Sustainable Prosperity in the Arab Gulf: From Miracle to Method

ISBN-13: 9781032446783 / Angielski

Jarmo T. Kotilaine

Opis

Tracing the development journey of the Arabian Gulf region with a forward-looking perspective, this book describes how a combination of good fortune, creative experimentation, and determination has enabled the region to achieve prosperity. Today, the Arabian Gulf is well positioned to assume a pivotal role in the new global order.

Forced to balance an extreme climate and acute resource constraints, but also an exceptional location, the region’s progress and prosperity has historically been precarious and vulnerable to external shocks. Efforts to transcend resource dependency have typically involved proactive attempts to proactively enable other economic activities. This book argues that, while conventional economic diversification is making headway, the Gulf region is in fact amidst a far more holistic transformation that positions it for a pivotal role in the emerging multi-polar global order. It now offers globally competitive regulations and world-class infrastructure at the heart of the Old World, flanked by two fast-growing continents. It has become the hub of choice for a growing share of inter-continental flows of people, trade, and capital, and has established strong economic ties in all directions. This book shows how, despite many risks and challenges, the region possesses the forward-looking vision and necessary resilience that can finally liberate it from its long-standing "resource curse", and a development paradigm that looks likely to provide the foundation for sustained well-being in the decades ahead.

The scope and rigor of the book make it suitable as a reference on the Arabian Gulf and for those interested in global affairs and economic development, as well as policy makers and the business community.

Recenzje

"A journey through history explained under the lens of sustainable prosperity, economic diversification and the evolution within the marketplace. Jarmo’s storytelling takes you through the journey as an active listener. The storyline brings back fond memories and is quite nostalgic for the readers who have experienced and worked through the transitions within the regional marketplace over the past decades. The transition across the region has been quite exceptional, and the fact that the modern day GCC today holds the potential to be one of the fastest growing regions and to emerge as a powerhouse for influence is expertly expressed through Dr. Jarmo’s wordsmithing."

Jamal Fakhro, Managing Partner, KPMG Fakhro

"When Jarmo speaks (or writes), I pay attention. I find his thoughts, analysis, and conclusions insightful and thought-provoking. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants a better understanding of our region’s past and wants to help build a better tomorrow for its future generations."

Suhail Algosaibi, Founder and CEO, Falak Innovation

"Dr Kotilaine has produced a compelling narrative of the economic history of the Arab Gulf from the earliest times to the 21^st Century, including the extraordinary rags-to-riches story of the hydrocarbons era and describes with great clarity both the challenges and the potential opportunities that face these now-wealthy, but still largely hydrocarbon-dependent, states as they prepare for the post-oil age. This is a book that will fascinate the general reader, while also providing vital historical and cultural context to anyone who (like me) needs to understand the complex economic challenges that this region now faces."

Lord Philip Hammond of Runnymede

"Dr Kotilaine is considered a leading expert on the Gulf economies. His intimate knowledge of, not only economic issues, but also the underlying sociopolitical landscape and culture, make him uniquely qualified to shed the light on key aspects of the post oil transition. Recommended reading."

Hassan Jarrar, Former CEO, Bahrain Islamic Bank

"This work demonstrates how ongoing efforts to transform the economic models of the Gulf countries at the same time position them for a role of growing importance in the global economy. Among other things, the Gulf economies face a compelling opportunity to play a leading role in the global energy transition."

Abdulhussain Ali Mirza, Former Minister of Electricity and Water Affairs, Former President, Sustainable Energy Authority, Kingdom of Bahrain

"Jarmo Kotilaine's new book presents a lucid, coherent analysis and history of the transformation of the GCC countries from near empty, desert spaces into modern powerhouses of energy and finance. This is a fascinating story of energy resources being invested into productive infrastructure, of economic liberalisation through free zones, of freedom of movement of people and capital that transformed the economic geography of the Gulf. The GCC are now embarked on economic diversification 2.0, engaged in an energy transition to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels, develop their digital economies and move into higher value-added industries using modern tech."

Nasser Saidi, President, Nasser Saidi & Associates

"The Gulf countries are important actors in geopolitics and geo-economics thanks to their energy resources. This book will help readers, whatever their views on the local regimes, understand the history of the gulf economies and how they are preparing for a world less dependent on fossil fuels. Given fractures in the world order, an important read."

Sir Paul Tucker, Author of Global Discord

"Dr. Jarmo has a long experience in the region's economic affairs. The importance of this new book stems from its handling of a number of vital issues related to the future of sustainable development programs that Gulf governments are working to implement in accordance with their wise long-term visions, and then he seeks to develop solutions to them."

Adnan Ahmed Yousif, Chairman, Bahrain Association of Banks

Spis treści

1. Awaiting a miracle 2. The double-edged sword 3. Determined to diversify 4. Reaping the demographic dividend 5. Greasing the wheels of exchange 6. Build it and they will come 7. All together now? 8. The imperative of change 9. Navigating choppy waters 10. Charting the way forward

O autorze

Jarmo T. Kotilaine has held several positions in the financial services sector and at government-related entities in the Gulf region, and currently works at a fund tasked with supporting economic diversification in Bahrain. He studied economics and economic history at Oxford, Cambridge, and Harvard, and has written widely in the regional media on economic financial market issues.