Héla Miniaoui is an Associate Professor at Lusail University in Qatar. Before Joining Lusail University, she worked as Technical Specialist at the International Labour Organization in Egypt. She also worked as Associate Professor of Economics at Qatar University, at University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD) and at United Arab Emirates University (UAEU). She holds a Ph.D in Economics from University of Tunis El Manar (Tunisia) and a Masters in Economics from Laval University (Canada). She has consulting experience at the IDEA Consult/STUDI Group and the African Development Bank.
The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) have identified the energy transition as a crucial area of growth and are investing heavily in a diverse array of projects. However, as this column explains, the region faces a number of challenges in making a success of these investments, most notably its current dependence on fossil fuels, a lack of infrastructure and technical expertise, the high upfront costs, and geopolitical tensions.