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Research on institutional logics has missed the opportunity to understand how and why societies may fundamentally differ in their material and symbolic systems. In this chapter, the authors offer a qualitative examination of the implementation of infrastructure public–private partnership (PPP) projects in the Arab state of Qatar. The authors illustrate how the macrofoundations of Qatari society are rooted in the notion of tribe, an inter-institutional system under which the intertwined institutional orders of the state, the market, and the family have historically developed and operated. Their study sheds light on how these macrofoundations shape the processes and mechanisms that underpin the resistance to the introduction of innovative organizational forms. The chapter makes two contributions. First, it identifies how “foreign” organizational forms rooted in Western institutional orders trigger adverse reactions from societies characterized by different institutional orders. Second, it demonstrates the challenge of implementing PPPs in an institutional context that is unfavorable to them and where actors seek to preserve the supremacy of the extant inter-institutional system.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the current state of the knowledge-based economy in two distinctive case studies in the Arab World: Qatar and Lebanon. Based on five aspects of the knowledge-based economy namely: ICT, human capital and education; innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic and institutional regime, we provide a careful view of the obstacles and challenges that Qatar and Lebanon are facing and how this is hindering their transformation to a knowledge-based economy.

The methodology of this research is based on a literature review and information collected through semi-structured interviews with the different stakeholders of the knowledge-based economy in Qatar and Lebanon.

The research reveals that numerous factors shape the knowledge-based economy in Qatar and Lebanon. In Qatar, the main strength of the knowledge-based economy is the determination of the Qatari government to diversify the economy and the main weaknesses are the shortage of qualified human resources, the fear of failure and the low performance of the innovation system. In Lebanon, the knowledge-based economy is driven by the education system and the entrepreneurship culture, nevertheless the political instability of the country and the weak ICT infrastructure impede its development.

These findings contribute to the clarification and critical analysis of the current state of the knowledge-based economy in Qatar and Lebanon, which would have several policy implications.

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the characteristics and dynamics of the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the ICT sector in Qatar.

The methodology of this research is based on a literature review and information collected through semistructured interviews with the different stakeholders involved in the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the ICT sector in Qatar.

The results show that two opposite forces shape the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the ICT sector in Qatar. On one hand, the strong determination and intervention of the Qatari government to diversify the economy by creating a vibrant ecosystem in the ICT sector. On the other hand, entrepreneurs in this sector are still facing some barriers and difficulties, and those issues are tightly related to Qatar's economic characteristics as a rentier state whose economy is driven by hydrocarbon resources.

These findings contribute to the clarification and critical analysis of the current dynamics of the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the ICT sector in Qatar, which would have several policy implications.

This paper aims to identify the current challenges and opportunities faced by the facility managers (FMs) in Doha, Qatar.

Researchers queried 40 FMs about their experience working in Qatar, using interviews and workshops.

Comments gathered followed general patterns. Participants expressed appreciation for their work, but also concern about cultural challenges they faced managing facilities in the region. In general, it was agreed that the low cost of water and energy in Qatar is one of the largest obstacles to conserving resources; however, current consumption is not sustainable.

The sensitive nature of this study made strict demands on the research team to maintain participant anonymity during data collection and reporting. This sensitivity also limited the sample size; a larger sample size for future research would support greater generalizability.

Qatar is taking steps to reduce its per capita carbon footprint and energy use, which is among the highest in the world. However, there appears to be a disconnect between Qatar’s expressed intentions and its actions with respect to facility management. To ensure that Qatar manages resources more efficiently, participants recommended that reduced energy use standards be adopted and legally mandated. This action would address many of the challenges, incentivize increased qualifications and training of FM professionals working in Qatar and encourage improvement of the long-term performance of buildings which are energy drains and heavy contributors to greenhouse gas emissions.

Prior to this study, little has been published about current practices of facility management in Doha, Qatar, and the challenges and opportunities that FMs face in this region.

This case study of the State of Qatar examines government educational policy and economic development in Qatar’s strategy to diversify its oil and gas-based economy into knowledge production. Qatar presents a particularly interesting case since its substantial investments in the past decade in education, Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), research and development (R&D), and coastal development and tourism are all highly intertwined both in practice and from a national policy perspective. Armed with billions of dollars of sovereign wealth funds (SWF) from its gas and oil industries, the government of Qatar has embarked on both domestic and overseas investment campaigns including education, sports, internet and telecommunications, healthcare, overseas land purchases (food security), cultural institutions and museums, increased desalinated water capacity, and coastal development and tourism projects. Education and research, most notably Qatar Foundation’s Education City, Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF), and the Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP), stand at the heart of Qatar’s investment in human development and long-term economic and social sustainability. Despite large outlays in knowledge economy initiatives, the country, however, is facing significant challenges in rapid population growth, reliance on expatriate labor for its skilled labor needs, an underdeveloped education system, and an undiversified economy which revolves around hydrocarbon rents.

Qatar’s higher education system is growing rapidly, as science in the Islamic world witnesses a contemporary renaissance. Steering a course toward becoming a “knowledge society,” Qatar and other countries in the Arabian Gulf region are now home to dozens of universities. The establishment of many international offshore, satellite, or branch campuses further emphasizes the international dynamism of higher education development there. The remarkable expansion of higher education in Qatar builds upon unifying two distinct strategies, both prevalent in capacity-building attempts worldwide. First, Qatar seeks to cultivate human capital domestically through massive infrastructure investment and development of educational structures, including Qatar University. Second, Qatar seeks to match the strongest global universities through direct importation of existing organizational capacity, faculty and staff, and accumulated reputation. Local capacity in higher education and scientific productivity is built simultaneously with the ongoing borrowing of ideas and talent from different regions of the world. The relative youth of the higher education system and the state’s small geographic and demographic size are being compensated by considerable investments in the standard-bearing university – a national university taking root – simultaneously with hosting branches of eminent foreign higher education institutions, mainly on the Education City campus. Exemplifying extreme glocalization and mondialisation, Qatar has become a regional hub, bridging the traditional university strongholds in the West and the rising powerhouses in the East.

