Most governments in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region use trade policy to protect certain industries, provide tax incentives to promote a particular type of investment, and make subsidized credit available to firms of a certain size. Such government intervention, known as industrial policy, is the topic of this book. The aim is to assess whether state intervention leads to net benefits to society, why policymakers intervene, and how to bring about a healthier balance between states and markets. Answers to these questions are given in six chapters based on research papers that were presented at a conference held in Cairo in November 2005, and include country case studies on Egypt, Morocco, Turkey, and Jordan.

Contributions by: Hasan Ersel, Ahmed Galal, Najib Harabi, Nihal El Megharbel, Mustapha Kamel Nabli, Marcus Noland