In the last few years, policy makers in most Arab countries have recognized the role of the private sector in shaping their economies. Furthermore, as long-term economic growth is dependent on the provision of funds to finance domestic capital formation, these countries are undergoing a process of economic reform to diversify their economies and to privatize public assets. As effective privatization programs should be met by well prepared and fully-equipped stock markets, governments in the Arab countries are paying attention to domestic capital markets as a way of enhancing the supply of money. This study assesses the changes in the economic conditions in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates and the performance of their stock markets over the past eight years.
The UAE sits astride an uncomfortble dilemma in terms of national development and international profile. It seeks to be a regional and global power, both economically and politically, and to achieve this it needs to diversify and become less reliant on a workforce that is made up predominantly of expatriates, many of whom are employed because they have a level of education unavailable among the general citizenry. Alongside a rapid growth in public services and private commerce, education is a stated national priority, with the Ministry of Education setting out in its vision that education should achieve “enduring development for the community.” The UAE higher education sector is growing at an astonishing rate. However, the apparent dilemma results from the call for a rapid growth in educational provision, alongside the desire to produce a functioning and accessible education system in a relatively short time-frame. The UAE is a ‘consumer’ of educational practice, a nation that has a history of buying in the educational models and expertise it requires, as opposed to the lengthier, but possibly better suited, process of building an indigenous education system from the ground up. Developing a truly indigenous and new system to fit the needs of neophyte states – although laborious, expensive and problematic – does allow a nation to mold specifically the needs of the country with the educational systems developed. However, the UAE, through the model of ‘borrowing’ systems and expertise, was able to ‘kick-start’ the development of education in the country, greatly decreasing the time needed to establish formal educational structures. Such a situation may open up questions as to the suitability and efficacy of a predominantly imported educational provision for the indigenous population. The UAE, as a relatively new and emerging economy, has the funds and support of the national leadership to actively pursue and seek educational systems and practices that will advance development and competitiveness. To exam how globalized structures influence education in the UAE and beyond, there needs to be an understanding and awareness of the context in which the education sector functions today. As global economic forces and the labor needs of societies change, then accountability, control and governance of education becomes a contested area of public policy. However, what can be seen is that education is gaining in prominence in the public policy arena, with governments and politicians realizing that in order to be globally competitive, education must produce a skilled and efficient national workforce, placing education firmly in the realm of human capital theory and policy.
The study discusses the industrial sector in the GCC sector and identifies the challenges facing diversification strategies in the GCC economies. The financial sector is undergoing extensive restructuring and reform worldwide, which is reflected in the GCC financial sector too. Many countries have established industrial and development finance institutions (IDFIs), which provide credit and financial support to the industrial sector. Project and capital financing is the major activity of all IDFIs in the region, for the primary purpose of achieving a number of developmental objectives. Lending is the most important source of financing, with restrictive conditions attached to the use of local production factors. The future roles of IDFIs will be affected by macroeconomic changes in the GCC region, especially the anticipated decline in public sector resources, changes in the financial sector and the industrial development strategies of countries. The IDFIs will not only be faced with threats to privatization and more difficult access to subsidized public funds, but they may also experience greater competition in their markets from a number of sources. The IDFIs will have to adapt to new realities and identify their markets, services, customers and appropriate lending policies.
The papers contained in this volume were among those presented at ECSSR's Third Annual Energy Conference, entitled "Privatization and Deregulation in the Gulf Energy Sector," held in Abu Dhabi, October 25-26, 1997. This conference united leading practitioners and scholars in an effort to explore the important micro and macro issues related to the privatization and deregulation of energy sector. Topics related to oil production and refining, gas and electricity production, and their transmission and distribution were discussed. This volume assesses the arguments for and against deregulation of the energy sector and highlights the political, legal, institutional, and resource requirements for successful implementation of a privatization program, drawing on international experience. Indeed, privatization is spreading globally after its small and uncertain beginnings in Britain in the early 1980s. Today, states of the Gulf Co-Operation Council (GCC) are actively examining the possibility of privatizing a number of key industries and infrastructure projects. The ideal route to prosperous and effective privatization programs is for the GCC states to learn from the mistakes of other countries in this field, while emulating the success stories.
This first book of its kind discusses in particular the role of investor protection as regards disclosure when issuers are offering securities to the public, with full descriptions of the securities markets and stock exchanges in seventeen Arab jurisdictions. In two interrelated parts it examines both the regional macroeconomic matrix and a detailed case study (that of Jordan) in order to analyse the development and characteristics of an Arab regulatory model. Among the important issues and topics arising in the course of the analysis are the following: relevance of international regulatory standards to Arab securities markets; mandatory versus voluntary securities disclosure; the fundamentals of the Islamic financial system, role of riba and gharar, nature and impact of Shari’a’s unquantifiable juridical risks on the modus operandi of Arab securities markets; macroeconomic adjustment policies and structural adjustment programmes in several Arab countries; recent economic and Arab capital markets impact in the wake of the ‘Arab Spring’; extent of different countries’ reliance on Shari’a as a constitutional source; constitutional challenges to the imposition of interest; the need for the positive law to compel securities disclosure under Shari’a; shareholders’ remedies when suing for fraud or negligent misstatements; liability for misleading or inaccurate disclosure (under the general law of the UK and a selected Arab jurisdiction); prospectus liability under the statutory regime of the UK and an Arab regulatory regime; bars to rescission of contract: Comparative UK and Shari'a aspects; and Arab, UK regulatory agencies' enforcement, prosecutorial, administrative and civil remedies. The author closely examines various instruments deployed for conveying securities disclosure and dissemination of information, and looks extensively at relevant rulings as enunciated by an Arab court of cassation. He then constructs a model of an effective securities disclosure regime in order to provide better investor protection for shareholders under Shari’a. 'Among the strengths of Dr Lu’ayy Minwer Al-Rimawi’s book is the fact that at all times he adopts a comparative approach, not only as between different Arab systems, but also with an appreciation of the legal position in the UK and the European Union and elsewhere’ [The Hon. Mr Justice Sir William Blair Q.C., High Court Judge in the UK and Chairman of the Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Tribunal]. As the first in-depth discussion of the regulation of Arab capital markets in English, with an eye to international standards and the policy issues involved – and with attention focused on the central question of how the law can properly protect investors – this book will commend itself to all those with an interest in securities markets in the Arab world.
This account of the sophisticated financial hub that was 17th-century Amsterdam “does a fine job of bringing history to life” (Library Journal). The launch of the Dutch East India Company in 1602 initiated Amsterdam’s transformation from a regional market town into a dominant financial center. The Company introduced easily transferable shares, and within days buyers had begun to trade them. Soon the public was engaging in a variety of complex transactions, including forwards, futures, options, and bear raids, and by 1680 the techniques deployed in the Amsterdam market were as sophisticated as any we practice today. Lodewijk Petram’s award-winning history demystifies financial instruments by linking today’s products to yesterday’s innovations, tying the market’s operation to the behavior of individuals and the workings of the world around them. Traveling back in time, Petram visits the harbor and other places where merchants met to strike deals. He bears witness to the goings-on at a notary’s office and sits in on the consequential proceedings of a courtroom. He describes in detail the main players, investors, shady characters, speculators, and domestic servants and other ordinary folk, who all played a role in the development of the market and its crises. His history clarifies concerns that investors still struggle with today—such as fraud, the value of information, trust and the place of honor, managing diverging expectations, and balancing risk—and does so in a way that is vivid, relatable, and critical to understanding our contemporary world.
