Governments of Gulf countries have made progress toward diversifying their economies away from oil by opening up to private investment and implementing taxes, according to comments from Kristalina Georgieva, the head of the International Monetary Fund.
“There is this impression that the only reason the Gulf countries are doing well is high oil and gas prices,” Georgieva told a conference in Dubai on Monday. “This is not true.”
“They have been reforming relentlessly how they raise money and how they spend money,” she said, according to Bloomberg. Georgieva cited a reliance on collecting taxes in recent years and more attention to public spending on education and health.
According to the Bloomberg report, Georgieva’s comments were echoed by a senior World Bank official who singled out Saudi Arabia for its progress.
“Reforms are happening, the transition is happening,” said Ferid Belhaj, the lender’s president for Middle East and North Africa. “We need to be realistic. I guess you cannot transition from 100% oil dependence to zero and build your whole economy on renewable energy.”
