Universities as Key Partners for Developing Good Governance Practices in MENA

In October 2009, the World Bank, together with the European Investment Bank, the Governments of Egypt, France, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, and Tunisia, and the city of Marseille, launched the Marseille Center for Mediterranean Integration (MCMI). The Center will facilitate access to best knowledge and practices and improve cooperation to support development policies geared towards greater integration and convergence in the Mediterranean region. MCMI will offer a platform for public and independent institutions from the region to discuss these challenges learn from each other and strengthen local, national and regional capacities to manage interdependence, and other developmental challenges. Among these challenges is that of good governance and thisquick note is based on a speech given at one of MCMI's first forays into this area with a focus on the governance of universities and its broader impact on the good governance agenda in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.