Archive for February, 2009

In his first address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday night, President Obama committed to work with G-20 nations to “restore confidence in our financial system, avoid the possibility of escalating protectionism, and spur demand for American goods in markets across the globe.” This was certainly good news for Dubai World, which recently invested $400 million to construct east Africa’s ”most modern, highest capacity container port” in Djibouti. The Doraleh Container Terminal is expected to serve the undeserved and expanding markets of east Africa, including Kenya, Tanzania, and Ethiopia. Its strategic location will permit products to flow more efficiently from all corners of the earth, creating a new Middle East-Africa corridor of trade and opportunity.

The Emirate of Dubai will receive a $10bn loan from the UAE central bank as part of its debt restructuring program the Financial Times reported Sunday. The Dubai real estate sector, which has been a primary driver of regional development over the past half decade, has seen prices fall by at least 25 percent between the third and fourth quarters of last year. The loan, part of a wider $20bn bond restructuring program, is expected to restore a measure of confidence in the Emirate as it seeks to create a more diversified services-based economy. For now, the cranes over Dubai are largely idle, though some may argue their silence should be viewed as a welcome pause in development, and not a calamity.

As global markets brace for a year of pain, Middle East nations may find solace in the recent cease-fire in Gaza and the promise of President Barack Obama to find a “new way forward” with the Muslim world.  While even the wealthiest of Middle East nations may be challenged by mounting deficits and debt in the year ahead, the current tone in Washington should give hope to those who embrace trade and investment as primary tools in creating a more prosperous, secure world for all.