Dear friends and colleagues,
It is a pleasure to write the foreword of this issue of the MENASP network newsletter. We hope that the newsletters have helped keep you updated on our latest news as well as offered you opportunities for research engagement. Through this effort, we hope to continue to gather the best expertise on social policy in the MENA region to support governments, policymakers, civil society groups and the wider public to mobilise political support and resources and take the agenda of social protection forward.
This newsletter marks unprecedented times with the outbreak and rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many, if not all, of us are now working from home and have put research projects on hold. These are hard times, indeed. However, it may turn out that good things come out of hard times as we reflect on our successes and failures and perhaps even re-imagine new forms of engagement and collaboration. On this note, we renew our invitation to use the MENASP Network space and newsletter to share experiences and new ideas during this uncertain time. We have begun this initiative by adding some new web links in the resources section to international organisations who are tracking the social protection response to COVID-19 across the world. In this time of global social and economic crisis, the relevance of the MENASP Network’s knowledge exchange and public engagement activities in social protection and sustainable peace in MENA becomes paramount. We hope it will rise to the challenges that governments face in their efforts to honour their obligations to alleviate poverty and empower the most vulnerable populations in MENA countries through effective measures for inclusive and accountable governance.
In this Spring 2020 issue, we are delighted to introduce our new Early Career Representatives (Noor and Tamara) who are reaching out to the ECR community so please look out for their survey request. We are also very pleased to tell you about an event that took place in Dubai just before the COVID-19 lockdown in early March to mark the start of a GCRF-AHRC development award that members of the network have obtained. The award will support new research on conflict-prevention in the MENA region, thereby showing yet again how relevant social protection issues are. Please watch this space for further exciting updates on this project. Through this effort, we hope to continue to gather the best expertise on social policy in the MENA region to support governments, policymakers, civil society groups and the wider public to mobilise political support and resources and take the agenda of social protection forward.
In this time of global financial crisis and the additional strain caused by the current pandemic, the relevance of the MENASP Network’s knowledge exchange and public engagement work social protection and sustainable peace in MENA becomes paramount. We hope it will rise to the challenges that governments face in their efforts to honour their obligations to alleviate poverty and empower the most vulnerable populations in MENA countries through effective measures for inclusive and accountable governance.
Through our website and social media pages, we strive to provide a digital platform for knowledge sharing and public engagement. There are plenty of opportunities in which you can help us enrich the network digital communication efforts. Therefore, we invite you to
- Write a blog post about any topic of social policy of your interest
- Share with us your recent publications to include in our virtual library
- Like, share and comment on our social media posts on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
- Invite your friends and colleagues to subscribe to our newsletter
- Share with us any recent calls for papers or funding opportunities
We appreciate your continued support and welcome your feedback on how to improve our means of communication to you as well as other academic and professional communities beyond the network as we continue to attract the field expertise.
Finally, we would like to wish our readers Happy Ramadan and a belated Happy Easter. We hope you enjoy reading this newsletter.
All the best and stay Safe!
Gihan Ismail
MENASP Network Research Associate
University of Bath (UK)