In June 2025, the World Bank published a report on smart spending in the GCC, discussing how economic growth is projected to increase in the medium term to 3.2% in 2025 and 4.50% in 2026. The report also predicted that this growth will be supported by rollbacks of OPEC+ oil production cuts and robust expansion of non-oil sectors.
A key segment of the report titled “Smart Spending, Stronger Outcomes: Fiscal Policy for a Thriving GCC also discussed the effectiveness of fiscal policy in ensuring macroeconomic stabilized encouraging growth.
In this First Edition of the Board Talk series, we discuss smart spending in the GCC with Former Regional Director and ICELIS Global Advisory Board Member, Dr. Paul Noumba Um.