Throwing Good Money After Bad

the Palestinian Authority is convening the Palestine Investment Conference, in an effort to improve economic and social conditions in the territories, which is a critical component of the broader Middle East peace process.

Walter Isaacson, chairman of the U.S.-Palestinian Partnership and president of the Aspen Institute, says partnership members will attend the May 21-23 business conference in the West Bank city of Bethlehem with the aim of increasing investment in the Palestinian economy.

The joint effort by the U.S. government, private businesses, civic leaders and the Palestinian Authority to help create jobs and educational opportunities for Palestinians was announced December 3, 2007, by President Bush. The investment component is part of an intensive diplomatic initiative, begun at the November 2007 Annapolis Middle East peace conference, that is intended to lead to Palestinian statehood...

"This would complement something that's already been launched, which is the Middle East Investment Initiative {MEII], which supplies small business loans for ... $50,000 to almost up to $500,000 now for businesses operating in the West Bank."

The MEII is a public-private partnership between the Aspen Institute, the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the Palestinian Investment Fund that provides a $228 million loan guarantee program. Isaacson said that six Palestinian banks are working with the loan program as partners. There are 11 additional projects being developed and there has been $1.6 million in loans made to support them, he said.

"In order to have a political settlement, you also have to have stability. You have to have economic opportunity," Isaacson said...

The partnership is headed by Isaacson and co-chaired by Sandy Weill, former chairman of Citigroup; Lester Crown, chairman of Material Service Corporation; Ziad Asali, president of the American Task Force on Palestine; and Jean Case, chief executive of the Case Foundation.