We are experiencing huge changes in how we all do business, not just driven by coronavirus, but also by Brexit and the growing strengths and diversity of the Arab economies, the resilience and maturity of which has been demonstrated during the pandemic.
The ambitious strategies of the leading Arab governments were not fundamentally impeded and – now that economies are in recovery mode – the speed of implementation and investment is gathering pace.
The recent pick up in global oil prices, widespread growth of non-oil sectors and push for renewable energy should add to the revenue available for fulfilling ambitions to develop local economies.
We have witnessed tremendous developments in recent months with the unveiling of new strategies under such national programmes as Saudi Vision 2030 – for example – which have already started to transform the economies in fundamental ways.
The scale of the opportunities available has never been greater.
With this in mind, we believe now is the time to further strengthen Arab-British trade and investment partnerships; to continue to share ideas and insights; to exchange information; to identify new opportunities; and to work together to our mutual advantage.
Learning from recent experience and working to build greater resilience to meet future challenges are key factors that will be shaping investment priorities and business management decisions going forwards.
Investment in healthcare infrastructure will be an obvious priority, and this is an area that promises to offer greater opportunities for innovators and potential for co-operation. The development of the coronavirus vaccines has highlighted the importance of innovation in healthcare, as well as the need to invest more in research.
Moreover, the global drive for sustainability – which is matched by the long-term visions of many Arab countries – will continue to offer enormous potential for businesses that can co-operate and collaborate around the concept of a green economy.
Finally, we can of course expect to see the continued development of advanced digital technologies as the trend towards digital business operations is accelerated by what we have all experienced over the past year or so. This will open up new opportunities for investors and potential for closer co-operation, including in the delivery of remote learning and precision medical treatment carried out on a remote basis.
With all this in mind, we look to the future with positivity and excitement about what we can achieve together and the possibilities ahead.
Adapted from the full article in Economic Focus.
Author
With thanks to Bandar Reda, Secretary General and CEO at the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce.