Laws in the Gulf countries vary regarding what proportion of a company must be locally owned. This means that selecting the right partner for a business is essential in a country such as the UAE, as Natasha Turak discusses.

The start-up culture found in Tel Aviv boasts Barack Obama among its admirers. Indeed, the Israeli city's entrepreneurial spirit and hi-tech expertise has had multinational companies from all over the world sitting up and taking notice, as John West discovers. 

The decision to move molecular diagnostics company Biocartis from Eindhoven to the small Belgian city of Mechelen could be viewed as a nostalgic one by the firm's Belgian founder, Rudi Pauwels. However, the location's tax incentives and grants have gone some way towards helping the firm to prepare for an international expansion. 

Jordan is refining policies and signing international development deals to exploit its excellent conditions for solar energy projects and wind farms and its reputation for stability at the heart of one of the most turbulent parts of the world.