All Countries and All Sectors

Despite being established by royal decree quite recently, the Public Authority for Investment Promotion and Export Development (PAIPED) has already taken a number of steps to promote Omani products abroad and boost investment from foreign firms and governments alike, by both sending and hosting major international delegations. Moreover, that PAIPED, which replaces the Omani Centre for Investment Promotion and Export Development, (OCIPED), was set up as a public authority is indicative of the growing importance placed on investment promotion in the Sultanate.

The Malaysian government is continuing its campaign to reform the nation’s economy, broadening its base and liberalising many previously restricted sectors. However, its most recent moves to rein in subsidies, which are designed to reduce the strain on the budget, may prove unpopular and could stoke inflationary fires in the short term.

Indonesia’s newly published economic master plan sets out ambitious targets to become one of the world’s biggest economies over the next 15 years. The plan unveiled by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) also put the spotlight on the need for heavy investments in infrastructure coupled with improvement in the investment climate.

Qatar’s already busy construction industry is about to step up a gear, and it is not just the major undertaking of hosting the 2022 World Cup football tournament that is going to spur growth. A massive state investment programme to expand the nation’s infrastructure and private sector spending on residential and commercial properties are also tipped to build momentum in the sector.

In a bid to increase the sector’s contribution to economic growth, Ghana’s national mining policy is set to undergo a major reworking over the next few months.

A $5bn railway plan to transform Jordan into a centre for regional trade and commerce received a major boost recently when the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) announced that it is in talks with global financial institutions to fund the mega-project.