From Rags to Riches

by Al Fahim, Mohammed

• ISBN13: 9781860642333
• ISBN10: 1860642330
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1998-07-01
• Publisher: Tauris Academic Studies

Summary

Born in 1948, in Abu Dhabi, the author knew dreadful poverty for years before fabulous oil wealth transformed his country forever. He grew up in the ruler's palace, barefoot like his playmates, now senior figures in the United Arab Emirates.
This is a vivid eye-witness account of the total transformation within only 30 years of a Bedouin society into a country with the world's highest per capita income. He speaks with great frankness about his own life and career and about the role of the British in his country.

Table of Contents

Foreword	p. 12
Introduction	p. 15
Humble Beginnings	p. 19
The Trucial States	p. 19
Pearling - bitter memories	p. 21
Bare essentials	p. 24
Bedouin hospitality - timeless traditions	p. 26
Unwanted domination	p. 27
The Bani Yas and the Qawasim	p. 28
Waves of migration from the Persian coast	p. 31
New agreements in 1892	p. 32
Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa and the British	p. 33
Unmet Expectations	p. 37
Dawn of the twentieth century	p. 37
The Shakhbut years	p. 40
The race is on	p. 42
Border disputes	p. 43
High hopes	p. 47
Generations in the Gulf	p. 49
A short family history	p. 49
Simple lives	p. 53
A daily struggle	p. 55
Through the eyes of a child	p. 59
Unsettled times	p. 61
The spoils of battle	p. 62
A young life lost	p. 63
Entrepreneurial spirit	p. 64
Early school days with Mulla Darwish	p. 66
Six-room schoolhouse	p. 69
Good intentions	p. 71
Mixed Blessings	p. 73
Black gold	p. 73
Empty promises	p. 75
The future looks brighter	p. 77
Daring desert driving	p. 79
Heaven on earth	p. 81
Two steps forward, one step back	p. 83
Bahraini visitors	p. 87
Paradise found	p. 88
The Threshold of Development	p. 93
Castles in the sand	p. 93
Deteriorating relations	p. 95
Needless loss	p. 113
The Arab voice	p. 114
Few amusements	p. 117
Cinema and secrets	p. 119
Faraway places	p. 121
A dream come true	p. 124
Dust in the wind	p. 127
Leaps and Bounds	p. 129
A charismatic leader	p. 129
Fierce patriotism	p. 133
Starting from scratch	p. 135
Record-breaking growth	p. 136
No room at the inn	p. 139
Supportive strategies	p. 141
In the driver's seat	p. 143
Birth of a Nation	p. 147
Born of necessity	p. 147
Federation proves challenging	p. 150
Tribal roots	p. 152
Tangible benefits	p. 153
Winning over the world	p. 156
Three hundred tons of olives	p. 160
From boom to bust	p. 163
Shifting Sands	p. 167
Money problems	p. 167
Many happy returns	p. 169
Opportunity knocks	p. 172
A shooting star	p. 174
Close call!	p. 175
Shocking truths	p. 177
Beyond Our Dreams	p. 181
Persistence pays off	p. 181
Faith, hope and perseverance	p. 183
Education is the key	p. 187
Glossary of Gulf terms	p. 191
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