Faizel Patel – 16/02/2021
An Omani writer says the oil era in the gulf may be ending as the region experiences economic challenges, which has also been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ann Alkindi was speaking to Radio Islam on Tuesday about her op-ed in Al Jazeera about “Divesting from oil necessitates not only an economic but also a social transformation in the Gulf states.”
Alkindi writes that there is no doubt that people from Gulf Arab states fully feel the impact of the economic challenges that crop up with every drop in oil prices.
Alkindi says the oil era, which tremendously changed the lives of the Gulf people decades ago, is coming to an end.
“There is a structural change in the energy sector and there are alternatives which we didn’t use to have in the past. The technology is really advancing rapidly.”
Alkindi says “disease” and dependency that oil has brought to the region will take time to alleviate.
“Oil has given us a fortune to build our nation. Now it’s the time build on what we have built in past and to change many other things among them education.”
Alkindi says she wrote her article in Arabic to see the reaction from people in the Gulf adding that she also wanted to convey a message to rest of the world to clear up any misunderstand they have about people living in the region.
Listen to the interview with Ann Alkindi
0 Comments