Doing Business in the Middle East Presently Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen are the 14 nations in the Middle East. The majority of Middle Easterners share in common the Arab culture, language and religion. It is especially important to take note of the Islamic belief. "Islam means the act of giving one's self to God or Allah" (Harris & Moran, 2000, p.385). Visitors and business people must understand the powerful religious and cultural force of Islam to appreciate or comprehend this country. Although this paper focuses on establishing and doing business in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the writers have also given attention to the demographics and culture of this intriguing country.DemographicsThe United Arab Emirates is bordered by Saudi Arabia and Oman. Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Dubai, Fujairah, Ras as-Khaimah, Sharjah and Umm al Qaiwain are the seven emirates. Most of the inside areas of the UAE are desert, and from May to September in Abu Ddhabi and Dubai, the humidity and daytime temperatures stay around 105 degrees Fahrenheit. These high temperatures keep people inside during the daytime hours, and often leaving their homes in the evening to conduct business. Business hours in this region vary, but are generally from 8am to 1pm, reopening at either 3pm or 4pm and closing at 6pm or 7pm. Bank hours are generally 8am to midday. Markets and food stores are open at the later evening hours when it is much cooler (http://jafza.co.ae/ad1.htm).The population of the UAE is approximately two million people of whom only 500,000 are United Arab Emirates citizens; the others are from other Gulf countries, Pakistan, Iran and India. Although English is widely understood, Arabic is the official language. Most Emirates, approximately 96%, are Sunni Muslims (the remaining 4% are considered Hindu), and their paramount virtues are considered to be dignity, honor...
