All Countries and All Sectors

These are exciting times for Turkish car manufacturers, who are riding a wave of growth thanks to a weak lira, increasing investment in research and development (R&D) and foreign firms’ boosting of local production. In a sign of the local industry’s growing maturity, one domestic investment firm is now the frontrunner in the takeover of an ailing European car manufacturer.

Development of the health care sector remains a priority for Kuwait, with the government recently signing two agreements with foreign educational institutions that aim to improve training for the country’s medical professionals. While the goal of this type of international collaboration is to enhance the skills of local physicians who work at state-run facilities, the government is also taking steps to create private investment opportunities in health care.

In the Philippines’ current plans for a major upgrade of the country’s agricultural sector, the most dramatic move is a determination to transform the country from being the world’s top rice importer to becoming a net rice exporter by 2014. This is undoubtedly a formidable task, as rice is the Philippines’ main food staple:

An array of new tactics – including continued infrastructure investment, a marketing drive and a focus on growing niches – could prove key in unlocking Ghana’s considerable tourism potential. The West African country currently has a moderately sized but lively tourism sector that sees around a modest 1m visitors per year, mostly from North America and Europe.

Au vu des premiers résultats prometteurs d’un programme de réforme des marchés de capitaux initié en mai 2011, l’Algérie cherche désormais à augmenter le nombre d’introductions à la Bourse d’Alger. Le pays, qui se positionne au sixième rang mondial en termes de réserves de gaz, inexploitées pour la plupart, répond d’ores et déjà à 30 % des besoins européens en gaz naturel.

2012 began with a particularly hefty reckoning for Jordan when the government received the largest energy bill in the Kingdom’s history: JD2.75bn ($3.87bn). Jordan relies heavily on imports for its energy needs – some 98% – and in 2011, energy amounted to 26% of total Jordanian imports. Yet cooperation with other regional states may hold the answer to the Kingdom’s current energy supply challenge.