the Spanish Foreign Trade Institute (ICEX/Invest in Spain) and Zawya (Thomson Reuters), as well as the cooperation of the Madrid Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Club of Exporters and Investors and the Spanish Institute of Financial Analysts (IEAF). Issues 34 and 35 of the Economics and Business Bulletin were published, with related public events held by Casa Árabe. As occurs every year, Casa Árabe once again formalized its commitment to the Spanish- Moroccan Forum of Legal Experts at its Ninth Plenary Session, which was dedicated to the

3 topic of The Mediterranean as a Shared Legal Space, the title which was used to express a desire to accentuate and delve deeper into legal cooperation amongst the various states and people of the Mediterranean by creating the foundations for achieving the highest level of legal security and democratic development. Another important collaborative effort was the annual FITUR event, which was held with the cooperation of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) and the participation of several Tourism Ministers from the region. In the month of November, a practicum titled Promoting Tourism Investments was held in Cordoba within the framework of this collaborative effort. It offered tourism development administrators and civil servants tools to facilitate the financing of and investment in sustainable tourism projects. As for its training initiatives, Spain s Diplomatic School and Casa Árabe organized a course titled Islam Today, which was articulated in the form of four broad theme-based areas (religious fundamentals and cultural diversity; Islamisms and political participation; the international and economic dimension of global Islam; and relations with Spain). The course, made up of 13 modules and held from April 15 through May 8, included a greater emphasis on the economic dimension and on the projection of Spain in the Arab and Muslim world as new features in It was mainly intended for civil servants in the public administration who, while performing their activities, come into contact with Muslim communities or nationals of countries of Arab and Islamic culture, as well as for professionals, businessmen, researchers and members of the academic world. Likewise, the Arabic Language Center continues to be a reference amongst institutions for learning classical and dialectal Arabic in Madrid, due to both the large number of students registered and the quality of its team of educators. One example of the increase in the services which it offers are its private classes for companies and diplomats. Casa Árabe believes that training and providing skills may not only improve the competitiveness and international positioning of Spanish companies, but also open up labor market niches for youths who have recently graduated. Governance Since the Arab awakening that began in late 2010 in Tunisia, Arab societies and governments have faced a highly complex period of transition, in which the challenges have consisted of avoiding a return to autocratic practices and instead consolidating democratic systems, developing an active civil society and putting transparent institutions into operation. The socalled countries of the Arab Spring have received greater attention (Egypt, Libya, Tunisia), but one must not forget events in other Arab countries which are undergoing less turbulence, and even regions which are new to Casa Árabe, as is the case with Iraqi Kurdistan. On the basis of Spain s experience, Casa Árabe offers assistance through knowledge, creating and coordinating channels and communication, and supporting the new roleplayers who are taking part in this new stage for Arab countries. To do so, it actively cooperates with other Spanish institutions, such as the AECID, the Foundation for the Spanish Transition, the Elcano Royal Institute, the Pluralism and Co-existence Foundation, Casa Mediterráneo and the Club of Madrid, just to name a few. The Syrian question has been a subject of special interest, which has been followed

4 throughout the year. In 2013, Casa Árabe was devoted to analyzing the Syrian debacle and that country s future by holding meetings and conferences with opposition leaders (Moaz al- Khatib, on May 21) and civil society (Union of Syrians Abroad), and with the preparations for the Consultation Meeting of the Syrian Opposition in the City of Cordoba, held on January 9-10, At the same time, a space was designed for academic specialists and political thinkers at the seminar Regional and International Implications of the Conflict in Syria, organized with the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung and the FRIDE (November 4). Another essential topic has been the increasing role played by sectarian fighting in the Middle East. In order to better understand the causes and consequences of the widening divide between these two branches of Islam and to demystify reductionist arguments, in November Casa Árabe organized a seminar titled Sunnis and Shiites: Political Interpretations of a Religious Dichotomy, with the cooperation of the UNESCO Professorship for Conflict Resolution and the University of Córdoba. On the basis of a historical review, the participants reflected on the most recent challenges, in light of the growing confrontations in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Egypt, and the competition between Riyadh and Tehran. The presentations which were given will be published in 2014 in Issue 8 of the journal Awraq, which is published by Casa Árabe. With the same objectives in mind, Casa Árabe s headquarters in Córdoba hosted the Ninth Conference of the Nyon Process, a project of dialogue for action facilitated by Forward Thinking and the Alliance of Civilizations, with the support of several European governments, to achieve involvement by key groups which lie at the meeting point between religion, politics and social activism. The goal is to close the gap existing between the religious and secular world views, which sometimes lead to the established of ill-advised or improperly informed policies. Also held within the framework of these mediation initiatives was the seminar Mediation in the Mediterranean, organized in February with the cooperation of the Toledo International Center for Peace (CITPax), Casa Mediterráneo, the Spanish Defense Ministry and the MAEC. The result of a Spanish-Moroccan initiative to support the UN s efforts to resolve conflicts through cooperation amongst regional and international role-players, the seminar also backed the activities carried out by Finland and Turkey in this same direction. In April, the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue in Geneva and Casa Árabe organized the meeting Mediation for Peace on democratic transition processes and challenges for security, in which it was made possible for dialogue to occur between the main role-players in the transitions of Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Syria, Tunisia and Yemen and, in addition to this, with European representatives form Germany, Spain, France, Norway, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and the European Union. Culture Having taken on a pioneering position in the promotion of Arab culture among the Spanish public, Casa Árabe has stood out thanks to its film series, exhibitions on contemporary art and educational work, as well as its activities related with the latest in publishing and book presentations. Perhaps with a lesser intensity but the same amount of careful preparation, a variety of concerts were held throughout the year, sometimes as an accompaniment to the monographic weeks or nationals days of Arab countries, but also as their own separate events.

