A great deal seems to be going on in the Middle East, from the failure of the Egyptian government to put its state-owned assets up to an open bid; to Iran, Saudi Arabia and the US's increasing likelihood of entering into a bloody war and the failure of Benjamin Netanyahu to win an overall majority in the Israeli elections. The outcome of the latter...
New Zealand PM bows out
Here's an article from The Economist which, while talking about John Key's resignation, states that NZ is "one of the most successful countries in the world. While this is debatable, there is no doubt that Key has had successes- namely international recognition- along with failures, housing, immigration and the environment. We have yet to see whether the new Prime Minister, John English, will have the same success.
The Israeli election re-run is one of the main issues in the Middle East. The other is the blowing up of two Saudi Arabian oil production plants allegedly by Iran. From an outsider's viewpoint it seems that events are coming together so that there will be war in the Middle East. If Benjamin Netanyahu manages to form a coalition- he failed to do so ...
Arriving in Dubai in 2005, I was asked to write an article on the topic: "Is Dubai built on sand?". Clearly, it is but I argued that the sand was solid. Given that the emirate was focused on real estate, in an attempt to diversify beyond logistics, it was true. Real estate developments appealed to everyone, Western ex-pats, as well as Indians and o...
While travelling, the updates I am getting from the Middle East are mostly about the Israeli elections which will take place on September 17. It seems that the outcome will be little different from the election in April when Benjamin Netanyahu failed to put together a coalition government. Hence, the need for the forthcoming election. The latest is...
As far as global issues go, especially war, most reportage seems to come from the Middle East. Perhaps only war happens there? What about Africa, Europe, or Asia? I'm in Cambodia now where there has been a mass genocide and there are still tensions with Vietnam. What about the escalating tensions with South Korea and Japan? North Korea's nuclear am...
Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) are relatively common in the Middle East but not all are successful. This is often because the stock exchanges are thin. Saudi Aramco's potential IPO is set to be the biggest in the region, hoping to raise USD100 billion based on a USD 2 trillion valuation. Given the importance of this IPO it's hardly surprising that...
Politics in the Middle East are always complicated. There is the war in Yemen where the UAE joined with Saudi Arabia in opposing the Houthis but is now trying to pull out in favour of negotiations instead of military action. There are political analysts who maintain that this is part of a wider strategy to have closer ties with Iran once again. And...
Iranians in Dubai are considering moving back to Iran. The UAE government is cracking down on them in adherence to US sanctions policy. Perhaps this is surprising? Many of the families in Dubai are of Iranian descent, even if they do not want to admit it, and many have continued to trade with Iran. In 2014, when I was leaving, Iranians, with a lot ...
Questions have been asked often about the quality of education in the Middle East. Is the education good enough? Does it meet quality standards? Will young people be employable? This article about education in the Middle East attempts to find some answers to those questions. Sam Brennan August 25, 2019 Article Summary By 2040, the Middle East and N...
Since I am interested in gender, age, and Arab issues I found this article enlightening. It's certainly time that women's issues in Arabia are not seen as being Arab or even Islamic, in the same way that women's issue in the West are not a result of Christianity alone. Here is what was written in The Atlantic. Arab Women Are Tired of Talking About ...
I wrote this article for a company I work with in the UK, called Behavioural Shift. Ageism is prejudice; it affects men and women; it is global. Ageism is when a person discriminates against another person on the basis of age. It is faced by people over 50, in particular. Ageism is an ongoing issue and we at Behavioural Shift want to do what we can...
Israel goes to the polls for the second time this year on September 17. This happened after the PM Benjamin Netanyahu failed to form a coalition government (he was elected as PM in April this year) the first time this had happened in Israel's history. What happens in this upcoming election is crucial for Netanyahu's Likud Party (officially the Liku...
Yemen is a quagmire for supporters of the Hadi regime, who are seeking to overthrow the Houthi rebels, in particular Saudi Arabia and the UAE, although the latter had largely pulled out of the war. President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, resides in Saudi Arabia and Aden has been the seat of power since he left the country in 2014. Yemen is a ...
The war in Yemen is not generating the positive outcome that Saudi Arabia wanted. It's aim was to rid the country of the Houthis (allegedly backed by Iran) and the secessionists. This has not happened, especially with the recent loss of the strategic port city of Aden. What does this mean for Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman? by Bruce Riedel (Al Mo...
Qatar has had a rocky time since it was announced it would hold the World Cup 2022. The award was granted in 2010 amidst international criticism that the tournament should not be held there, not least because of the high temperatures. But at least November is slightly cooler than July. One concern is that Qatar is an alcohol-free state but visitors...
Most of the economic forecasts, from the IMF and World Bank, to numerous global banks, project the global economy is slowing. But is it? And how quickly is it happening? This article looks at what the NZ Superfund projects. INVESTMENT ENVIRONMENT REPORT – AUGUST 2019 In this 'Investment Environment Report', NZ Super Fund Chief Economist Mike...
The four-year war in Yemen is slowing, now that the UAE is "abandoning" Saudi Arabia to continue the war there. War in Yemen is also not stopping people readying for Eid Al Adha (or the Festival of the Sacrifice), the longest Eid break and the one where Muslims go to Mecca to pay their respects. The article below (from Al Monitor) describes how Yem...
Turkey has taken in a large number of Syrian refugees and this is often mentioned in glowing terms by others. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has also made much of this. Turkey's willingness to take in refugees, along with Jordan and Lebanon which have established refugee camps, and to a lesser extent, Iraq, is changing. But then the much r...
Diversification of the UAE economy was the cornerstone of much of the UAE economic strategy throughout the second half of the 2000's and the following decade. It sounded great but it seems not to have worked, with a continued heavy reliance on oil. The emirate of Dubai has always been a logistic hub, since it has not much oil. Abu Dhabi has been oi...
The Middle East is usually at the centre of a political conflict, often involving Iran. In this case, what would happen to Israel were it to attack Iran? Here are some thoughts from the Daily Express in the UK. ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should calm tensions with Iran and belie his hawkish nature if he wants to avoid catastrophe in t...