Writing in Arab News, Fatin Bundagji reports on a US State Dept. program to bring a variety of Arab women to the US to express their personal views about reform and how the US might best help those efforts. As part of the US Public Diplomacy program, this looks to have been useful, primarily as a ‘ground-truthing’ of US policy, that is, making sure that policy matches up with the reality on the ground.

Bundagji correctly concludes that this program will not lead to manifest reform in and of itself. But it will help to focus how the US approaches the issues. That’s worthwhile.

Reforms: What Some Arab Women Want…
Fatin Bundagji, fatin@bundagji.com

It was a unique event. Over 15 women leaders from 11 countries across the Middle East and North Africa region were invited to bring their voices together in a coalition to influence the outlook and priorities of policy-makers on foreign affairs in Washington, D.C. The date was set for March 5 to 7; the host was the US State Department and through the Middle East Partnership Initiative Programs; the theme was: “Women and Political Reform in the Middle East & North Africa.”

The process was clear. During the first session, the Arab women delegates shared with each other their perspectives on the impact that US foreign policies had on reform measures in their countries. Following that, they drafted a standard list of priorities and development programs in preparation for what was to come. The next two days were devoted to interactive discussions between the delegates and key policy-makers in Congress, the State Department, policy analysts in the academic community, and members of civil society organizations — all of whom did not have the opportunity to hear from women in the Arab world directly.

The task was not easy. From trying to achieve group consensus on a unified Arab reform priority list drafted by the delegates, to believing that 16 Arab women professionals and activists could actually influence Middle Eastern foreign policy in a couple of meetings was not only challenging but also quite unrealistic.
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