Via Robert Mogielnicki in agsiw.org: As Gulf governments accelerate domestic development agendas, local job creation and tax revenue are measurable indicators of economic policymaking success. Gulf citizens understand how employment status, salary, and tax liability affect their economic well-being, while it is much harder to determine the personal economic impact of foreign direct investment inflows. Expatriate workers and foreign investors can likewise calculate the costs associated with stricter requirements to employ local jobseekers and with new tax obligations. These two sensitive policy domains reflect the tricky tradeoffs associated with Gulf states’ development agendas.
