Consortium of Arab Policy Research Institutes (CAPRI) Project

Rami G. Khouri, Hana A. El-Ghali, and Hania Bekdash, Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, AUB

The CAPRI project was launched in fall 2010 as part of the RAPP program particularly aimed at studying the research and policy links related to Policy Research Institutes (PRIs). The term PRI is used in the place of "think tank" because the latter term is a Western concept that does not fully incorporate the range of institutions with policy impact in the Arab world. In order to better understand PRIs' research and policy links, it is essential to examine PRIs' role and impact. This requires the conceptual disaggregation of PRIs as institutes on the one hand, and PRIs within the policy-making process on the other.

The research questions guiding this project are:
(1) What is the role of PRIs in the policy-making process in the Arab world?
(2) How can PRIs impact local, regional and global policy-making?
(3) How can PRIs best collaborate?

The CAPRI Project completed Phase I in May 2011. The initial phase involved the mapping of PRIs in the Arab world. In addition, interviews, meetings, and seminars were conducted with PRI directors as well as academics and experts on Arab policy-making. A database was also developed that captures the "landscape" of PRIs in the Arab world. Finally, preliminary analysis of the interviews, meetings proceedings, and database was generated. Phase II of the CAPRI project will be launched in January 2012 with a workshop targeted at tackling the practical and strategic issues raised by PRIs during Phase I. A series of similar workshops will follow. During this phase, the research team will also engage in an in depth analysis of the data generated during the initial phase.