Sustainable progress in the GCC hinges on each citizen's drive to excel

The 68th United Nations General Assembly was unanimous in its commendation of the world’s efforts towards accomplishing the ambitious Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). However, despite the noteworthy results achieved till date, the UN admitted that much ground still remains to be covered ahead of the deadline in two years.

Given the Gulf Cooperation Council’s (GCC) track record, its chances of meeting MDGs already look very good. However, rather than taking credit for fast-tracking our efforts, we need to remind ourselves that to make the GCC’s future truly outstanding, our citizens need to continue conquering newer horizons.

The GCC as a whole has been on a remarkable upward trajectory in meeting targets associated with each of the eight MDGs, whose essence lies in good governance. Very few parts of the world can boast of such stellar accomplishments that have transformed desert communities into blossoming metropolises within a span of a few decades. Such progress is attributable firstly to the strategic vision of and decisive action of the government of each Gulf country. Secondly, to the overall spirit of cooperation that exists among the GCC states.

Separate and collective efforts have brought tangible results in each of the focus areas of the MDGs: To reduce poverty, hunger, diseases, maternal and child mortality; provide adequate shelter and environmental protection; work towards gender equality and promote global partnership for development.

The good results are reflected in the high rankings achieved by GCC member states on several key global indices. One such critical index is the Human Development Index (HDI). Noting the rapid rise in quality of life across the GCC, the 2013 HDI report notes that Oman, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have also achieved ‘high human development’ while Qatar and the UAE have registered ‘very high human development’.

The pursuit of MDGs in the GCC, however, finds its fullest expression in the drive by all six GCC states to empower the employability of their national population. Through drives such as Omanisation, Saudisation, Emiratisation, Kuwaitisation, Qatarisation and Bahrainisation, each GCC member state has drawn up and implemented its own national employment programmes, with varying degrees of success. The intention is the same: To ensure sustainable progress by grooming and harnessing the human energy of citizens, while reducing over-dependence on foreign labour.

Given that more than half of the GCC’s population is under the age of 25, such national endeavours, realistically speaking, are set in the time-scale of a few decades. Even then, for such projects to meet their targets and contribute to the MDG process, they should be understood in the right context by all parties involved. For one, each GCC government needs to continue investing in its citizenry and harness the human energy. Tapping into the indefatigable energy pool of our people will yield infinitely more fortune than we ever can from all our hydrocarbon reservoirs combined.

Second, the private sector in each country must become willing partners with government in terms of training, knowledge transfer and recruiting, thus helping optimise the employability prospects of the local population.

Third, and perhaps the most important, each GCC citizen must not see nationalisation programmes as a no-strings-attached privilege, whereby they may gain employment without earning the required educational and professional merit. Such a short-sighted view is not in keeping with the goal of sustainable progress upon which the well-being of our future generations depends. Instead, each one must assume personal responsibility to measure up to, even push, the parameters of excellence required to drive our economies to greater heights.

In the final tally, each nationalisation programme is a partnership between each citizen and their government and only when each party fulfils its part, can we hope to achieve the intended outcome. For the GCC states, the pursuit of MDGs is part of a much broader initiative to strike the ideal balance between its obligation towards creating sustainable growth opportunities for their own population, while keeping their doors open to global collaboration, in which case, the participation of foreign workforce also has its place. Striking this balance is far from easy, but all stakeholders are beholden to keep building the momentum. Given the speed at which the region has risen out of the sands to become a hub of economic stability, prosperity and opportunity, there is every reason to believe that the outcome will be favourable to all.

Mohammed Mahfoodh Al Ardhi is the former chief of the Omani Air Force.