Chancellor pledges $400 million of European and US support for regeneration of Palestinian economy

Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, today welcomed a Joint Declaration from Israeli and Palestinian business leaders urging private sector growth in the West Bank and Gaza.

The Declaration builds upon commitments made by the Chancellor in the Middle East recently to lead an international effort on loans to small businesses worth a potential $400 million starting with $30 million this year from Europe alone and complimented by US funding that will help create thousands of jobs.

The Chancellor was speaking at an investors’ conference, ‘Promoting Economic Growth in the West Bank and Gaza through the Private Sector’, co hosted by HM Treasury and the World Bank in London.

The conference brought together representatives of the Israeli, Palestinian and international business communities, Government representatives and international organisations to discuss the measures needed to promote economic growth through the private sector in the West Bank and Gaza.

The Joint Declaration (see link below) includes an Action Plan to overcome obstacles to private sector led investment and growth.

Welcoming the Declaration, Gordon Brown said:

“This Declaration shows a shared purpose to make concerted progress in this most important of areas. Trade and economic cooperation are the economic foundation not just for prosperity but for peace and security in this region.

“My message is one of hope – that there is an economic prize before us, a double dividend, ensuring that people who, because they have a job and a livelihood, to support their families have hope and a stake in a peaceful future. And also ensuring that the benefits of economic growth are so great, that people see that the unacceptable cost of returning to violence is not only a loss of security, but a loss of prosperity.

“Everyone must now come together to realise the prize before us: a vibrant Palestinian economy, offering employment, opportunity and prosperity to the Palestinian people. Economic growth underpinning peace.

“Today’s conference helps to lift our aspiration to the future prospects for growth, presenting a unique opportunity to bring together Israeli, Palestinian and international business leaders to articulate the contribution the private sector can make to Palestinian economic regeneration.”

Today’s conference meets shortly after G8 Finance Ministers met in London on 2 December with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts, Ehud Olmert and Salam Fayyad, and the Quartet’s Special Envoy, James Wolfensohn.

On 14 December, the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC) of donors to Palestinian Authority will also meet in London, under the co-chairmanship of the UK and Norway.

Notes for editors

1. A Joint Declaration by representatives of the Israeli and Palestinian and business communities, who met in Jerusalem on 5 December and in London yesterday, was presented at the conference. It is made up of 12 Palestinian and 8 Israeli businesspeople, supported by staff from the World Bank [and HM Treasury]. The full text of the declaration can be found at http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/newsroom_and_speeches/press/2005/press_jointdec_05.cfm

2. Details of the loan guarantee scheme for small businesses was announced by the Chancellor, EIB President Maystadt and Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner on 11 November and can be found at http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/newsroom_and_speeches/speeches/statement/press_63_05.cfm

3. The conference opened with a plenary session including a series of keynote addresses from: Palestinian National Authority Minister of National Economy, H.E. Mazen Sinokrot; Israel’s Ministry of Finance Director-General, Dr Joseph Bachar; and the World Bank’s Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa, Christiaan Poortman. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown M.P., spoke in this session.

4. Topics discussed included six core themes:

Rebuilding the West Bank and Gaza’s basic infrastructure.
Partnership opportunities for Israeli and Palestinian business people in the shipping and tourism sectors.
The role of economic zones and industrial estates in the Palestinian development strategy, focusing on public private partnerships.
Steps to encourage entrepreneurship that facilitate in small and medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) access to finance.
Role of information technology in Palestinian economy, focusing on manufacturing industry and providing a competitive edge for Palestinian products in the global economy.
Prospects for the agricultural sector and the role exports.

Panellists for these sessions were drawn from the Israeli, Palestinian and international business communities and from a number of international institutions.

5. Media enquiries should be addressed to Sue Monk or Charlotte Farrar at the Treasury Press Office on 020 7270 5252.

6. Non-media enquiries should be addressed to the Treasury Correspondence and Enquiry Unit on 020 7270 4558 or by e-mail to public.enquiries@hm-treasury.gov.uk.

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