In parallel to these heavy, energy-related industries, many export-processing zones have been set up in the region. Again there has been significant variation, with most being in the Gulf monarchies which no longer have the competitive advantage of abundant hydrocarbon resources. By providing integrated industrial zones, mostly geared towards small manufacturers and branches of foreign companies, these states have sought to attract foreign direct investment and kick-start import-substitution industries while also creating diverse employment opportunities for their citizens that are not directly tied to oil, sovereign wealth funds, or government services. Crucially, as specially designated ‘free zones’ in most cases they have allowed companies to circumvent the described kafala sponsorship system, and have thus proved popular with multinationals seeking bases in the region unrestricted by domestic legislation.
The pioneer of this strategy is Dubai, which launched its Jebel Ali Free Zone in 1985. Within a few years the zone had attracted several hundred companies, many of them from Europe, North America, and Asia. In 2007 it even became the primary headquarters of the formerly Texas-based multinational, Halliburton. Since then Dubai has set up other zones, many of which have been sector-specific and similarly popular. In 2000 the Dubai Internet City and Dubai Media City were launched, respectively for IT and media-related companies. And in 2003 Dubai Healthcare City was set up to serve as a base for foreign medical companies and services, including the Harvard Medical School,[208] while Dubai Knowledge Village was established to house branches of several international universities, most of which concentrate on offering postgraduate degrees to the emirate’s substantial expatriate population. Other UAE emirates, including Sharjah and Ra’s al-Khaimah, have followed Dubai’s lead, having established smaller versions of Jebel Ali. And elsewhere in the Gulf there has been the Bahrain Logistics Zone, the Salalah Free Zone in Oman, and the Qatar Science and Technology Park, among others.
Similarly pioneered by the more energy-scarce Gulf monarchies have been the region’s tourism, financial, and real estate industries. With regards to tourism, Dubai was again the frontrunner, with dozens of luxury hotels having been built over the past fifteen years, including the iconic, seven star Burj Al-Arab. Since then millions of tourists have been attracted to the emirate, most of whom have favoured the winter sun, tax-free shopping festivals, and a range of sports and music events — many of which are world-class. In 2010 the government claimed that nearly nine million visitors had stayed in the emirate’s hotels.[209] Some other Gulf monarchies have followed suit, notably Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi, the latter having opened its lavish Emirates Palace hotel in 2005 and claiming to have hosted nearly two million tourists in 2010.[210] Although Kuwait was the first Gulf state to develop a significant financial sector, it was really Bahrain that set up the region’s first international financial centre — now housed in Manama’s Financial Harbour. Established in 2004, the Dubai International Financial Centre signalled the UAE’s first major attempt to challenge Bahrain’s position. Envisaged as a potential bridge between the time zones of other leading financial centres such as London, Hong Kong, and Singapore, the DIFC has also served as something of a free zone, with multinational financial companies locating their Middle East branches within its jurisdiction. More recently, recognising the economic benefits and prestige associated with hosting such centres, other Gulf monarchies have also attempted to develop financial hubs, albeit along more limited lines. In 2005 the Qatar Financial Centre was set up, primarily to provide a link between energybased companies and global financial markets. And in the near future Abu Dhabi’s presently modest financial centre will move to a much larger Mubadala-constructed campus on Sowwah Island.
More problematic has been the nascent real estate sector. For some years it was a major contributor to the non-oil related GDP of several Gulf monarchies, but following the 2008 credit crunch the sector contracted sharply due to limited credit and considerable oversupply. As the pioneer, having allowed foreign nationals to purchase real estate since 1997 on the murky basis of long leases and then ill-defined freehold status,[211] Dubai has since experienced the greatest reversal of fortunes, with its over-extended real estate sector and more than $170 billion in cancelled projects[212] now likely to hamper the emirate’s economic development for years to come. The tipping point came in late 2009, when its largest real estate developer — Nakheel — was unable to service substantial debts. This led to plummeting international confidence in the government of Dubai’s ability to rescue state-backed developers, with the situation only stabilising following a substantial $20 billion loan package from Abu Dhabi.[213] Symbolically, Abu Dhabi’s assistance appeared to be delivered with political strings attached, as when Dubai’s much vaunted Burj Dubai — the world’s tallest skyscraper — was finally opened in early 2010, its name was abruptly changed to Burj Khalifa to honour Abu Dhabi’s ruler, Khalifa bin Zayed Al-Nahyan. Recent indications are that Dubai remains in trouble, with even the ruling family-backed Dubai Holdings having had to restructure $2.5 billion of debt in early 2012.[214] Meanwhile other Gulf monarchies have also experimented with real estate, although on a much smaller scale, with both Bahrain and Qatar launching projects in recent years, Oman seems to have gone furthest in supporting full freehold ownership for foreigners, following fresh legislation in 2006.[215]
As with the variance in hydrocarbon exports and sovereign wealth funds, the numerous diversification efforts and their relative performances have further underlined the important economic differences that now exist between the Gulf monarchies. The non-oil sector in resource-scarce Bahrain now accounts for nearly 90 per cent of its GDP,[216] while in the UAE’s case it is approximately 70 per cent, mostly as a result of Dubai’s efforts.[217] In contrast, the non-oil sectors in Saudi Arabia and Oman account for about 55 per cent of GDP,[218] and in both Kuwait and Qatar the non-oil sectors account for less than 50 per cent of GDP.[219] The varying levels of foreign direct investment in the Gulf monarchies also reflect the differing approaches to diversification, with Saudi Arabia’s economic cities and other developments being responsible for attracting close to $193 billion in investments in recent years, and with the UAE’s various projects — again mostly in Dubai — having attracted $76 billion. In comparison, both Qatar and Bahrain have attracted less than $20 billion in foreign direct investment, while Kuwait — again encumbered by political instability — has only managed $130 million in investments.[220]
209
153. Dubai Department for Tourism and Commerce Marketing, press release, 28 February 2011.
218
162.