Browsing by Subject "Middle East"
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Item American Discords: Religious Tolerance and Pluralism at Home and Abroad(2014-04-23) Tippet, Krista; Antholis, WilliamItem Crisis in Jordan's Water Sector? Understanding the Dynamics of Institutional and Political Constraints in Water Management and Corporatization Reforms(2015-05) Mahayni, BasilSince 1999, Jordan has experimented with various forms of privatization and corporatization reforms in Amman's municipal water services and the national water sector. The goal of these reforms, it is argued, is to improve water management conditions in light of its stark lack of domestic water and energy resources and ongoing political and economic impacts of regional wars and conflicts. The reforms, however, experienced numerous setbacks. This dissertation seeks to understand why the privatization process has struggled and the effects it has generated. Privatization reforms come after nearly fifty years of World Bank and USAID sponsored water sector development projects in Amman specifically, and Jordan more generally. These projects were part and parcel of Jordan's state building processes and modernization of municipal and national water services. The overall claim in this dissertation is that these state building and modernization processes created institutional and political constraints, which have become endemic to, and evolved with, water sector operations and reforms. Four sub-claims are offered. First, advocates of privatization and corporatization depict water sector crises through economic and engineering frameworks, which neglect considerations of political and institutional dynamics. Second, contemporary water crises are strongly influenced by the history of water sector development and state building processes, on the one hand, and the imbricated evolution of municipal and national water policies and institutions on the other. These processes resulted in political and institutional constraints that have become part and parcel of the water sector's operational dynamics and continued transformation. Third, corporatization reforms have been shaped by these institutional and political contexts, while also introducing new constraints that further change the dynamics of the water sector. Last, reform programs and the design of municipal water services shape household experiences, while their opinion of reform processes remains critical for understanding the likelihood of more contentious reform programs.Item Examining the Link Between Women's Political and Economic Empowerment: A Comparative Analysis of Success Case Studies and the MENA Region(2023) Betancourt, Zoe; Booker, Lily; Huber, Olivia; Lee, KathleenIn the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, women’s empowerment is improving in some aspects, but examining the relationship between women’s political and economic empowerment is essential to the creation and implementation of future female engagement strategies. Although women’s empowerment continues to evolve in the MENA region, common themes of concern that jeopardize its progress are still present and are found in the form of harassment and discrimination due to patriarchal systems and customs. This report seeks to evaluate the linkage between political and economic empowerment and concludes that political empowerment is the leading factor in closing gender gaps. Conducting further research, our case studies investigate the countries of Bangladesh, Namibia, Rwanda, Argentina, and Iceland, where the rates of women’s political and economic empowerment are high. The research findings are broad and address key issue areas such as unpaid care, education, land ownership, inheritance, and civil participation. Additionally, it emphasizes that male support is necessary to promote successful campaigns of equality on both the political and economic fronts.Item Geological Crisis in Yemen: The Politics of Resource Scarcity(2013-10-01) Qamar, AsfandiyarYemen's oil and water crisis has been a powerful agent of change in Yemeni society, affects of which are transforming Yemen's political, economic and social spheres. Yemen is far from the only country in the region currently experiencing or expected to encounter political, social and economic turmoil as a result of acute water and oil scarcity. As a vital ally of the U.S. and Saudi Arabia in counter-terrorism, Yemen also holds strategic importance for both countries who would like to see it a more stable country. Decades of relying entirely on Yemen's modest oil exports to operate complex system of patronage towards its various tribes and bureaucrats, operated largely in secrecy, also encouraged widespread mismanagement, abuse and corruption. As a result not only did the oil reserves and revenues from it began to declined drastically as oil ran out, a culture of crises mismanagement and corruption also depleted contributed to the depletion of Yemen's water supply. Therefore, Yemenis today face 40% unemployment, combined with acute water and oil shortages leading to crises in the agricultural sector, widespread poverty and malnourishment. Furthermore, consistent lack of effective action from the government of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh not only destroyed his legitimacy, but also eventually uprooted the system of patronage that he relied on to govern the country. The current political transformation and National Dialogue underway in Yemen will have to negotiate a new social contract and a viable political system that can revive Yemen's economy and effectively deal with its considerable security problems.Item The Greater Middle East(2008-09-03) Jacobs, Lawrence R.Item Minutes: Senate Committee on Social Conerns: April 26,2004(2004-04-26) University of Minnesota: Senate Committee on Social ConcernsItem Review of Women of Sand and Myrrh by Hanan Al-Shaykh(Voices from the Gaps, 2005) Winter, Laurel