Marc Valeri – författare

Although most Arab countries remain authoritarian, many have undergone a restructuring of state-society relations in which lower- and middle-class interest groups have lost ground while big business has benefited in terms of its integration into policy-making and the opening of economic sectors that used to be state-dominated. Arab businesses have also started taking on aspects of public ser- vice provision in health, media and education that used to be the domain of the state; they have also become increasingly active in philanthropy. The 'Arab Spring,' which is likely to lead to a more pluralistic political order, makes it all the more important to understand business interests in the Middle East, a segment of society that on the one hand has often been close to the ancien regime, but on the other will play a pivotal role in a future social contract. Among the topics addressed by the authors are the role of business in recent regime change; the political outlook of businessmen; the consequences of economic liberalisation on the composition of business elites in the Middle East; the role of the private sec- tor in orienting government policies; lobbying of government by business interests and the mechanisms by which governments seek to keep businesses dependent on them.

From projecting ideology and influence, to maintaining a notion of 'Gulfness' through the selective exclusion or inclusion of certain beliefs, cultures and people, the notion of Gulfization is increasingly pertinent as Gulf countries occupy a greater political and economic role in wider Middle East politics. This volume discusses the notion of Gulfization, and examines how thoughts, ideologies, way of life and practises are transmitted, changed, and transduced inside and outside the Gulf. From historical perspectives such as the impact of the 1952 Egyptian Revolution in Yemen, to studies on the contemporary projection of Salafism or hyper-nationalism in the Gulf monarchies, this book explores, contends and critiques the transnational and regional currents that are making, and unmaking, the new Gulf Moment. This volume is based on the 28th Gulf Conference held at the University of Exeter in 2016.