MANAMA: The current financial crisis is cyclical in nature and the global economy will rebound, according to a top official at the Bahrain’s economic development agency.
“In the 300-year-history of capitalism, the world has seen at least 30 cycles of booms and busts,” said Sheikh Mohammed Essa Al-Khalifa, chief executive at the Bahrain Economic Development Board.
“The fall in oil prices, decline in asset prices and a limited access to global credit are main reasons behind the volatility in the Middle East markets,” said Sheikh Mohammed, who addressed the Wharton Global Alumni Forum held in Dubai. He said the crisis in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region was “not structural,” and the surpluses of the Gulf economies would drive its recovery.
The first-ever Wharton Global Alumni Forum held in the Middle East concluded with the recommendation that “coordinated action to bring about rapid growth” is the way forward for the GCC region. “Growth is not an option,” said the experts, “staying the course and doubling the speed of economic growth through diversification” should be the rule-of-thumb.
The final panel discussion entitled “The Impact of the Financial Crisis on the Middle East” at the forum served as an effective recap of the two-day event, reiterating the need to create job opportunities for the five million plus Arab youth who will join the work force in less than a decade. Hussein Ali Al-Abdullah, executive director, Qatar Investment Authority, who opened the panel, observed that in these volatile times, the best solution is “inaction” at least for the next 6 months to one year.