Muscat, Oman – The number of industrial facilities in the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) reached 17,000 and the amount of investments in the sector stands at USD 394 billion, with an average annual growth of 5% in the last five years. The data is from a survey conducted by the Gulf Organization for Industrial Consulting (GOIC) and was published by the Emirates News Agency (WAM) this Thursday (25).
According to WAM, in the same period the industry’s workforce in the region rose, on average, 6.5% per year and reached 1.6 million workers. GCC is formed by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Oman.
Small and medium-sized companies account for 90% of the total of industrial ventures in the bloc, according to GOIC’s adviser of strategic planning, Layla Dhyab.
The manufacturing, innovative and knowledge-based industries contribute with a share that range from 9% to 14% of the combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the six countries of the GCC, according to Dhyab.
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are the leaders in the region in terms of investments in the manufacturing industry.
It’s worth mentioning that the gas and oil industry and related activities are the most important to the Gulf economies.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
