Little if any research has examined the impact of FDI on the oil monarchies. Conventional expectations persisted that once they enter the post-oil phase of their histories, it will be difficult for them to uphold their political legitimacy and survive intense domestic and international pressures upon their regimes (Taeker: 1998 and O'Reilly: 1999). It has been argued that oil income enable them to pacify opponents by providing their subjects with jobs that pay well and has had detrimental effect on both economic development and political liberalization. These expectations have tended to be contradicted by actual development. The private sector has become remarkably strong in the oil monarchies and their governments were not highly resistant to change as depicted by the rentier state paradigm (Mahdavy: 1970, and Beblawi: 1987). Taking Bahrain as a case study, this thesis argues that despite its limitations as a small nation and the paucity of its oil reserves, Bahrain punched well above its weight due to its open economy and foreign direct investment. Its domestic economy is well integrated into the global market. It was able to exploit some of the opportunities that were presented by economic globalization when niches were opened or vacated within the networks of global production. It has developed energy-intensive industries (aluminium and petrochemicals) and became the major financial centre of the Middle East. Yet in spite of the government incentives, it still faces some challenges in attracting FDI in downstream activities related to oil and aluminium, which suggests that additional reforms are needed.