Its high growth and relative stability in such times of economic uncertainty has seen myriad countries trying to position themselves as Islamic finance hubs. Ireland is the latest country to do this, and the early signs – including a $2bn sukuk issued on its stock exchange by Goldman Sachs last year – are promising.

The northern Polish region of Pomerania, which lies on the Baltic coast, has a long and proud history of shipbuilding. However, boosted by EU funding, the area is undergoing a rapid modernisation, with its infrastructure transformed and its industries venturing into various hi-tech sectors.

By encouraging an interdisciplinary approach to production and a co-operative approach to research and development, Eindhoven in the Netherlands has transformed itself from a city reliant on the economic output of two companies to the home of a campus designed to inspire collaboration and innovation between the hundreds of companies based there.

Across central Asia, from China to Kazakhstan, economies are set to benefit from the re-opening of trade routes along the historic Silk Road. Significant investment has already been made to improve the infrastructure along the route, but further investment, more cohesion between the central Asian countries involved and more politically stability in the region as a whole is needed if this great passageway between Asia and Europe is to return to its former glory.