After the triumphant forward march of globalization in the years leading up to the financial crisis of 2008-2009, increasingly discordant tones have come to challenge the idea of shared prosperity built on economic integration.

The future is inevitably shrouded in uncertainty, but there are many areas where technological and other developments are profoundly reshaping our way of doing business.

One of the many transformative ways in which the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world is the increased focus on climate-related issues. The lockdowns offered a glimpse into a less-polluted world but also coincided with a slew of extreme weather events.

The reality of slower gross domestic product growth in the Gulf over the past decade reflects the weaker momentum of traditional growth drivers. The oil-government nexus has been affected by the new realities of energy markets and government fiscal consolidation.