GCC Strategies
GCC is generally geared towards ensuring that the total volume of investment by foreigners is maintained. The GCC knows that should investors leave this region, then complications and an immense crisis would ensue. Therefore other than ensuring that there is deep diversification from oil trade, the GCC is strategizing in ensuring that the confidence of investors is high for the whole region (Stensgaard, 2003). This would lead to the opening up of new forms of investments. In the long run, the region is going to experience more growth than it is even enjoying.
The strategies of this council are clearly seen through its main stated objectives. These objectives include a way to formulate regulations that are similar in both member countries. These regulations are majorly directed in the fields concerned with trade, tourism, economy, legislation, finance, administration and customs. Another one of their main objectives is to ensure that industrial technical and scientific activities are fostered. This fostering is also to cover the areas of water, mining, animal resources and agriculture. There is an ambitious objective of establishment of centers for research that is scientific oriented. Additionally, joint ventures and the creation of a Peninsula Shield (Unified Military) have been put down as other objectives. GCC also seeks to ensure that cooperation in the private sector is encouraged and practiced. This would go hand in hand with ensuring that ties are strengthened between people in different countries within the GCC. Unfortunately, however, another objective of having established a common monetary currency by the year 2010 created some splits. This was especially so when UAE decide to pull out of the project for the monetary union after shifting the proposed location for this monetary union from UAE to Riyadh (Saif and Choucair, 2009).
It is interesting to note that among its objectives, there is no major mention of Oil and Gas by the GCC. This might be looked at as a plan by the GCC to ensure that these states are not entirely dependant on oil but also get some income from the other possible viable economic sectors. As much as there is the presence of the world’s fasted economies in terms of growth, the GCC certainly knows for a fact that one day, these oil reserves would run out and hence there is a need for plan B for their member countries (Saif and Choucair, 2009).
More Strategies and Future Plans
For many past decades, the economies of the GCC member states had been dictated by either a rise or a fall in the demand for their precious oil. They however did decide to diversify their economies and hence ensuring that they were shielded from the initial market volatilities. GCC members did decide to especially invest in manufacturing and commercial services. With most of the GCC members seeking t replicate the success story in Dubai, they have entered into more integration with other players in the global market.
There has been a recorded high investment directed towards development projects by the GCC members. These projects are usually friendly to the environment and energy sources that can be termed as being green. These states of the Gulf that have passed through changes in the socioeconomic sector are now quite heterogeneous and complex. The states are in plans of ensuring an expansion of economic ties that are very close with other world states for example China. Such ties that are continuously being sought by GCC are in line to ensure that they not only have a brighter future for the oil industry, but also for the no-oil industry (Ahmed, 2010).
Tourism
GCC is doing quite a lot to ensure that more earnings are collected from this diversified sector of the economy. There seems to be a varied number of choices from this sector. Most noticeable however is the continuously ever-rising massive hotels and centers for shopping. They have even developed new ideas of creating theme parks and even water parks just so as to ensure that the people are lured. Further still, other than the 2022 FIFA world cup that is scheduled to take place in UAE, there are always a number of shopping festivals to entertainment events t ensure more tourists are lured. This clearly is a big economic sector with a country like UAE hoping to receive more than 10, 000,000 tourists each coming year.
The most interesting fact however is an ingenious plan by Hakeer that led to the construction of up to 7 hotels that were exclusive of international standards. Oman on the other hand ought to have completed a first phase in the construction of 34 sq km of the tourist city. This along with plans to create more amazingly beautiful buildings and promotion of sports and other international events is a strategy in the right direction of increasing earnings from tourism-related activities (Tamimi, 2008). This coat goes into 20 billion dollars. This is clearly a step in the future of ensuring that there is no more overdependence on oil exports.
Exports by the GCC States
There are impressively encouraging findings that indicate that there is increased trading between the member states. This is from the fact that up to 49 % of exports from any gulf state member that is non-oil based go to another member state. With the basic plan of the GCC being to ensure that there is an increase in the numbers of exports to the outside market whiles each member country is satisfied, there seems to be a growing economic powerhouse in the marking (Ahmed, 2010). There is still however a concerted effort to ensure that exports and imports are high between these Gulf States.
Greater Offshore Environment
With many companies nowadays looking for cheaper solutions for their coat of doing business, offshore destinations are continuously looking attractive. Gulf States seem to be at a great advantage of providing this, especially UAE. This has been so especially through there tireless efforts of GCC to ensure that there is more ease when it comes to incorporation. It has also ensured that less time is consumed during incorporation and there are off course advantages in tax. Thus more investors do find that the offshore market in the GCC is more welcoming than the free zones. This has led to increasing in investment especially by the international players who are not attached to the oil industry. This has led to more employment opportunities and more creation of wealth. The GCC is also still strategizing to ensure that this region becomes the best destination in the world for doing business.
Prospects of a Better Life
Although recently, GCC Council leaders have been put under heavy fire for their minimal efforts towards combating the downturn that has been experienced economically, they seem to be doing quite well. This is seen from the fact that they were among the first people to respond to the economic hit. Unfortunately, their counter-measure programs seem to have turned in the wrong direction. This has led to the exposure of the GCC to the edge of an even more serious crisis (Saif and Choucair, 2009). This Council does seem to be determined to get things right despite having failed to properly bring on board the private economic sector. They have also slackened in setting priorities that are clear to ensure growth. In as much as consumer confidence was not restored urgently together with the confidence of the investor, which lead to the sense of stability being undermined in the long run, they seem to have shaken off and are now properly focused on what they would like to achieve in the near future, and hey, who in the world was not affected by the economic downturn in the first place? The GCC States have certainly ensured that they have alternative forms of wealth that are created other than oil.
The prospects of creating a human rights commission for the GCC states seem to have been received well. This is because life for all residents and visitors in this region is set to get even better with the creation of this impartial and independent body. There has been a further meeting that tends to condemn racism in the strongest possible terms with various staff in the prison system being taught on the rights of prisoners. Generally, people are being educated about their rights to ensure that they do receive their rights fully. This together with news of the signing of trade agreements with other international bodies like the EU puts the GCC in a better position to increase its market and hence trade more and immerse more wealth with an improvement in the lives of its residents.
References
Ahmed, S. (2010). Statistical Bulletin. Web.
Saif, I. & Choucair, F. (2009). Arab Countries Stumble in the Face of Growing Economic Crisis. Web.
Stensgaard, A. (2003). Alternative GCC Economic Strategies in the New World Order. Web.
Tamimi, A.J. (2008). Tourism Boom in the GCC. Web.