The Middle East

Jordan’s farmers have been offered the chance to rebuild a long lost export market as Saudi Arabia gets set to resume imports of a range of the kingdom’s produce. However, with the role played by agriculture in the Jordanian economy dwindling over the past 50 years and competition for scarce water resources getting more intense, local growers may only be able to reap a limited harvest from Riyadh’s new open door policy.

A recent call to expand capital markets and broaden the country’s economic base appears to have struck a chord with Omani companies and a series of initial public offerings (IPOs) have been announced.

The telecommunications industry in Sharjah and the wider UAE is expecting important changes with the introduction of long-term evolution (LTE) and voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services, as well as mobile number portability (MNP), all of which look set to be launched later this year by the country’s two biggest telecoms firms.

Saudi Arabia’s third-largest mobile phone service provider appears set for a change of leadership as Zain, its Kuwait-based owner, bows out after four less-than-profitable years.

The local tourism sector received a welcome boost on April 13 when Ras Al Khaimah’s ruler, Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, issued a decree to establish a dedicated Tourism Development Authority. The body will be tasked with administering the planning, development and regulation of the emirate’s tourism industry. With knock-on effects for transport, property and retail, the sector is seen Gulf-wide as a driver of diversification and economic development.

Jordan has begun ramping up efforts to increase foreign investment into the kingdom and is looking farther afield than usual to do it. With the IMF revising down its economic growth projection for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region from 4.6% in January to 4.1% on April 11, Jordan has held meetings with business leaders from the US, Russia, China and even Azerbaijan in the last month to encourage investment. The IMF also predicted that Jordan’s economic growth this year would be 3.3%, down from its October 2010 estimate of 4.2%.