Asia - Middle East

Article by Arthur Bayhan, member of TCI Board of Directors
Globalisation is a reality that countries in the Middle East can no longer escape and competitiveness is the only way to benefit from globalization and not become its victim.

Kazakhstan experts shared views on cluster development with Tanzania in an international workshop.

"Pakistan sits astride the old silk route and has long been a significant economic player in the region. The Conference on Competitiveness for Asia and Pacific in Islamabad in May 2006 will address and identify the competitiveness potential of the leading economies in this region. It will mark also Pakistan's determination to improve its competitiveness both regionally and globally," says Arthur Bayhan, Acting Vice President Asia-Pacific in TCI and working in Islamabad.

Pakistan visits TCI

At The Competitiveness Institute's eighth Annual Global Conference in Hong Kong the Pakistan Minister of State for Finance, Omar Ayub Khan, in his keynote address announced that the Government of Pakistan has undertaken major initiative towards improving the competitiveness of its economy by establishing a Competitiveness Support Fund and projecting the creation of an a national Innovation and Competitiveness Council.

The Council will use the Competitiveness Support Fund, financed by the Government of Pakistan together with United States Agency for International Development USAID, as a platform to upgrade the Pakistani industry. The fund is tailored to meet Pakistan's needs and based on international best practices of successful existing funds operating in countries like India, Thailand, Turkey, Ireland and Finland.

The government of Kazakhstan is executing a new economic development policy concentrated on using the proceeds of their oil and gas riches to diversify their economy.

Juergen Knorr, who was chief executive officer of Siemens semiconductor division, has taken the position of CEO of Dubai Silicon Oasis (DSO), a technology initiative being created at an estimated overall cost of $1.3 billion in the middle-eastern Emirate of Dubai.

Proposals for the project to create a framework for establishing the "Competitiveness Observatory" in Jordan.

A recent conference held in Jerusalem aimed to unite the region through its industries, especially clusters, in order to attract more businesses and tourists to the troubled region.

The government of Ras Al Khaimah, one of the United Arab Emirates has signed a joint venture agreement with the Swiss Centre for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) in order to set up a Technology Innovation Centre.

The United Arab Emirates has announced plans to create a 400 million dollar research and development park in Dubai. The park will be called DuBiotech and is a bid to embrace biotechnology as a tool for economic and social development.