Henry Paulson highlights UAE's forward-looking growth as model for GCC countries

The revenues, he said are enabling GCC countries to "shore up their economic fundamentals...and make much-needed investments in human capital - steps that should help avoid the up-and-down cycles of the past and support significant sector-wide growth."

He continued, "Nowhere is this more evident than in the UAE, where a vibrant, diversified economy is reflected through innovative construction and services growth," referring to projects like the carbon-neutral city and a new financial centre.

Such projects, said Paulson, "are evidence of the benefits of adopting outward-oriented policies and I hope they encourage other countries to follow suit."

While he cited a dramatic increase in foreign investment in the region - in the case of the US, foreign direct investment rose 120% between 2001 and 2006 - he encouraged Gulf countries to further liberalize their foreign investment policies.

"As economies change, uncertainty can create resistance to openness," he said. "It is critical to understand, however that in the long run openness to trade and investment will not only bring prosperity, but will also improve stability by better enabling economies to manage external shocks and smooth out business cycles."

At the same time, he sought to assure Middle East leaders that their will to liberalize would be matched by an American attitude of openness.

"Some worry about growing protectionist sentiment in the US," he said. "My response is the same as that expressed by President Bush - as we seek to open new markets abroad, so the US will keep its markets open at home to diverse foreign investment."

Paulson's viewpoint is carried in full in The Report: Abu Dhabi 2008, which features a series of exclusive interviews with key officials and business leaders in what is considered the most extensive, independent, unbiased and accurate intelligence available.

Available in print form and online, The Report is part of the range of OBG publications, which are renowned as leading sources of information on developing and emerging economies around the world.

Rated as the premier guide for foreign direct investment into the country's vibrant economy, The Report is an invaluable guide to the many facets of Abu Dhabi, including macroeconomics, infrastructure, political landscape, banking and sectoral developments, and presents a remarkably in depth profile of the emirate.

The 200-page business guide to the emirate, with an international distribution of 76,000, was produced by a team of OBG analysts based in Dubai for six months, who conducted some two hundred interviews with leading political and economic figures.

30% of subscribers to The Report: Abu Dhabi 2008 are in Europe, 26% in GCC countries, 18% in North America, 15% in the Levant, and 11% in Asia. 75% are corporate subscribers and 20% government organizations and institutions. 28% are financial institutions, 27% in the energy sector, 19% in real estate and construction, 12% in IT and telecommunications, and 10% in industry.