In June 2017, members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) ended diplomatic ties with Qatar. There is a legitimate concern about the accusation levied on Qatar. This paper aims to analyse the progress Qatar’s financial system has made with respect to its anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CFT) regulations, which further serves as the country’s effort to combating the financing of terrorism (CTF). The paper further wishes to advance the discussion by considering the legitimate goals of the aforementioned bodies and their discourse on creating national and international obligations towards reducing terrorist financing through robust AML frameworks.

The paper analyses Qatar’s legislative and regulatory overhaul following the Financial Action Task Force’s Mutual Evaluation Report. Qatar had distinctively strengthened its approach against Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing. The paper takes an ex ante approach by understanding Qatar’s “strategic deficiencies” before the FATF’s mutual evaluation. Subsequently, the paper studies independent international evaluations of Qatar’s AML/CTF legislation and regulation.

The paper finds Qatar in significant compliance to the recommendations of the various international bodies, including the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), Basel AML Index, IMF’s financial sector reviews, United Nations and independent reports on AML progress from regulatory bodies around the world. None of these organizations present obligatory rules but have set and determined and international standard for AML/CTF laws.

The primary aim is to draw parallels between Qatar’s regulatory AML and CTF efforts through the country’s compliance with international initiatives, such as the FATF guidelines, Basel AML Index, IMF’s financial sector reviews, United Nations and independent reports on AML progress from regulatory bodies around the world.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and document the skills and knowledge needs of future library professionals in Qatar and to use the outcomes of this research to help develop or refine focused library and information studies course curricula that meet the needs of the local workforce and also guide or improve national or local professional development programmes.

A skills and knowledge needs assessment survey was sent to library professionals, LIS students and library managers in Qatar. A total of 109 respondents completed the survey, a representation of around 25 per cent of the current LIS workforce in Qatar.

Findings indicated that respondents felt that the most needed future job roles included more client focused positions such as research librarians, information services librarians and subject librarians, as well as technical roles such as Arabic cataloguers, electronic resources librarians and system librarians. The largest amount of needed positions was also felt to be in school libraries. Respondents to the survey also felt that there was a lack of opportunities for professional development in Qatar and that the most needed area of skills training was information literacy, followed by copyright training and technical skills including RDA and Arabic cataloguing. One further finding identified from the survey was the concern felt by respondents about the lack of a professional body in Qatar that represented LIS professionals.

This paper provides data on future roles, skills and knowledge needed by library professionals working in international and culturally diverse workforces. It also provides findings that can be used to develop LIS curriculum and professional development programmes in international LIS environments.

A detailed needs assessment of this kind has not previously been undertaken in Qatar. The library and information sector in Qatar is an emerging field with a largely international workforce. This situation provides a distinct perspective on the needs of an emerging library sector that is a blend of different cultures, workplace practices and differing expectations and understandings of the role and skills needed to be a LIS professional.

The recent diplomatic split between members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and Qatar with accusations of terrorist financing (TF). This paper aims to study Qatar’s domestic legislations, which specifically targets money laundering and TF activities. The country has stringently worked in compliance with international standards on combating financing of terrorism (CFT) and anti-money laundering (AML) practices by imparting autonomous power to regulatory bodies, such as the Qatar Central Bank and other agencies.

This paper studies independent legislations passed under the Emir’s decree over the past decade advancing Qatar’s AML ranking, with significant effort in CFT regulations. The paper also analyses the advancement in AML/CFT regulation and their validity with respect to international standards set by various governmental, intergovernmental and non-profit agencies.

The analysis finds Qatar in compliance with strong AML/CFT regulations. Further, it finds the government to have provided transparent oversight to international organizations that attest to the findings of the legislative efforts. This paper disproves claims and accusations that have possibly been presented to the GCC and subsequently led members to abruptly end diplomatic relations with Qatar over allegations of TF activities, amongst others.

The paper offers insight into Qatar’s legislative and regulatory advancement with respect to the AML/CTF in the past decade. The paper also discusses Qatar’s legislative advancement in relation to the evolutions of the country’s financial system, adopting a more robust mechanism to combat financing of terrorism and ML.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the experience of Qatar with entrepreneurship education and training, and its contribution in creating a knowledge-based economy. By doing so, the paper will contribute towards raising awareness about the state of entrepreneurship education, training and the knowledge economy in Qatar.

The research design for this paper is a descriptive and interpretive case study that is analysed through qualitative methods. Secondary information is analysed through descriptive statistics.

The main finding of this paper is that although Qatar has launched many initiatives of entrepreneurship education and training to help diversify its economy by creating knowledge-based economy, the data show that there is some improvement in Qatar’s ranking in the Knowledge Economy Index.

The main limitation of this study is the unavailability of secondary data for a long period of time.

The main policy implication that can be derived from the findings of this paper is that entrepreneurship education and training alone cannot create a diversified and knowledge-based economy in a short period of time. In fact building a knowledge economy requires more than introduction of entrepreneurship education and training. In addition to entrepreneurship education it requires improvement in the national innovation system, large investment in information and communication technology and a good macroeconomic performance. Moreover, the success of entrepreneurship education and training in fulfilling its objective requires a comprehensive strategy to be implemented over a long period of time.

The paper represents an original work that links entrepreneurship education and training with the knowledge economy. This is the first paper that handles this issue in the context of Gulf countries.