AMMAN, April 7 -- Participants in the World Economic Forum on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) 2019 concluded on Sunday, calling on stakeholders to increase collaboration on social, economic and climate issues to address regional challenges.
"Building new platforms of collaboration is about providing space for people to think through the economic and social model, the environment and humanitarian emergencies in a multistakeholder way," said Mirek Dusek, head of MENA region of the World Economic Forum.
"We should double down on bringing this region up," said Alain Bejjani, CEO of Majid Al Futtaim Holding. "We need to engage in more cooperation."
If the private and public sectors put forth a shared economic vision, he suggested, the region could double or triple its GDP, he added.
During the two-day event, 100 most promising start-ups of the Arab world participated in the event and engaged with industry and government leaders to discuss the future of their industries and how to add values to society.
At the meeting, Bahrain announced the roll-out of a new program to support the 100 Arab start-ups shaping the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The program will allow start-ups to rapidly scale up their businesses and access a broader spectrum of support in Bahrain.
The United Arab Emirates has announced it is granting five-year visas for the 100 start-ups.
The event, which attracted more than 1,000 government and private sector representatives from more than 50 countries, witnessed several discussions on mega projects in the MENA region and pressing challenges and issues facing the more than 400 million population of the region.