Public Policy in the Saudi Rentier State : FROM BOOM TO BOOM, 1974-2005

"Windfall profits" is a catch phrase often associated with the oil boom in Saudi Arabia during the 1970s. After prices fell and everyone saw how fragile their economy really was, "blessing or curse?" became a catch phrase that followed. Development policy in the kingdom changed very little during the 1980s and early 1990s, until King Fahd had a stroke and Crown Prince Abdullah became de facto ruler in 1995 and began a process of economic liberalization, privatization, and increased integration with the countries from the Gulf Cooperation Council. Record oil prices during the 2000s once again brought the kingdom windfall profits. This work compares Saudi Arabian public policy when oil prices boomed during the 1970s with policies during the early 2000s. Looking at how, why, and to what extent they have changed their strategies between the two boom periods determine whether or not they are shedding the negative characteristics of a rentier economy or intensifying them. Has Saudi Arabia learned enough from the first boom to avoid making the same mistakes? Are the reforms they've made sufficient, or even in the right direction for sustainable economic growth?