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Living with uncertainty

Jul 06,2017 - Last updated at Jul 06,2017

It goes without saying that stability is conducive to development and progress. It may even be a prerequisite of progress.

But what happens when stability is either below the level one desires or deficient? Does it preclude development?

A look at today’s countries and regions that emerged as economic and political powers reveals that, by and large, they have enjoyed an acceptable degree of stability and security.

In this highly competitive world, countries need to be fully focused on development for their efforts to bear fruit, and for them to be on par with or ahead of others.

Worries, tensions and conflicts can be costly, not only in terms of human life and funds that can be used more profitably for peaceful and developmental purposes, but also in terms of effort and focus.

This is why security and stability are a blessing, and why countries and regions should make it a priority to defuse tensions and resolve conflicts.

North America, Europe and Southeast Asia are great examples of stability and security leading to development, progress and prosperity.

We, in this part of the world, also believe that security, stability and peace are essential for the welfare of both individual countries and our region as a whole.

For the past 100 years and more, we have been plagued with tensions, conflicts and wars that are largely responsible for our inability to catch up with countries and regions that were ahead of us, or follow the example of those countries or regions that were on par with us or even lagging behind, but then were able to make a big leap forward.

For over 100 years, we have not been able to make the desired leap forward.

We developed and progressed largely during the moments of relative calm and stability that existed in between conflicts and wars.

“We”, here, means the region more than individual countries.

It is a blessing that several individual Arab countries, including Jordan, have experienced an acceptable degree of security and stability for some time, which partly explains why they have made the progress they have. 

But security and stability at the level of individual countries is incomplete without regional security.

This is why it is a must for individual Arab countries to work collectively to defuse and resolve all inter-Arab and inter-region tensions and conflicts so that they can focus fully on development and progress.

Such a step is a major factor in bringing about the expected leap.

Until this much-cherished objective materialises, however, we have no other choice but to work diligently on two fronts simultaneously: guard against or deal with regional tensions and conflicts, on the one hand, and focus on development and progress, on the other.

We do not have the luxury of choice here. Nor can we afford to postpone work on development until we work out tensions and conflicts.

 

Unfortunately, whether we like it or not, living with uncertainty has become part and parcel of our existence.

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