Gulf’s move away from oil depends on funding science

纳迪亚·阿萨里（Nadia al-Ansari）说，研究资金是海湾国家通往知识经济和可持续发展的桥梁。

Since the emergence of the oil era in the Arab Gulf, its six Arab states have become major importers of technological products from around the world. This reflects high levels of income and living standards on one hand. On the other hand, it reflects the lack of a vision, on the part of officials, for a future where技术开发并转移到其他国家，而不是进口。

With the demise of the oil era come economic changes that Arab Gulf states should have recognized — especially in light of freetrade，世界贸易组织的贸易法和全球化，为全球市场开放了商品和服务的竞争。

为了确保他们在这些市场中的存在和持久权，海湾各州需要找到和土著化具有竞争优势。This can only be achieved through资金科学研究，技术和innovation（STI），然后将研究与开发产品商业化。

“投资在科学研究不会滚开ective unless research results are applied to catalyse development and societal progress.”

Nadia Al Ansary，科学技术发展基金

Recent moves by the Arab Gulf states indicate a desire to shift towards knowledge-based economies and knowledge industries. This desire is clearly reflected in countries’ interest to support scientific and technological research projects, encourage creativity and innovation, invest in intellectual property rights including patents, and build the capacities of a national workforce while attracting capable scientists from abroad. [1] But more needs to be done.

支出是必需的

由于石油是墨西哥湾合作委员会国家的国民收入的主要来源，该国约有47％的国内生产总值（国内生产总值），因此由于石油价格下跌，这些州面临巨大的压力。他们需要使国民收入的来源多样化，以避免依赖石油出口的风险，并保持长期增长和财务盈余。[2]

作为多元化的一部分，科学研究有一些投资。但是，除非将研究结果应用于催化发展和社会进步，否则对科学研究的投资将不会有效。这取决于找到建立正确气候，建立人类能力并增加科学研究的政治意愿。

韩国是一个明显的例子，说明了国家支出转变的好处。它在1960年代在研究开发方面的支出不超过GDP的0.2％；到2014年，它增加到了约4.3％，将该国转变为世界上技术上最开发的国家之一。这充分说明了科学研究和工业进步的支出之间的关系。[3]

在阿拉伯海湾国家，除了卡塔尔以外，在科学研究中的支出平均不超过1％，而卡塔尔的支出在2009年达到了GDP的2.8％。

我们应该承认，实现可持续发展和具有全球竞争性的经济增长率，因此降低了海湾国家和发达国家之间的技术差距，取决于将科学研究的支出增加到不少于GDP的2％。

多元化的资金来源

The low level of spending on scientific research compared with other regions indicates another flaw: Gulf states’ heavy dependence on governmental spending. By contrast, in developed countries the private sector supports most of research and development operations by financing research activities relevant to developing industry.

“Scientific research in the Arab Gulf states has not prioritised solving problems affecting communities.”

Nadia Al Ansary，科学技术发展基金

In the Arab Gulf states, a lack of trust between scientific research and industrial sectors also undermines the links that are needed in order to discuss technological problems and solve them locally. This increases reliance on recruiting foreign experts and technologies.

It is also worth noting that scientific research in the Arab Gulf states has not prioritised solving problems affecting communities.

它是值得remembering that for many countries, funding for scientific research may come from international grants and aid budgets. Other sources generally range from governmental spending, through allocating part of the national income and which varies depending on the annual budget, from companies in the productive and service sectors, and from research units in public sector companies.

Yet, the Gulf states rarely depend on foreign funds to support scientific research, given the huge surpluses in their annual budgets. They do not suffer from a lack of funds, but from the goals of their expenditure.

坚实的基础

The cornerstone of scientific research is human resources. The GCC countries suffer, as is the case in all Arab countries, from a shortage of qualified staff in the field of scientific research. The percentage of scientific researchers in the population is lower than the global average — in developed countries, researchers may exceed 3,600 per each million people. [4]

海湾合作委员会国家通常在很大程度上取决于外国的劳动力。某些海湾国家（例如阿联酋，卡塔尔，巴林和科威特）的移民工人比例超过了当地人的百分比，并且即将到达其他国家（例如沙特阿拉伯）的一半人口。这意味着，如果海湾国家想从知识的国家到知识生产者和出口商进行过渡，则应投资人力资源。

更多的over, most holders of postgraduate degrees in science and technology work in universities, opting against scientific research centers for the relatively easy work and social prestige of teaching posts, as teaching often prevails at the expense of research activity at universities.

鉴于其年度预算中的巨大盈余，海湾国家很少依靠外国资金来支持科学研究。他们不是缺乏资金，而是遭受支出的目标。”

Nadia Al Ansary，科学技术发展基金

Gulf states should be credited, however, for recent efforts to establish research centers that are independent of universities, with research and development their primary function. Yet, we must admit that they are not enough.

提供孵化器

There is data to back this up. A field survey of research and development centers in GCC states found a significant increase in the number of research centers from 2005 to 2011, in comparison to previous decades. It also found a lack of human resources in these centres, except in Qatar. [5]

The survey revealed that more than half of the surveyed research and development centers have at least one industrial partner, with Saudi Arabia considered a leader in the Gulf in terms of linking scientific research to industry. Forty-one per cent of these centers do not enter into partnership with industrial enterprises.

Positive signs included the fact that research and development centers, especially in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, have excellent international, regional and local partnerships with industry. They also support work in a diverse set of scientific fields and have the ability to attract international staff, as well as the potential to attract more funds dedicated to research, development and industry.

海湾合作委员会州的应用研究侧重于环境（19％），能源（16％），信息和通信技术（13％），医学和药房beplay足球体育的微博（11％）和工程（9％）。这是一个好兆头，因为这些领域与经济发展和知识行业有很大的联系。

Lifting barriers

The survey found five obstacles to the progress of scientific research and development for industrial applications in the Gulf states: a lack of clear methodology for allocating research funding, the weak role of the private sector in providing this funding, the absence of a Gulf strategy for research and development, industrial enterprises’ poor awareness of the importance of scientific research in developing their business or products, and the absence of an index for classifying Gulf research centers in terms of quality.

Therefore, what is needed is action to reverse these trends.

为了最大程度地发挥科学研究作为发展驱动力的作用，我们必须努力消除障碍，支持研究人员并创造合作机会。这可以通过鼓励和融资科学网络，为该地区研究人员之间的合作项目建立基金，并促进大学和研究中心之间的客座教授交流。[6]

It is clear that Gulf Arab states fall into two main groups in terms of scientific research capacity. The first comprises Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, which have made remarkable progress in STI (science, technology and innovation) global indicators in recent years. By 2020, this group is expected to be ready for a knowledge-based economy.

另一个小组包括科威特，巴林和阿曼，它们在STI全球指标上的排名适中，将需要大量时间和精力来改善其科学研究的环境。beplay足球体育的微博[7]

One final point: the capital spent on research and development in Arab Gulf states must be considered a strategic investment to achieve growth and sustainable development, especially if it depends on national capabilities and experience. The best proof of this is in the contribution of scientific research and development to GDP growth, which has reached 80 percent in developed countries — meaning that the return is far greater than that of investing in other sectors.

纳迪亚·艾尔萨里（Nadia al Ansary）是a纳米技术研究项目官员和科学技术开发基金STF和技术孵化器计划短期奖学金计划主任。纳迪亚还是埃及年轻科学学院的联合创始人和顾问委员会成员。

这件作品由Scidev.net的中东和北非桌子生产。

This article is part of a series on the future of research funding in low and middle income countries supported by the International Development Research Centre