On November 13th, the Regional Program Gulf States at Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS) and the Smart Investment Gateway (SIG) launched officially the portal of the “Gulf States Economic Diversification Barometer” (https://gccdiversification.com).
The launching event took place at the Diplomatic Club in Muscat, Oman, and was attended by members of the State’s Council, Shura Council, the business community, academics, and the German Ambassador in Oman. The event, which lasted over three hours and included a dinner for the participants, started with remarks from Dr. Yousuf Al-Baloushi, the Founder and CEO of the SIG, and Dr. Canan Atilgan, Head of the Department of Middle East and North Africa at KAS, before opening it for discussion.
In his remarks, Dr. Albaloushi explained the importance of the barometer and its content. He said “The Gulf States Economic Barometer is not simply a portal to understand the level of economic diversification in each country of the Gulf States, but it is also a tool to compare the diversification’s level between them and a place where academics, researchers, and policy-makers can find the right information for research and policy-making.” He also emphasized the importance of keeping the information on the portal up-to-date promising that he and his team will continue to do so with KAS’s support.
For her part. Dr. Atilgan informed the audience of KAS’s mission and work globally and within the Gulf region. She said, “The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is a political foundation and one of the leading think tanks worldwide that operates in more than 100 countries and focuses on civic education.” In the Gulf region, she explained “our main objective is to advance the relations between the region, Germany, and European countries by working on projects tied to three main pillars: political dialogue, empowerment of civil society, and economic development within the framework of the social market.” Dr. Atilgan also drew the audience’s attention to the European Union's document on the EU Strategic Partnership with the Gulf States as one of the important frameworks that both Germany and the Gulf States should capitalize on to advance their relations.
Following the opening remarks, Both Dr. Atilgan and Dr. Albaloushi engaged with the audience in a discussion over the best means to achieve economic diversification in the Gulf region and KAS’s work in the region.
The launching event of the Economic Diversification Barometer came after a successful conference on the same topic that KAS, the SIG, and Roya newspaper have held in Salalah, Oman last August.
