Oil-rich governments in the Middle East and North Africa are increasingly relying on the private sector in a key change across the region, AFP reported Wednesday (October 11th).
The value of public-private partnership (PPP) projects, including those still in the pipeline, has more than doubled to $185 billion over the past year, according to the Dubai-based Middle East Economic Digest.
The sharp increase comes as governments have ramped up efforts to get the private sector involved in financing, building and operating public infrastructure projects in a bid to offset shrinking income from oil since crude prices began to fall in mid-2014.
"The rise of PPP over the past few years is one of the most strategically significant shifts in the business landscape of the Middle East since the nationalisation of the oil industry in the early 1970s," the report said.
Kuwait topped the list with joint projects worth $44.4 billion, followed by Libya with $36 billion, and the UAE with $27.6 billion.
The figures exclude any investments in the key energy sector.
