Economic Development in the Gulf Cooperation Council Countries

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Natural Resources Curse and Economic Diversification in GCC Countries

   • Sami Ben Mim, Mohamed Sami Ben Ali

   Pages 1-18

3. Climate Agreements’ Implementation Through Energy Transition and Economic Diversification in Kuwait

   • Nathalie Hilmi, Shekoofeh Farahmand, Manal Shehabi

   Pages 19-42

4. Knowledge-Based Development and Economic Diversification: The Case of Qatar

   • Ahmed Almoli, M. Evren Tok

   Pages 43-73

5. Food Security in the GCC Countries: Towards a More Diversified and Sustainable Economic Development

   • Khalil Yahya Al-Handhali, Héla Miniaoui

   Pages 75-88

6. Why Should Saudi Arabia Diversify Its Economy?

   • Nathalie Hilmi, Shekoofeh Farahmand, Fateh Belaid

   Pages 89-109

7. Corruption, Rentier States and Economic Growth Where Do the GCC Countries Stand?

   • Nicholas Apergis, Mohamed Sami Ben Ali

   Pages 111-123

8. Oman’s Shift to a Post-Oil Economy

   • Aisha Al-Sarihi

   Pages 125-140

9. The Journey of Bahrain to Economic Diversification

   • Anis Khayati, Jaffar Al-Sayegh

   Pages 141-156

10. Towards Changes of Macro-Economic Structures in Middle Eastern Countries. Empirical Evidence for 1970–2018

    • Ewa Lechman, Radosław Slosarski

    Pages 157-176

11. UAE Economic Diversification: A Medical Tourism Perspective

    • Jawaher Ahmed, Immanuel Azaad Moonesar, Mona Mostafa, Lama Zakzak, Faraz Khalid

    Pages 177-189

12. Why Gulf Rentier Economies Must Pursue Economic Diversification

    • Ahmed A. Khalifa, Abdul-Jalil Ibrahim

    Pages 191-208

This book delves into the economic development of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Since the 1960s, the GCC states have harnessed their potential to exploit the wealth accrued from the oil boom to build their infrastructure and grow their economies. However, the high level of dependency on oil as the primary source feeding their output made their economies volatile and vulnerable to fluctuations in the global oil prices. Moreover, the plunge in oil prices and the threat of depletion of this natural resource pose serious challenges to the GCC countries. Consequently, the GCC governments have realized the importance of diversifying their economies following the need to move away from reliance on hydrocarbon.

This book contributes to the theoretical literature by enriching the debate on the transition of the GCC countries from rentier states to diversified economies. It helps students and scholars understand this transformation with an expansive comprehension of the contemporary challenges facing the region, as well as outlining prospects for the future. 

• Economic Development in the Gulf
• Economic Development
• GCC Countries
• Economic Diversification
• Gulf economy
• Rentier states
• Arab economy
• Oil economy of the Gulf
• Political economy of the Gulf
• Gulf crisis and economy
• Blockade and Gulf economy

• Qatar University, Doha, Qatar

  Héla Miniaoui

Dr Héla Miniaoui is Associate Professor of Economics in the Gulf in the Gulf Studies Program at Qatar University. She holds a PhD in Economics from University of Tunis El Manar, Tunisia. Her research focuses primarily on Economic Policies, Food Security, Sustainable Development and Islamic Banking & Finance, and has been published in various refereed journals. Dr Hela has consulting experience with the African Development Bank Group, Awqaf New Zealand and IDEA-Consult Tunisia. She serves on the editorial and review committees of several international journals. She is a member of The Middle East Economic Association (MEEA) and a research fellow at The Economic Research Forum (ERF).

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