The global debate on what policies are most supportive of economic growth is a fierce and persistently unresolved one. Economists have the opportunity to make a valuable contribution to the public discourse, yet too often many of them in the Middle East, including in the Gulf, tend to be silent bystanders. For the GCC countries to fulfil their economic potential, their homegrown scholars need to play a more decisive role in their respective journeys.
Throughout history, countries experiencing a period of economic growth produce scholars famed for analysing and sharing that experience globally. The UK’s 18th-century industrialisation inspired the Scottish economist Adam Smith, followed by the English economist Alfred Marshall, who witnessed the 19th-century British-led explosion in global trade. The US’s economic success in the 20th century yielded luminaries such as Robert Solow and Merton Miller, while Abhijit Banerjee and Jagdish Bhagwati are both closely associated with India’s economic rise.
Notably, societies benefit from having their homegrown scholars produce high-quality analysis in real time. Periods of accelerated growth are frequently associated with policy innovation, meaning that policymakers are experimenting with new development paradigms rather than simply adhering to a linear recipe. Local minds support the process of refining these policies by using their expertise, especially if they have sound knowledge of the history of economic growth elsewhere in the world.
This process also confers diplomatic benefits as other countries look to gain from the successful experience of the growing one. The rapid improvement in living standards experienced by countries such as Japan and South Korea made them models for others to emulate, and their local economists were instrumental in sharing their ideas with the rest of the world, helping their nations acquire soft power.
The Gulf countries have yet to benefit fully from this phenomenon. The growth that the six countries have experienced since the 1970s is remarkable, resulting in some of the world’s highest living standards. However, their economists’ contribution to the global discourse on the drivers of economic growth has so far been inadequate, both qualitatively and quantitatively.
Many of these scholars, including those advising or working inside the government, have either shown little motivation to write about their countries’ economic stories, or struggled to provide rigorous analysis. Some of this is down to inadequate academic training and lack of knowledge.
The top 5 academic journals in economics have occasional papers on the Gulf economy, but they are almost always written by western scholars
Quantitative evidence takes the form of the modest number of academic papers these economists produce, the low rank of the journals they publish in, and the limited number of citations their papers accrue. Moreover, foreign, externally based economists writing about the Gulf economies produce a higher volume of research than do the homegrown economists, and they publish it in more well-known journals while gaining higher citations.
For example, the top five academic journals in economics, including the flagship American Economic Review, have occasional papers on issues relating to the Gulf economy, but they are almost always written by western scholars. Naturally, there are exceptions; I personally know a number of good Gulf economists who make sound contributions. However, the general trends cannot be denied.
This deficiency represents a real foregone opportunity for the Gulf countries: domestically, the process of formulating and improving economic policies is impaired, while globally, they squander the chance to acquire soft power by exporting their intellectual resources. This can be seen in the widespread belief that the Gulf countries’ economic success is exclusively caused by their resource wealth, despite the existence of many resource-rich nations that have failed to translate their natural resources into high living standards.
Accordingly, it is important for their societies to understand the causes of this stunted contribution to the global public discourse.
Underlying the aforementioned weak training and sometimes professional indifference is a distorted career path for proficient homegrown economists. The prevailing culture is one where aspiring scholars dream of getting appointed to senior government positions, whereupon some will intellectually ossify, replacing the ability to write an insightful 30-page academic paper that advances human knowledge with the ability to write a two-page non-technical brief that is designed to support policy decisions.
The lack of motivation could be due in part to the fact that they get generous remuneration as civil servants; I have hardly heard of American university professors going to the public sector for financial gain. Meanwhile, people confer social status upon those who reach government’s upper echelons, while being a public intellectual is rarely considered prestigious. This reflects a latent under-appreciation of intellectual endeavours that also breeds a reluctance among scholars to provide dispassionate analysis of their home economies.
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Some Gulf economists would probably retort that the international public sphere has a racial bias, whereby their meritorious intellectual contributions are unjustly marginalised because they are penned by people who are either not from the West or lack the credentials that western academics are armed with. There is probably some truth to this, but it is little more than a partial explanation, and it would be unwise to use it as an excuse to switch one’s efforts from producing good-quality scientific contributions to loudly complaining about discrimination and demanding some sort of intellectual affirmative action.
Regardless of the Gulf economies’ ultimate success, their growth experience merits expositional academic research conducted by homegrown scholars operating on the front line. The region’s economists must challenge themselves to do more than they currently are, even if many of their fellow citizens may not show enough appreciation, or of it means missing out on a top government job.
Day 2, Dubai Test: At a glance
Moment of the day Pakistan’s effort in the field had hints of shambles about it. The wheels were officially off when Wahab Riaz lost his run up and aborted the delivery four times in a row. He re-measured his run, jogged in for two practice goes. Then, when he was finally ready to go, he bailed out again. It was a total cringefest.
Stat of the day – 139.5 Yasir Shah has bowled 139.5 overs in three innings so far in this Test series. Judged by his returns, the workload has not withered him. He has 14 wickets so far, and became history’s first spinner to take five-wickets in an innings in five consecutive Tests. Not bad for someone whose fitness was in question before the series.
The verdict Stranger things have happened, but it is going to take something extraordinary for Pakistan to keep their undefeated record in Test series in the UAE in tact from this position. At least Shan Masood and Sami Aslam have made a positive start to the salvage effort.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
TERMINAL HIGH ALTITUDE AREA DEFENCE (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US's most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out ballistic missiles as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 150 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then stationed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Power: 620hp from 5,750-7,500rpm
Torque: 760Nm from 3,000-5,750rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed dual-clutch auto
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh1.05 million ($286,000)
The biog
Place of birth: Kalba
Family: Mother of eight children and has 10 grandchildren
Favourite traditional dish: Al Harees, a slow cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled cracked or coarsely ground wheat mixed with meat or chicken
Favourite book: My early life by Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, the Ruler of Sharjah
Favourite quote: By Sheikh Zayed, the UAE's Founding Father, “Those who have no past will have no present or future.”
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
Results
6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m; Winner: Ghaiyyath, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Cliffs Of Capri, Tadhg O’Shea, Jamie Osborne.
7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Zakouski, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
THE BIO
Ms Davison came to Dubai from Kerala after her marriage in 1996 when she was 21-years-old
Since 2001, Ms Davison has worked at many affordable schools such as Our Own English High School in Sharjah, and The Apple International School and Amled School in Dubai
Favourite Book: The Alchemist
Favourite quote: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail
Favourite place to Travel to: Vienna
Favourite cuisine: Italian food
Favourite Movie : Scent of a Woman
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