Vplyv ropného sektora na ekonomický rozvoj krajín Stredného východu a severnej Afriky so zameraním na členské štáty OAPEC-u
IMPACT OF OIL SECTOR FOR THE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA COUNTRIES TARGETET FOR OAPEC MEMBER COUNTRY

Summary/Abstract: Oil as well as petroleum exporting countries has always been a significant and interes-ting part of the world economy. There is always a vivid memory of the two oil shocks, which were linked to deep changes in world economy in the 70’s and 80’s. Today, as petroleum is still the primary energetic source, the oil issue attracts no less attention. On the other hand most development economists agree that variations in world prices are an important source of risk and instability for developing economies. Developing countries derive about half their export earnings from primary commodities, where the world prices are extremely volatile The OAPEC’s members (Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries) captured a leading position in the economy of the Middle East and North Africa and play the majority role in the world energy policy. This paper analyses not the history of oil in the OAPEC’s member countries, but in brief the impact of petroleum industry on economic development in these countries since the period before the II. World War until the present. The first chapter named the period before mass petroleum extraction began through-out this part of the world, the region could be divided into two major groups. The first one included countries with agricultural resources, among them Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq and Syria. These countries produced at that time basic agricultural com-modities such as cotton, wheat, wine etc. The second group was made up from the rest region and served as strategic military bases and potential oil resources. The second chapter covered three periods of development in the oil sector and eco-nomic growth. The first, started in the fifties, was marked with a significant develop-ment and growth in oil fields in Arabian Gulf countries. Many multinational petroleum companies worked in exploration and some of them also in mining on the basis of con-cessions, leases, or contracts granted by the local governments. The indicator of the period of 60. and 70. was the unilateral decision in 1959 and 1960 made by multinational petroleum companies to decrease the posted oil prices. These decisions evoked a wave of protests in Arab petroleum producing countries and with an initiative of Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait with full support of Iran and Vene-zuela they founded the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) at the Baghdad Conference of September, 10.–14., 1960. After that the prices of oil re-mained at the same level until the end of the decade. In January 1968 as a reaction to the third Israel-Arab War the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC ) was created. The member countries are Al-geria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia and United Arab Emirates. Tunisian membership was suspended on his own request in 1987.

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