Funding transition

The Deauville Partnership, which was created at this year's G8 summit in the French town which lends the partnership its name, was created to help countries swept up in the Arab Spring to foster democratic reforms by making aid and development assistance conditional on political and economic reforms.

The five countries that will be the beneficiaries of the Deauville Partnership are Tunisia, Egypt, Morocco, Jordan and the most recent member, Libya, which was included in the discussions for the first time this week. The G8 nations - France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, Canada, the United States and Russia - as well as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey and international organizations such the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank are the main contributors.

France's foreign minister Alain Juppe announced late Tuesday that the G8 foreign ministers had agreed to commit $80 billion (58 billion euros) to the five countries for the next two years under the agreement of the Deauville Partnership. This figure includes the $38 billion (28 billion euros), mostly coming from the IMF and World Bank, in multilateral assistance that was committed at the partnership's last meeting.

The decision came after the five Arab governments submitted their plans of action; focusing on strengthening the rule of law, supporting civil societies, developing education, speeding up economic development and enhancing the countries' regional and global integration. Their progress would be monitored on a regular basis by G8 foreign and finance ministers.

Financial incentives to pursue democratic transition

French Foreign Minister Juppe said that the Deauville Partnership would provide the "complementary political and economic components that are keys to sustainable peace and development" and that it offered "tremendous hope for democracy, rule of law, stability, peace and a better future" for the Arab Spring nations.

However, he added that it would have to be "genuine, comprehensive and immediately operational" for it to succeed.

"The transition and reforms must be carried out by the countries that are in the partnership," he said. "We are talking mostly about consolidation of rule of law; we are talking about also programs to help train judges, journalists; also programs to help election processes, the partnership will develop and will pursue the dialogue that it has started with the civil society."

Juppe insisted that the Deauville Partnership would not mean that the richer nations involved would exert any control over those they would be helping. "Each situation is a separate case and it's up to each of the countries to define their action plan," he said. "We are not here to impose on them."

Libya talks of quick transition but warns of slower reforms

Mahmoud Jibril, effectively the Libyan rebels' prime minister and head of the government of the National Transitional Council, also insisted on an equal partnership: "The future relations between these five lands and the G8 must be one on the same eye level," he said after the meeting.

Unlike Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and Jordan, Libya will not receive any financial assistance at first, instead relying on the slow thawing of former Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's frozen assets to begin with.

Despite this, Jibril promised quick progress in his country, which has already taken significant steps to lay the groundwork for a new administration. "I expect that the government will be appointed within one week or at a maximum of ten days," he said.

However he urged patience over his countries implementation of reforms. "For a land that has had no democratic culture for 42 years, this slow development is only natural," he said.

Speed will certainly be of the essence in the Arab Spring nations with Alain Juppe warning them that to waste time on the path to reforms and democracy would be dangerous.

"Transition also harbors risks," Juppe said. "If reform is too long in coming then there is the threat of extremism."

Moroccan Foreign Secretary Taieb Fassi Fihri warned that progress towards democracy was very difficult to assess with one model-for-all as many nations were at very different stages in their revolutions. He suggested that three central elements should be applied when assessing democratic transition: the efforts being made by the state, the monitoring of progress and the difference in situations between them.

Easing the financial burden of revolution

The Arab Spring was not, of course, only an uprising of people demanding democracy but also one which called for better living and employment conditions in countries such as Tunisia and Egypt. The toll of the uprisings which lasted many months have also affected the economic situation of the Arab Spring nations, adding to the pressure on their already fragile economies.

"What is happening now in our countries is something exceptional which needs exceptional way of thinking - thinking out of the box - and exceptional measures to deal with it," said Egyptian Foreign Secretary Mohammed Kamel Amr at a press conference after the meeting. "Time is of the essence; our people have very high hopes and they need to see results on the ground."

The Arab nations are acutely aware that their millions of young citizens, who in many cases were the catalyst for reforms and revolution, now demand results from their leaders. Most want to see an improvement in their job prospects and a stable economy which can help improve their living standards.

Egypt's economy has certainly suffered from the upheaval with its vital tourism industry and exports suffering through the uprising that deposed former President Hosni Mubarak in February. "It is no secret that our financial position has been restricted," Amr admitted. "We need short-term financial support. We can use as much help as we can get."

Juppe also made the point that it was a priority of the Partnership to help the young people of the countries affected. "School education and professional training are vital for the work of the partnership," he said, adding that the Partnership was ready to support improvements in education and the fight against illiteracy and unemployment among young people.

Developments and progress in the Arab nations will be discussed at a regional summit in Kuwait on November 21-22. The next official meeting of the Deauville partners is expected to come in 2012 when the United States becomes chair of the G8.

Author: Christina Bergmann, New York/Nick Amies
Editor: Michael Knigge