United Nations Class

Regional Briefing – North Africa & Arab States

            Morocco is located in a unique global position, as part of the Middle East and North Africa region, located on the Mediterranean Sea and just miles from Spain and the European Union.  It is a member of the Arab League and yet relations with Europe remain pertinent.  The Kingdom of Morocco joined the Arab League in 1958 and since has worked to coordinate its policies with that of other Arab League member states.  The Arab states face many challenges, the greatest of which is the fact that these states are relatively new creations, forged out of the boundaries drawn by 20th century colonists in the area.  The legitimacy of their governments is challenged by their own people as well as by their neighbors (The Gulf Crisis: Why the Arab Regional Order Failed). 

            The Iraq War has divided the Arab League along the same partisan lines that were drawn during the Gulf War of 1990-91.  Most notably, Syria and the Palestinian Authority were very much opposed to the United States’ invasion of Iraq.  However, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates while not directly supporting the war, did refuse to voice an opposition to it (Council on Foreign Relations).  As with a majority of issues the organization faces, the internal divisions make coordinating policy very difficult.  Division within the league has been a major problem in a successful implementation of the Arab League’s boycott of Israeli companies and goods that it has had in place since 1948.  Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia have altogether refused to act on the boycott and Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority have signed treaties with Israel that prevent the boycott from being fully implemented (CRS Report for Congress: Arab League Boycott of Israel). 

            In terms of the environment, the Middle East and North Africa region share many of the same problems.  This region is one of the driest in the world and the scarcity of water has increased its impact on the economic and social development of countries located within this region.  Water has become scarcer in the region as a result of population growth, the increasing urbanization and industrialization and the agricultural demand for water (Ecologic – Institute for International and European Environmental Policy). 

            The Middle East and North Africa region has been described to have the most disproportional allocation of natural resources.  The region maintains the richest oil and gas reserves in the world, but is the poorest in terms of renewable water resources.  This is problematic because the countries within this region rely on natural resources for sustainable development.  The goal of sustainable development combined with the allocation of natural resources results in the following environmental issues for the Middle East and North Africa region: water scarcity and quality, degradation of land and coast and desertification, pollution caused by urban and industrial areas and a weak institutional and legal framework within which to resolve these issues (Ecologic). 

            The issue of water remains one of the largest in the region because so much depends on it.  It is needed to sustain the growing population within the region as well as to support the agriculture.  The economies of the countries within the region often rely too heavily on rainfall to support their crops and subsequent harvest.  The lack of sufficient rainfall is also contributing to the desertification of the region, preventing the land from sustaining its population.    

            This region would benefit greatly from the implementation of solar and wind energy to provide electricity.  The Middle East and North Africa are ideal to capture solar and wind energy, but in order for this to occur, a framework needs to be created both regionally and in individual states to develop a political interest in using such power.  Additionally, methods of financing such endeavors needs to be developed as well as the appropriate research and development to create the ideal technologies to be most efficient in capturing this energy.  Implementing such renewable energy measures would not only benefit the region in terms of environmental and climate protection, but would encourage economic development because access to energy sources would be cheaper (Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety). 

            The relationship between this region and Europe is important, especially for those countries located on the Mediterranean Sea.  Electrical grids that stretch from Europe to the Middle East and North Africa are already in place through which countries such as Morocco import much of their electricity.  This European Union-Mediterranean Cooperation could remain important if renewable energy sources are developed in the region because electricity from these sources could then be exported, rather than imported.  Thus both the environmental and developmental needs of this region may be met.