The Arab world has abundant energy resources and potential for growth and development, but is poorly integrated into the global economy outside the oil sector. Poor and rich countries alike suffer from such problems as water scarcity, unemployment, lack of economic diversity, weak public accountability and conflict.

Statistics underscore the Arab world's particularly acute challenges:

• Compared to other regions, the Middle East and North Africa region has the highest unemployment rate and the lowest index of public accountability.
• At 30%, the participation of women in the labor force is the lowest in the world.
• The ratio of trade to GDP which measures trade integration has declined from about 90% in 1980 to 65% today.

The World Bank Group is looking to forge a more effective partnership with the Arab world. By disseminating global knowledge, facilitating learning and piloting new approaches, the Bank seeks to foster broad-based growth, increase trading opportunities, improve the ability of education systems to respond to the job market, expand social services, boost public accountability, confront environmental issues, and create more hospitable environments for entrepreneurship and innovation.