Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Impact of Oil and Modernisation (1930-2010)
Early in the 20th century, a rare resource was discovered on the Peninsula that was to
change the face of the region forever. It is upon this resource that the super-modern cities of
the Gulf have been crafted out of the sea on reclaimed land, and upon which the nations of
Arabia have been pulled by the sandal-straps into the 21st century.
Books: Modern Regional History
Inside Al Qaeda: Global Network of Terror (Rohan Gunaratna)
A History of the Middle East (Peter Mansfield)
Within a few years almost every ruler in the Gulf had given some kind of oil concession
in an attempt to bolster their finances. The region's nascent industry was suspended tem-
porarily during WWII but resumed soon after, increasing output to rival that of Iran, the
world's biggest producer by 1960.
In the 1960s and '70s the new wealth, and the threat of cutting off oil supplies to Europe
and the US, gave Middle Eastern countries an international influence they hadn't enjoyed
for centuries. After each embargo, a surge in oil prices increased both their wealth and their
power, triggering the first wave of an enormous building boom in the Gulf that has contin-
ued almost unabated for half a century. Western expatriates flocked to the region, providing
engineering and financial expertise while hundreds of thousands of Asian expats were
brought in as manual labour. This change in demographics has left a legacy which contin-
ues to have profound effects on the indigenous populations: on the one hand it has resulted
in tolerant, multicultural societies and greatly enhanced infrastructure; on the other hand, it
has led to an outnumbering in some countries of the indigenous Arab population and a dif-
ficulty in all countries (bar Yemen) of ensuring work opportunities for locals.
When the bottom fell out of the oil market in 1985, to varying degrees all Gulf countries
had trouble keeping up their building programs while maintaining the generous welfare
states that their people had come to expect. This crisis, together with ongoing fears about
reaching peak production, and the shock factor of the global economic downturn that began
in 2008, have had hidden benefits, however, forcing each country of the Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) to diversify its economy.
But the days of black gold are not over yet. Exploration continues across the region to-
gether with investment in research into ever more sophisticated ways of extraction such as
fracking. Despite the new hunt for renewable energies such as solar, wind, wave and waste-
