Financial Integration : A Focus on the Mediterranean Region

The Arab upheaval and the world's biggest financial crisis after the Great Depression were almost simultaneous in their occurrence. The Mediterranean economies now face a dual challenge of a political and financial restructuring in the light of a shaky economic pedestal on which they stand. In light of this socio-political and economic shift in both inland and in world markets, this book offers a thorough analysis on problems, prospects and the way ahead for the financial integration of the South-Mediterranean region. Several perspectives on financial integration and policy recommendations are put forward from a leading group of researchers specializing on the Mediterranean region.

Marga Peeters organized the MRM workshop and wrote this chapter while she was a Research Fellow at the Netherlands Institute for Advanced Study (NIAS) of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW). She gained research and policy experience as Senior Economist at the European Commission, Resident Monetary Policy advisor of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at the Banka e Shqipërisë in Albania, Assistant Manager in the Scientific and Econometric Research Department of De Nederlandsche Bank, Post-Doc Research Fellow at the Banco de España, University of Warwick, Université Catholique de Louvain and the Centre de la Recherche en Economie et Statistique. She holds a PhD in applied econometrics from Maastricht University and a MSc in applied econometrics from Tilburg University. Contact details huber@TinaMargaPeeters.eu www.TinaMargaPeeters.eu.

Nidal Rachid Sabri is Professor at Birzeit University, Palestine. He served 21 years as the Dean of college of Commerce & Economics and Director of MBA program at the same University and received his doctoral degree from the University of Northern Colorado, USA. As a consultant he served on several missions with UN Organizations including; UN-ESCWA, UNDP, UNIDO, UNCTAD,, UNHABITAT, the ILO and he was a visiting scholar at the research department of the IMF. He published among others in the Journal of Derivatives & Hedge Funds, International Review of Applied Financial Issues and Economics, International Journal of Business and Globalization, International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets, Research in International Business and Finance, Advances in Financial Economics, International Journal of Business, Review of Accounting and Finance, Journal of Multinational Financial Management, International Journal of Commerce and Management, International Management, Small Business Economics, International Review of Comparative Public Policy,Finance India, Journal of International Accounting, Auditing and Taxation, Transforming Government: People, Process and Policy Journal , Middle East Business Review, Journal of Economic and Social Research and Management Accountant. He is the author of 25 books including: Stability of International Stock Markets, Financial Institutions and Markets in Arab Economy, Income Taxation and Budgeting.

Wassim Shahin is Professor at the School of Business, Lebanese American University in Lebanon. He served as the founding Dean of the School of Business on the Byblos campus from 1996-2011. He has authored and co-edited four books, several monographs, and over thirty articles in refereed international journals. He is the founding editor of the academic Journal “Review of Middle-East Economics and Finance”. He serves on several editorial boards of academic journals and organizations. He is a member of the board of Directors of several public, private and banking institutions. Before joining the Lebanese American University, he held tenured and visiting positions in the USA at DePauw University and Indiana University, Bloomington where he earned his doctorate.