Road congestion is a major issue in the Middle East, particularly in Dubai, where, according to a study by Inrix, motorists spent nearly 29 hours stuck in traffic in 2017. As a result, the demand for transport by other means, such as railway, has grown considerably.@dan Similar problems exist across the other five Gulf Cooperation… Read More…
Like several other Middle East countries, Oman is dedicated to improving its economy through increased investment in non-oil exports. In particular, aligned with expectations set out in Vision 2040 and the National 2040 Tourism Strategy, the country has placed emphasis on tourism growth and, in that regard, has registered record numbers of visitors over the… Read More…
Yemen’s infrastructure has never been in an enviable state, but its essential services and buildings have been particularly ravaged since civil war broke out in 2014. Access to water diminished after explosions in early 2016 severely damaged a water desalination plant near Al-Mokha and a failed drilling technique made water even more scarce and expensive.… Read More…
As with the rest of the world, Middle East countries and their telecom operators are working toward large-scale deployment of 5G networks to improve connection and download speeds for all devices, as well as to allow for future integration in technology-driven smart cities. Beyond the implementation of 5G networks, here are five recent developments that… Read More…
Bahrain has high aspirations in regard to its tourism sector and is spending billions of dollars in tourism infrastructure to meet its goals. By 2020, the Middle East country anticipates the sector contributing more than $1 billion to its GDP. By that time, it will also have spent more than $13 billion on related projects.… Read More…
Home to more than 6 percent of the world’s crude oil reserves, Kuwait has built a relatively strong economy based upon oil production and distribution, with petroleum accounting for more than 90 percent of the nation’s export revenues. However, realizing the need to diversify its economy, Kuwait’s leaders are now heavily investing in civic- and… Read More…
Worldwide temperatures in summer 2018 have highlighted the impact of climate change and stressed the urgency for global leaders and organizations to expedite and improve their carbon-reduction solutions. Sweden, for instance, is in the middle of its hottest-recorded summer in more than 100 years, while Japan is experiencing dangerously high temperatures up to 41 degrees… Read More…
On June 20, 2018, MSCI, a leading global equity indices provider, upgraded Saudi Arabia to emerging market status. The investment bank UBS says this decision could attract up to $45 billion in capital to Saudi Arabia. Of this inflow, passive investors would contribute $10 billion and active ones would account for $35 billion. Another $5 billion… Read More…
The city of Duqm may offer a sneak peek into the future of economic opportunities in Oman. At one time a somewhat sleepy fishing town, Duqm aims to become the preeminent economic zone of not only Oman, but the entire Arabian Peninsula. Per Santander Financial, the Duqm Special Economic Zone alone attracted over $11 billion… Read More…
More than 206 million passengers flew to and from the Middle East in 2016, which represented a 9 percent increase from the year prior. This number is expected to rise significantly over the course of the next two decades, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). The organization estimates that the total market size… Read More…