Abdulla N. Khoory, an Emirati strategist and advisor on social innovation and philanthropy, argues that the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) stands at a historic inflection point. With Western aid systems in decline and the nonprofit sector facing a global talent shortage, Khoory’s research indicates that hundreds of billions in untapped philanthropic capital can be unlocked through Islamic finance principles to shape a new era of development leadership rooted in regional values.
Having been part of a team that managed $100 million in social innovation grants at Expo 2020 Dubai, where they evaluated more than 11,000 applications from 184 countries and funded 140 global innovators, Abdulla N. Khoory brings a practitioner’s perspective to his analysis. Now the Founder of Two Point Five, a social innovation advisory firm, and co-founder of NAWA, Oracle’s exclusive global partner for government digitization, he continues to work with governments in emerging economies to modernize public systems and strengthen impact infrastructure.
A Global Aid System in Retreat
Based on Khoory’s latest Fiker Institute research, “Gulf Philanthropy & International Development”, all major Western donors have reduced their foreign aid budgets simultaneously:
- United States: Suspended over 80 percent of foreign aid programs following a January 2025 executive order.
- United Kingdom: Reduced aid from 0.5 to 0.3 percent of gross national income, cutting six billion pounds annually.
- Germany: Decreased official development assistance by more than 10 percent in 2024, with humanitarian emergency aid down 53 percent.
France: Announced a 1.3 billion euro reduction in its 2025 budget.
For the first time in nearly 30 years, all major Western donors have cut aid simultaneously. The 2025 Global Philanthropy Environment Index reveals that while 61% of economies reflect favorable philanthropic environments, conditions for cross-border flows continue declining. Global charitable activity dropped significantly in 2024, with helping strangers declining by six percentage points and financial donations by four percentage points.
The GCC’s Untapped Potential
Khoory’s findings show that between 2019 and 2022, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar contributed 28.9 billion dollars in official development assistance, surpassing the ODA-to-GNI ratios of both the United States and the European Union. Yet, he estimates this represents only a fraction of potential capacity.
Applying the 2.5 percent zakat obligation to the GCC’s combined GDP of 2.1 trillion dollars suggests hundreds of billions in latent philanthropic capital, with some projections approaching one trillion. With family businesses comprising 90 percent of the private sector, most of which remain unstructured in their giving, Khoory identifies this as one of the region’s greatest opportunities for systemic reform.
“GCC countries can redefine the architecture of global development by advancing approaches that are partnership-based, locally anchored rather than externally imposed, and deeply attuned to the shared aspirations of the Global South,” Khoory writes.
His research notes that only 1 to 6 percent of Gulf assistance flows through multilateral channels such as the World Bank. This bilateral model, according to Khoory, allows for greater flexibility, faster deployment, and culturally resonant engagement with recipient countries.
“Islamic social finance, through zakat, sadaqah, and waqf, offers a framework rooted in economic justice and social balance,” he notes. “These mechanisms position recipients not as passive beneficiaries but as rightful stakeholders in a moral and economic system.”
Comprehensive Reforms
Khoory’s analysis proposes a set of reforms designed to institutionalize the GCC’s growing third sector:
Institutional Development:
- Create unified digital registries of accredited nonprofit organizations to strengthen oversight
- Enforce public disclosure of expenditures and outcomes following models like Charity Navigator
- Integrate philanthropic goals with national development plans (Saudi Arabia targets 5% of GDP by 2030)
Human Capital Investment:
- Build dedicated leadership pipelines through fellowships and academic programs
- Support social entrepreneurs across the Arab world for civic innovation
- Implement blended finance and impact investing to attract diverse professionals
Private Sector Engagement:
- Implement tax benefits for corporate donors
- Establish clear public-private partnership frameworks
- Reframe philanthropy as “social R&D” to legitimize risk-taking approaches
“Framing philanthropy as ‘social R&D’ would further legitimize its role as a risk-taking arm of public problem-solving, testing solutions that governments may be slower or less equipped to implement,” Khoory suggests.
Khoory also highlights the power of digital infrastructure to democratize giving and address transparency gaps. Through his upcoming venture, Two Point Five, a UAE-based advisory firm launching a digital donation platform, he aims to connect donors directly to verified organizations while offering real-time impact reporting.
“I want to reframe how people give,” he explains. “It’s not about emotional appeals anymore; it’s about connecting passions with proof of impact and clear impact reporting.”
A Regional Model for Global Impact
Gulf countries are already signaling momentum. Saudi Arabia’s third-sector expansion target and the UAE’s consistent ranking among the world’s leading donors reflect institutional maturity and political will. For Khoory, this moment represents a generational opportunity.
“The goal is not to replicate or replace Western systems,” Abdulla N. Khoory concludes, “but to build a more plural, grounded, and equitable architecture of development. If guided by vision and transparency, GCC philanthropy can define a new chapter that fuses faith-based tradition with strategy, and regional relevance with global leadership.”
According to Khoory’s research, the question is no longer whether Gulf philanthropy will influence global development, but how quickly it can scale and professionalize to sustain long-term impact. As Western aid contracts, the GCC’s ascent offers the world a model for how values, data, and local leadership can reshape the global economy of giving.
