1 textiles and clothing in the mediterranean region opportunities challenges of returning to gatt disciplines hanaa kheir el din m maamoun abdel fattah introduction play an important role economies they significantly contribute manufacturing production employment trade several these countries particularly egypt morocco syria tunisia turkey a lesser extent jordan lebanon although total exports are relatively small compared other developing such as china hong kong korea or even india pakistan yet represent higher share merchandise world shares textile much than their indicating that enjoy comparative advantage sector sectors have traditionally been persistently protected through tariffs quantitative restrictions this domestic protection has until uruguay round ur somewhat justified by industries industrial set