American antidote

Last month, history was made when Barack Hussein Obama was sworn is as the 44th president of the United States of America.

His inaugural address was wide-ranging, short on specifics but high on its message of hope - a message that has carried him from underdog senator status to a seat behind the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office - and we can only dream that it's a message that will translate and resonate across the rest of the planet.

Like it or not, the USA sneezes and the rest of the world catches a cold; the way that US banks and stock markets have brought a global economy to its knees are all the proof we need that those words still hold true.

But, while there may be a message of hope from the new president, he has unquestionably also inherited an economy that has been in recession since December 2007 and has not been in such ill health since the days of the Great Depression.

"It's not going to be quick and it's not going to be easy to dig ourselves out of the hole we are in," he said in November. Too true. If ideas, optimism and the promise of a new start led Obama to The White House, it'll take a whole lot more substance to get the US and, by extension, the world on the road to recovery.

The signs are good. He has surrounded himself with some of the brightest financial minds available and they are set to uncover the second half of a US$ 700 billion bailout plan. If they do find a way to rub ointment on to the American economy's chest, even we here in the Middle East will quickly start to breathe easier.

In his inaugural speech, Obama spoke of a "new era of responsibility" - a phrase that GCC developers would do well to adopt. If politicians and powerbrokers can kick-start recovery, it's up to all of us - from individual to multinational - to ensure its continued success.

Forgive me if I choose not to mince words here but, when we're talking about the employment and livelihood of millions being affected either directly or circuitously, I see no other option. Mistakes have been made and accountability is central to almost all of them.

Infrastructure across the region has not been applied responsibly; the scope and levels of development lacked responsibility; even the naivety and failure to prepare for a financial crisis that was bound to hit showed up a region deficient in taking responsibility.

Of course, it's unreasonable to suggest that the GCC should not be affected and it is far from entirely liable for today's global situation, but, thanks to the advantageous position the Middle East is in, it had and still has the chance to be a tonic to these difficult times and set an example for others to follow.

"If we do not act boldly and swiftly, a bad situation could become dramatically worse," said the 44th president, and that's what we'll be looking at in the February issue of ME Developer - how to act swiftly and positively, from maximising productivity through cutting-edge software and project management to finding finance for projects during a downturn and even coming out in a stronger position than you went in.

If companies learn from the new president's speech and take ownership of their sector and the areas they operate in - not solely their bottom lines - then the Middle East's developers can look forward to making a little history of their own.

Matt Warnock is the editor of Middle East Developer.

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