In Pursuit of the Knowledge Economy

Abstract

Abstract The extent to which the digital turn is reshaping the Middle East’s economic environment is evident in many countries’ aspirations to become knowledge economies. These orientations reflect broader changes brought about by the twin forces of globalization and informatization. These transitions are part of a long and arduous path toward modernization that brought hopes and promises to the region but also incurred apprehension and misgivings. With the digital turn, the state remains beholden to the unfulfilled promises of economic globalization, which it cannot control and toward which it continues to be ambivalent. At the same time, the state is responding to the ever more pressing demands and expectations of an aspiring young population with varying levels of digital access.