MENA Knowledge Sharing and How-to in Subsidy Reform
Regional Workshop*
September 7-9, 2014
Dead Sea Marriott Resort
Dead Sea, Jordan
Day 0: (Sunday, September 7, 2014)
Welcome Reception
Arysha Courtyard
20:30 – 22:30
 Welcome Remarks: Yasser El-Gammal, Practice Manager, Social Protection &
Labor, Middle East and North Africa, World Bank
 Dr. Malek Kabariti, former Minister of Energy & Mineral Resources, Kingdom of
Jordan
 Husam Beides, Program Leader, World Bank
Policy Considerations for Subsidy Reform
Day 1: (Monday, September 8, 2014) – Vartani Ballroom
Workshop Registration
08:30 – 09:00
Review of workshop objectives, agenda, and expected outputs
Introductory Session: Towards Comprehensive Energy and
Social Safety Net Systems for Subsidy Reform
09:00 – 10:00
 Ferid Belhaj, Country Director for Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq & Iran
 H.E. Ibrahim Saif, Minister of Planning & International Cooperation, Jordan
 H.E. Khaled Hanafy, Minister of Supply and Internal Trade, Egypt
 Hartwig Schafer, Country Director for Egypt, Yemen and Djibouti
Moderator: Justin Dargin, Energy and Middle East Scholar, University of Oxford
* Note: The workshop will be conducted under the Chatham House Rule, such that participants are free to
use any information received but no comments will be directly attributed to the speakers

Coffee/Tea Break and Group Picture
10:00 – 10:30
Session I: Understanding the Cost of Subsidies
10:30 – 11:50
 The session will review the costs associated with maintaining subsidies in
MENA. Particularly, the session will look at the negative effects of subsidies
highlighting the distinction between economic and accounting costs.
 Keynote Presentation: Gazi Shbaikat, Resident Representative for Iraq and
Yemen, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
 Panelists: Omneia Helmy, Executive Director, Egyptian Center for Economic
Studies (ECES); Mohamed Shoeib, Managing Director, Qalaa Holdings Energy
Division; Chris Beaton, Research and Communications Officer, Global Subsidies
Initiative (GSI)
Moderator: Justin Dargin, Energy and Middle East Scholar, University of Oxford
Session II: Current MENA Subsidy Reform Experiences:
Egypt and Yemen
12:00 – 13:00
 The session will feature participant presentations on the current status of
country reforms, followed by reactions from a panel of international experts.
 Case Studies: Egypt, Yemen
 Speakers: Tarek Saad, Minister’s Assistant, Ministry Of State For Administrative
Development, and Sherif Zoheir, Senior Tariff Specialist, Egyptian Electric
Regulatory Authority; Abduljalil Aldar, Director General of Planning, Ministry of
Finance, Yemen
 Reactions from International Experts
Moderator: Mohab Hallouda, Senior Energy Specialist, World Bank
Lunch
Mosaico Restaurant
13:00 – 14:00
Session III: Current MENA Subsidy Reform Experiences:
Jordan and Djibouti
14:00 – 15:00
 The session will feature participant presentations on the current status of
country reforms, followed by reactions from a panel of international experts.
 Case Studies: Jordan, Djibouti
 Speakers: Mousa Tarawneh, Communications and Media Manager, National
Unified Registry for Cash Compensation Program, Ministry of Finance, Jordan;
Mouna Ahmed Ragueh, Chef de service, Safety Nets Program, State Secretariat
for National Solidarity, Djibouti
 Reactions from International Experts
Moderator: Amr Moubarak, Social Protection Economist, World Bank; Paolo
Verme, Senior Economist, World Bank

Coffee/Tea Break
15:00 – 15:15
Session IV: Current MENA Subsidy Reform Experiences:
Morocco and Tunisia
15:15 – 16:15
 The session will feature participant presentations on the current status of
country reforms, followed by reactions from a panel of international experts.
 Case Studies: Morocco, Tunisia
 Speakers: Latifa Boudouma, Chief of Subsidies Department, Ministry of General
Affairs and Governance, Morocco; Afif Mabrouki, Director of Refining, Transport
and Distribution of Hydrocarbons, Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mines,
Tunisia
 Reactions from International Experts
Moderator: Paolo Verme, Senior Economist, World Bank
Coffee/Tea Break
16:15 – 16:30
Session V: Identifying Country Needs for Moving Forward in
Energy Subsidy Reform and Social Protection Systems
16:30 – 18:00
 This session will begin with round-table discussions on identifying country
needs to prepare social protection and energy systems for subsidy reform.
Country participants will share their thoughts on how the World Bank can
support their efforts.
 Chairs: Ferid Belhaj and Hartwig Schafer, Country Directors, World Bank
Moderator: Yasser El-Gammal, Practice Manager, Social Protection & Labor,
Middle East and North Africa, World Bank
Welcome Dinner
Cascades Restaurant
20:00 – 22:00

