Islam and the West: Annual Report on the State of Dialogue

development, even if <strong>the</strong>y see <strong>the</strong> causes of underdevelopment
through different lenses. Mirroring generally positive views
of international economic openness in <strong>the</strong> <strong>West</strong>, an April
2007 World Public Opinion poll found that majorities in
Morocco (62%), Egypt (92%), Pakistan (65%) <strong>and</strong> Indonesia
(80%) considered globalization <strong>and</strong> economic connectivity
agoodthing.
Ano<strong>the</strong>r poll found that majorities in <strong>the</strong> <strong>West</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Muslim
world think that <strong>the</strong> latter should be more prosperous than
<strong>the</strong>y are today (70% in Great Britain, 86% France, 83%
Egypt, 85% Jordan). But reasons <strong>the</strong>y give for <strong>the</strong> lag are
very different – 59% of those surveyed in Egypt <strong>and</strong> 66%
in Jordan blame <strong>West</strong>ern policies, while 51% in <strong>the</strong> UK blame
corrupt governments <strong>and</strong> 48% in France blame a lack of
democracy. Interestingly, <strong>the</strong> survey found that Muslims in
Europe were more likely than non-Muslims to identify corruption
as a cause of lagging development (64% Spain, 63% Great
Britain <strong>and</strong> 57% France).
Dialogue about globalization, economic relations <strong>and</strong>
overarching social agendas relating to <strong>West</strong>-Muslim relations
takes place at many levels <strong>and</strong> in many global forums,
including prominently <strong>the</strong> United Nations General Assembly,
<strong>the</strong> Group of Eight leading industrialized Nations (G8), <strong>the</strong>
International Labour Organization, <strong>the</strong> World Bank <strong>and</strong>
International Monetary Fund <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> World Trade Organization.
It is rare for questions of economic <strong>and</strong> social development
to be related directly to culture <strong>and</strong> religion in <strong>the</strong>se contexts.
The links tend to emerge in discussions about <strong>the</strong> role of
<strong>the</strong> state <strong>and</strong> programs of development assistance.
The spectrum of views within <strong>the</strong> Muslim world – as well
as in <strong>the</strong> <strong>West</strong> – around issues of social <strong>and</strong> economic
development is broad, ranging from forthright support for
growth-led development strategies to sharp criticism.
Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali, President of <strong>the</strong> <strong>Islam</strong>ic Development
Bank Group, exemplifies <strong>the</strong> first trend. In an address to
<strong>the</strong> second World <strong>Islam</strong>ic Economic Forum in <strong>Islam</strong>abad,
Pakistan, he highlighted foreign direct investment as a
motor of growth <strong>and</strong> as critical for social development.
“As we are all aware, economic growth in our member
countries must be sustained in order to achieve a lasting
reduction in poverty,” he told <strong>the</strong> meeting. “<strong>Annual</strong> economic
growth should be sustained at least twice <strong>the</strong> population
growth.” The latter, critical view of growth-led strategies is
perhaps most vividly portrayed in Bamako, a2006film
directed by Abderrahmane Sissako <strong>and</strong> set in Mali. The
film highlights <strong>the</strong> harsh realities of how globalization <strong>and</strong>
economic forces are experienced in a poor community.
The most significant international effort to focus on
underdevelopment in <strong>the</strong> Arab – as opposed to Muslim –
world was a series of Arab Human Development <strong>Report</strong>s
published by <strong>the</strong> United Nations Development Programme
(UNDP) between 2002 <strong>and</strong> 2005 under <strong>the</strong> leadership of
prominent Arab intellectuals. These reports emphasized
<strong>the</strong> “depth of <strong>the</strong> crisis, in a bid to shatter <strong>the</strong> complacency
<strong>and</strong> denial that afflict <strong>the</strong> Arab discourse on development.”
The reports received wide media attention. “If you want to
underst<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> milieu that produced bin Ladenism, <strong>and</strong>
will reproduce it if nothing changes, read this report,” New
York Times columnist <strong>and</strong> author Thomas Friedman wrote.
“The good news, as this report shows, is that we have
liberal Arab partners for change.”
“ As long as many people are
without a decent life today <strong>and</strong>
can truly hope for a better life
tomorrow, stable <strong>and</strong> harmonious
societies are a wistful illusion.”
Ka<strong>the</strong>rine Marshall
Crucial debates about <strong>the</strong> role of <strong>Islam</strong> <strong>and</strong> development –
<strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> most significant programmes with an <strong>Islam</strong>ic
dimension – have emerged within <strong>the</strong> Muslim world itself.
Both <strong>the</strong> OIC <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> World <strong>Islam</strong>ic Economic Forum
Foundation (WIEF), based in Malaysia, have played a
significant role. Encouraging economic integration among
members <strong>and</strong> enhancing <strong>the</strong> development of less
developed Muslim societies has been a fundamental goal
of <strong>the</strong> OIC since its creation. At a June 2005 forum to
announce a preferential trading system encompassing
many OIC members, Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah
<strong>Islam</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>West</strong>: <strong>Annual</strong> <strong>Report</strong> on <strong>the</strong> State of Dialogue Economic <strong>and</strong> Social Development
89