Master of Arts in Islam and Global Affairs

Qatar is privileged to have massive natural gas reserves compared to a small population. This massive wealth in gas reserves coupled with the fact that Qatar has a small population, has led Qatar to be ranked among the countries with the highest per capita income in the world. However, continuing reliance on the hydrocarbon revenues will expose the nation to several risks, including overdependence and volatile energy prices, in addition to the “peak oil” risks.

The emergence of alternative forms of development cooperation has been gaining ground in recent years. The growing involvement of new actors, such as the BRICS group, Indonesia, Mexico, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, has brought increasing attention to new priorities, strategies and methods of development cooperation. Their actions are challenging the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) model of development and the way aid is both conceived and delivered.

This study will portray the socio-economic and cultural bases of the alternative modernity claims of three Anatolian cities: Kayseri, Gaziantep and Eskisehir. The intention is to build a picture of the local socio-economic and cultural capacities of these cities and compare them. This comparative analysis will also involve a temporal dimension in the differentiation between the pre-1980s and post-1980s periods.