5 In the world of literature, Casa Árabe organized, in collaboration with Moussem (Belgium) and Re: Orient (Sweden), and with the support of the European Union Culture Program, a European-Arabic Literary Salon, which formed part of a tour throughout several European cities beginning on April 18 in Stockholm, followed by Malmö (Sweden), Brussels (Belgium) and Amsterdam (Holland), then reaching Spain on the dates of April (Madrid and Cordoba, respectively). The event included the participation of two winning authors of the prestigious International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF): Raja Alem and Mohammed Achaari. This award, known as the Booker Prize of Arab literature, is one of the most prestigious and important literary prizes in the Arab world. The individual exhibitions by artists such as Assem al Bacha, André Elbaz and Faraj Daham have been very well received by audiences. In Cordoba, the artistic residency of Alia Farid, carried out with the cooperation of the Delfina Foundation, culminated with the collected work Plant your Siyadeh, within the context of Cordoba s Festival of Patios, acknowledged in December 2012 as an World Heritage Site of Immaterial Culture. Also in Cordoba, Casa Árabe hosted the exhibition Madinat Qurtuba: City and Material at its headquarters, displaying archeological pieces from the era of Al-Andalus. This exhibition was organized with the cooperation of the Department of Education, Culture and Sports of the Autonomous Regional of Andalusia, with notable curators from the Archeological Museum of Cordoba and the Archeological Site of Madinat al-zahra. Two traveling exhibitions occupied an important part of our work in On a Journey: Spanish Architecture in the Arab World (opened on June 20) is a traveling exhibition (Madrid, Valencia, Murcia) of projects by Spanish architecture firms and studios developed in Arab countries, organized with the cooperation of the Superior Council of Architects Associations of Spain (CSCAE). From Qurtuba to Córdoba is a traveling photography exhibition (Cordoba, Madrid, Riyadh, Doha, Jerusalem), which was accompanied by a monographic edition of the journal AWRAQ, Reflections on Qurtuba in the Twenty-first Century and its English language version. It will be published in Arabic in Likewise, as part of the institution s schedule of cinema-related activities, we have continued to collaborate with cultural institutions such as Madrid s Documenta Festival and the African Film Festival of Cordoba. Casa Árabe s published materials have continued with the semi-annual publication of AWRAQ, a journal of analysis and thought on the contemporary Arab and Islamic world. In 2013, Issues 5-6 were published with the title Spaniards in North Africa: Demographics and Protectorate, and Issue 7, the topic of which is Reflections on Qurtuba in the Twenty-first Century. Similarly, our yearly participation in Madrid s Book Fair was assured, with arrangements made by Casa Árabe s Balqís bookstore. Multidisciplinary Activities There were also various multidisciplinary activities which encompassed all of the areas in which Casa Árabe works, as was the case with the monographic weeks. A fine example of this was Sudan Week: Land, People and Opportunities, which took place from May 29-31, 2013, with the cooperation of the Embassy of Sudan in Madrid. Organized during this event were the First Spain-Sudan Economic Forum, cultural events (an exhibition and concert) and conferences. It included attendance by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Spain, José

6 Manuel García-Margallo, and Sudan, Ali Ahmed Karti. Afterwards, the General Director of Casa Árabe, Eduardo López Busquets, formed part of the business delegation which traveled to Sudan from November Another notable week was the one held on Palestine, from November 26 to 29, on the occasion of the celebration of the International Day for Solidarity with the Palestinian People. With the cooperation of Palestine s Diplomatic Mission in Spain, Casa Árabe organized a wide range of activities to commemorate this date, including a conference with well-known diplomat Afif Safieh, a concert by the young Maqamat Al-Quds music ensemble, and a photography exhibition on the work done by the entity Riwaq. Similarly, another multidisciplinary activity with a great impact was the Forum for Spanish- Saudi Youth Dialogue, held from June with the cooperation of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia, the State Secretariat of Tourism, the Institute of Youth (INJUVE) and the Official Architects Association of Madrid, which brought together young Saudi students of architecture, business and tourism so that they could hold dialogue with their Spanish peers on the Preservation and Promotion of Architectural Identity. The delegation was headed by Prince Ambassador Khaled bin Saud bin Khaled, an advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Communication and Social Networks In terms of its presence on social networks, Casa Árabe has continued to seek gradual increases. On Facebook ( the institution had more than 9,252 followers at the end of 2013, who receive information every day about the activities organized by Casa Árabe, which they may then look up on the Casa Árabe website. As for Twitter (@casaarabe), in 2013 Casa Árabe reached 4,763 followers, doubling the figure which it had reached when 2012 drew to a close. As for the institution s channel on the YouTube video network, during this year it got 64,843 views of its 214 videos videos on conferences, concerts and exhibitions organized by Casa Árabe. The three most watched videos received more than one thousand views (the most popular had 2,300 views). Throughout these twelve months, there were 293 subscriptions to this channel s contents, which are constantly being updated. Last of all, we would mention that Casa Árabe s news bulletin subscribers amounted to 17,913.