All around the Gulf, governments are talking about visions and strategies – the need to diversify economies, reduce dependency on oil and create jobs. Each day the cranes seem to stack up as brightly coloured hoardings are built around the next project.
Abu Dhabi, the largest and wealthiest of the seven emirates of the United Arab Emirates, can lay claim to some of the most extravagant mega-projects sweeping the region: the creation of a $15bn “renewable energy city”; a $27bn island cultural development that will boast Guggenheim and Louvre museums; a Formula One Grand Prix track on another island (with costs reaching $40bn); and plans for the Gulf’s first nuclear power plant.
