Qatar on the rise

摘要

To a visitor, Doha looks somewhat outmoded. Many of the buildings were clearly built in the 1970s and 1980s off the back of the world's last great oil boom, and Qatar's capital city still has a sleepy feel to it. But appearances are often deceptive. Qatar's population may be tiny in global terms, at about 800,000 - only a quarter of them Qatari nationals - yet the cranes towering over Doha's skyline indicate that another hydrocarbon-fuelled growth spurt is in full swing. Despite the long shadow cast by neighbouring Saudi Arabia, this peninsula nation is forging its own path. While protecting the cultural and religious identity of his people, Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani wants to see his country not just modernise but leap to the forefront of global development indicators.