How-To: Operationalizing Subsidy Reform
Day 2: (Tuesday, September 9, 2014) – Vartani Ballroom
Session VI: How to Prepare Energy Systems for Price Reform
09:00 – 10:15
 What is involved in preparing a country’s energy system for subsidy reform?
This session will explore the pervasiveness of subsidies along the energy supply
chain. It will evaluate how-to options for reforming subsides and increasing the
efficiency of energy distribution. The session will also explore intersectoral
effects of energy and transportation, and energy efficiency.
 Case Studies: Philippines, Turkey, Jordan
 Panelists: Jay Layug, former Undersecretary, Department of Energy, the
Philippines; Baris Sanli, Deputy General Manager, Ministry of Energy, Turkey; Dr.
Malek Kabariti, former Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Kingdom of
Jordan; Husam Beides, Program Leader, World Bank
Moderator: Maria Vagliasindi, Lead Economist, World Bank
Coffee/Tea Break
10:15 – 10:30
Session VII: Building Efficient Safety Net Systems to Protect
the Poor During Subsidy Reform
10:30 – 11:50
 Session will focus on ways governments can build and finance efficient,
consolidated, and resilient safety net programs in their countr ies prior to
engaging in subsidy-removal. Specifically, the session will look at how to design
and implement a cash-transfer program including specific processes such as
targeting, building a unified registry, and Management Information Systems
(MIS); set-up of payments mechanisms; set-up of grievance and redress systems;
and monitoring and evaluation.
 Case Studies: Indonesia, Dominican Republic
 Panelists: Secretary Bambang Widianto, Deputy for Social Welfare and Poverty
Alleviation, Republic of Indonesia; Susana Gamez, former Technical Coordinator,
Gabinete Social de la Presidencia, Dominican Republic
Moderator: Yasser El-Gammal, Practice Manager, Social Protection & Labor,
Middle East and North Africa, World Bank

Session VIII: Measuring the Impact of Subsidy Reform
12:00 – 13:00
 The session will review the tools available for analyzing the impact of subsidy
reform at the macroeconomic and household level. Specifically, the session will
introduce tools such as SUBSIM, CGE, and others.
 Session Presenter: Paolo Verme, Senior Economist, World Bank
Lunch
Mosaico Restaurant
13:00 – 14:00
Session IX: Why Is Subsidy Reform Politically Difficult? How
to Prepare for Subsidy Reform
14:00 – 15:15
 Using principles of political economy, this session will explore the question of
why subsidy reform is politically difficult. This session will discuss how to
identify sources of resistance and support, as well as major constraints to
change, and present different concepts (such as timing, sequencing, bundling,
and credible commitments) that can help increase support and allow reform to
take place. The second half of the session will evaluate international experiences
using communication strategies to change public opinion and increase buy-in for
subsidy reform.
 Panelists: Simon Commander, Managing Partner, Altura Partners; Edouard Al-
Dahdah, Senior Public Sector Specialist, World Bank; Damon Vis-Dunbar, Project
and Communications Manager, Global Subsidies Initiative (GSI)
Moderator: Gustavo Demarco, Program Leader, World Bank
Coffee/Tea Break
15:15 – 15:30
Session X: Sharing Experiences Between Practitioners on the
Political Economy of Subsidy Reform
15:30 – 16:30
 The session will probe on the seldom-discussed challenges to subsidy reform,
with country representatives engaging in a frank discussion with political
economy experts
 Panelists: Simon Commander, Managing Partner, Altura Partners; Edouard Al-
Dahdah, Senior Public Sector Specialist, World Bank
Coffee/Tea Break
16:30 – 16:45

Session XI: Country Takeaways
16:45 – 17:45
 Day wrap-up and takeaways
 This session will reflect on the ‘How-To’ approach in subsidy reform in the
MENA region
Moderator: Justin Dargin, Energy and Middle East Scholar, University of Oxford
Dinner in Amman
Reem Al Badwadi
18:30 – 22:00
Conference financed through:
Multi-Donor Trust Fund
In collaboration with: