By Fredrik Galtung
The Gulf is entering a pivotal moment—one where economic diversification, geopolitical realignment, and rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI) are reshaping global competitiveness. Few regions in the world have the strategic advantages that the GCC holds today: financial strength, bold national visions, deep global connectivity, and leadership willing to think generationally rather than incrementally. But these advantages must now be deployed in new ways. The models that once governed aid, CSR, employment, and economic engagement are shifting, and the GCC has an opportunity to lead the transition rather than adapt to it.
Across the region, business leaders are confronting a reality already transforming global markets. AI is moving far beyond automating manual tasks; it is restructuring high-skilled professions at a speed that even optimists underestimated. Major consultancies, law firms, and financial institutions worldwide are experiencing unprecedented contractions. Jobs long considered insulated from automation are being redesigned. The Gulf’s labor markets—historically anchored by public-sector employment and a rapidly scaling private sector—will face similar pressures as digital transformation accelerates.
This disruption is not only a challenge; it is also an opening. One of the most dynamic global sources of new employment is the social enterprise sector—market-driven organizations designed to solve social or environmental problems. The Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship estimates there are more than 10 million social enterprises worldwide, employing over 200 million people globally. In the United States alone, nonprofits represent about 10 percent of the private sector workforce. These enterprises can create meaningful, future-oriented jobs while tackling issues central to national visions: climate resilience, food security, clean energy, skills development, and digital inclusion.
For the GCC, this aligns naturally with ongoing economic diversification. The region has repeatedly shown it can build globally competitive sectors—renewables, logistics, advanced manufacturing, fintech—at remarkable speed. The same formula can accelerate the growth of a financially self-sustaining social innovation economy. But this requires a clear shift away from grant-dependent models. Globally, philanthropy and aid are being re-evaluated. The expectation now is that social enterprises generate the majority of their revenue through recurring, commercially viable activities. Sustainability is no longer only about impact; it is about economic durability.
This transition is especially relevant for the Gulf because the region’s strategic interests extend far beyond its borders. GCC economies are deeply connected to Africa, South Asia, and the Middle East—regions facing climate pressures, youth unemployment, and supply-chain vulnerabilities that directly affect Gulf stability and growth. The traditional multilateral system once addressed many of these issues, but today it is struggling to adapt to geopolitical change. Partner countries are seeking new forms of collaboration centered on entrepreneurship, co-investment, and technology rather than passive aid.
This is where the GCC can set a new global standard. By integrating AI tools, digital infrastructure, and cross-sector collaboration into development and impact strategies, the region can enable greater transparency, efficiency, and long-term resilience. Instead of funding isolated projects, Gulf institutions can help build ecosystems such as agritech clusters, circular-economy value chains, green-skills academies, and healthcare innovation networks. These produce both economic returns and social stability—strengthening regional competitiveness while advancing global partnerships.
The shift toward system-level problem-solving is at the heart of Catalyst Now, the global movement I help facilitate. When we launched at Davos with 200 members, our goal was to tackle complex challenges that no single actor can solve alone. Today, more than 4,300 organizations across 150 countries participate, working across government, the private sector, philanthropy, and civil society. Our core insight is simple: fragmented solutions cannot fix structural problems. Only coordinated, cross-sector systems can deliver lasting outcomes—especially when powered by digital technologies that allow collaboration at scale.
This is precisely the kind of leadership the GCC can offer. The region combines a decisive governance culture with the agility of entrepreneurial ecosystems and the long-term orientation of sovereign capital. It has the capacity to convene partners across continents, deploy patient investment, and accelerate innovation through policy and technology. Few places in the world can match this combination.
If the Gulf seizes this moment, it can pioneer a new model of development—one where economic diversification, social innovation, and technological progress reinforce one another. This is not about replicating Western approaches or traditional aid. It is about creating a Gulf-designed blueprint for systemic impact, efficiency, and resilience from which the whole world stands to benefit.
My invitation is simple: let us explore what we can build together. Whether through Catalyst Now or new collaborative platforms, I welcome partnership with GCC business leaders, philanthropies, and policymakers who share the ambition to shape the next era of impact. The world is ready for a new model—and the Gulf is uniquely positioned to define it.
(Fredrik Galtung is Chief Facilitator, CATALYST NOW. This piece originally appeared in the Knowledge Economy issue of Trends in Dec. 2025)
