Event Reports

Opportunities, Problems, and Challenges of Oil-Producing Countries: Lessons learned from Rent Theory and Empirical Cases

Erkenntnisse der Rententheorie und Empirischer Fallstudien

On 1st of February 2012 resident representative of KAS Amman Dr. Martin Beck was invited to give a guest lecture entitled “Opportunities, Problems, and Challenges of Oil-Producing Countries: Lessons learned from Rent Theory, and Empirical Cases,” at the Department of Political Science of Salahaddin University Erbil, Iraq/Kurdistan. In his lecture Dr. Beck discussed the problems which are caused by external rents through the production of oil and presented policy recommendations to oil-producing countries.

Corporate Governance for Family Business

In recent decades, the focus of international bodies such as the IMF and World Bank has increased towards policies of corporate governance. On November 21, 2011, Konrad Adenauer Stiftung Amman, in cooperation with Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization, organized a discussion forum entitled "Corporate Governance for Family Business." Working also in the framework of social market economy, the aim of the conference was to propose ideas which could be implemented in the laws that affect businesses in Jordan.

Political Systems and the Role of Parliaments in the Emerging Arab Democracies

The onset of the Arab Spring compelled societies in the Middle East to demand their rights for meaningful democracy. Establishing a democracy requires political institutions that are able and willing to fully represent the interests and demands of the people. In light of these developments, KAS Amman and Al-Quds Center jointly organized a regional conference on Oct. 1-2, 2011 to discuss the role political bodies in these states play in achieving democracy and preventing the return of autocracy.

Women Empowerment through Research

KAS, the Women Empowerment Organization (WEO) and the Institute for Women's Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW)/ Lebanese American University (LAU) jointly organized a roundtable discussion on gender from November 16th - 18th 2011, entitled “Women Empowerment through Research”. The roundtable was successful in terms of opening new channels of communication between the network of scholars and civil society activists working on women and gender-related issues.

The Media and its Role in Monitoring the Municipal Elections

On October 22nd, KAS Amman in cooperation with First Media Company held a roundtable discussion that brought experts together to discuss "The Media and its Role in Monitoring Municipal Elections". Panelist tackled questions of competency of municipalities, transparency and integrity in municipal elections and the power of media in fostering positive change in the administration of elections as well as in the public perception of elections.

Empowering Local Governments in Jordan:

Enhancing Political and Developmental Relations between Local Governments and Local Communities

Since municipalities, respectively, local governments form the centre of developmental and investment activities in its community, KAS Amman and the Vision Center for Strategic and Development Studies organized a workshop on the empowerment of local governments in Jordan. The workshop took place on October 26th, 2011 in Jerash and was aimed at enhancing the role of municipalities and strengthening their relations with civil society organizations and the private sector in order to make their work most efficient.

PD Dr. Martin Beck nahm virtuell an einer vom GIGA in Hamburg organisierten wissenschaftlichen Konferenz teil

PD Dr. Martin Beck nahm am 13./14. Oktober virtuell an einer wissenschaftlichen Konferenz zum Thema "Will a Regional Power Re-Emerge in the Middle East? New Power Constellations after the Arab Revolts" am GIGA in Hamburg teil. Sein einführender Vortrag behandelte das Thema "The Arab Spring as a Catalyst for the Re-Emergence of a Regional Power in the MIddle East?". Der Vortrag ist hier abrufbar:

Dr. Martin Beck taught a course on Cross-Mediterranean Relations at the Jordanian Institute of Diplomacy

Dr. Martin Beck taught future Jordanian diplomats on cross-mediterranean relations at the Insitute of Diplomacy. The four-day course was held from October 3rd to 6th and covered historical and theoretical aspects of Euro-Arab relations, the relevance of the Israli-Palestinian conflict and the challenges of the Arab Spring.

Study Visit to Brussels with Directors of JCCES, LCCES and WEO.

Accompanied by three directors of leading non-governmental organizations from Jordan Mona al-Alami (Jordanian Center for Civic Education Studies), Susan Arif (Women Empowerment Organization, Iraq) and Rula Mikhael (Lebanese Center for Civic Education Studies), Martin Beck travelled to a study visit to Brussels, which was organized by the KAS office in Brussels headed by Andrea Ostheimer. The participants had the opportunity to meet high-ranking figures from the European Parliament, the European Commission, the European Action Service, NATO and several important non-governmental organizations.

Media and Political Development

On September 10th, KAS Amman in cooperation with First Media Company held a roundtable discussion concerning "Media and Political". Panelist discussed the role of media in raising awareness for political developments among youth and in promoting democracy in societies.