Research Library

Rapid urbanization and expansion of cities in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has created new opportunities — along with environmental risks, lack of financial and natural resources, and social disparity. In a new issue brief, visiting research scholar Osamah Alsayegh explores how developing smart sustainable cities can bring social and economic benefits to the growing urban population.

The energy transition process depends on investments in clean technologies to cut down carbon emissions in various sectors of the economy. In a new working paper, visiting research fellow Osamah Alsayegh focuses on Arab Gulf states as a case study and proposes policies to mitigate the potential negative impacts of the transition process on affected sectors.

The Arab Gulf is protecting its own interests by pushing to keep fossil fuels in the mix. But more crucially, its agenda is in line with the world’s economic growth and development goals, writes Osamah Alsayegh.

Earlier this year, the Middle East Energy Roundtable brought together industry leaders and experts to discuss the trends shaping the Gulf’s energy transition politics. The Baker Institute’s Osamah Alsayegh, Kristian Coates Ulrichsen, Jim Krane and Ana Martín Gil summarize the key findings in this report.

Kuwait lags behind the other members of the Gulf Cooperation Council in its progress toward sustainable energy targets. Its pro-rentier democracy is slowing it down, writes visiting scholar Osamah Alsayegh.

Visiting scholar Osamah Alsayegh explores the water and energy challenges of GCC states and offers three key policy recommendations that could help to build the region’s resilience and sustainability.

This paper models the oil strategy of Gulf Arab states under three future energy transition scenarios. Under the most ambitious scenario, the region would have to decouple its oil revenues from its economic growth and could face significant economic and political consequences.

This issue brief highlights the potential collaboration between Arab countries and China in dealing with the global energy transition, and examines the energy transition from the perspectives of the world's largest economy (China) and richest hydrocarbon region (the Middle East).