Qatar Today April 2015 by Oryx Group of Magazines

inside this issue April 2015 / Vol. 41 / Issue 4

COVER STORY

40 HUMAN CAPITAL: THE NEW ORDER

Qatar’s HR sector moves away from the norm and plays a far wider, though unique, role specific to the cultural fabric of the country in an effort to integrate and understand the diverse workforce.

14 “THE WORLD NEEDS A BOUQUET OF ENERGY SOURCES”

Lady Barbara Judge CBE has strong views on subjects ranging from nuclear power to gender equality in the oil and gas sector. One of her beliefs is that Qatar should pursue nuclear power and should do it without delay.

18 “SUKUK CAN HELP COMPLETION OF PROJECTS”

Qatar International Islamic Bank CEO Albdulbasit Ahmed Al Shaibei discusses oil price slump and its impact on ongoing infrastructure projects, and the developments relating to Islamic banking in Qatar.

36 READY TO LEAD THE DRYLANDS

Executive Director Badr Omar Al Dafa announced to the diplomatic community in Doha that the Global Drylands Alliance is all set to launch this May.

58 DEMOCRATISING THE INTERNET

Qatar Today gets an the opportunity to learn about the relatively lesser known work done by Mada (Qatar Assistive Technology Center) on e-accessibility.

90 LEXUS COMPACTS LUXURY

Qatar Today took the new Lexus NX for a spin and found that it scores high in the luxury-to-price ratio.

inside this issue April 2015 / Vol. 41 / Issue 4

SPOTLIGHT

72 BUILDING A NEW WORLD

Buoyed by government support, growing consumer demand and a stable business environment, Qatar’s construction industry is on a growth trajectory with most of the mega infrastructure projects expected to be completed before the nation hosts the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

62 ROADS FROM RUBBLE

Disposing of construction waste is a major concern for any country. Qatar has taken a step towards environmentally-friendly roads by initiating a novel project to lay new roads from debris.

66 “OIL PRICE DROP WILL NOT IMPACT DEALS”

Deals pertaining to Mergers and Acquisitions in the Middle East, Qatar in particular, are unlikely to be affected despite wobbling oil prices and political unrest, says KPMG’s Global Head of Deal Advisory Leif Zierz.

68 IMPARTING VALUES OF CONSERVATION

Principal of Birla Public School Doha A K Shrivastava minces no words when it comes to environmental conservation. Parents have ignored their responsibility of imparting green values to children, he tells Qatar Today.

78 DIC 2.0

ictQATAR’s Digital Incubation Centre invited Qatar Today to talk about its new direction and programme of diversification.

96 “NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE”

This time on the Pioneering Women series, Lauren Fryer, Managing Partner at Qanect Communications, talks about being persistent in the face of rejection and holding your own when you are outside your comfort zone.

and regulars 10

NEWS BITES

BANK NOTES

REALTY CHECK

O&G OVERVIEW

TECH TALK

MARKET WATCH

AUTO NEWS

102

DOHA DIARY

from the desk Of the 190 Heads of State, nine are women; in all the Fortune 500 companies, women hold about 14% of executive positions and only 16% are on the corporate boards. These figures haven’t changed much over the years and show that women are largely underrepresented in business and leadership roles across the globe. A “Women in Energy” summit held in Doha last month discussed this very issue. It was found that although the numbers have been slightly positive in the oil and gas sector with the overall number of women rising slightly in 2014 to 7.8% from 7.1% a year earlier, it is estimated that it will take at least 30 years to achieve gender parity even if the number of men and women graduating from university with engineering or geosciences degrees is now fairly even. Although a small majority of participants felt that the Middle East countries should introduce quotas to increase women's representation at the board level, the main reason for the low female labour participation rate in Qatar’s oil and gas sector, despite the rising number of women graduating from universities, was because fewer women choose to work due to social and cultural pressures. While all these conflicting reports and cultural challenges mire the working female population in the country, the HR sector is a fine example of women in leadership roles, striving for causes they believe in. An often-discussed but never-addressed issue is cultural diversity, and the roadblocks faced while working in a Qatari corporate setting are also brought to light for the first time. Sharoq Al Malki, one of the HR directors we interviewed, wants to find solutions by tackling this diversity issue by firstly acknowledging that cultural barriers exist and then addressing each one of them. It is pure coincidence that this month we focus (March 8 being International Women’s Day) on powerful women in leadership roles who stand behind their beliefs and fight to attain them. Let’s raise a toast for equal opportunities across genders, cultural backgrounds, race, and fight for a society that is inclusive in giving everyone opportunities to work and prosper.

SINDHU NAIR Managing Editor

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GEORGE The article on developing water technologies is thought-provoking and also very interesting. The GCC governments, including Qatar, should explore the possibilities of introducing them in their respective countries as solar energy is a costly affair.

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HANAN K The two mega events hosted by Qatar – Qatar Motor Show and Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition – made headlines in the GCC region and Qatar Today’s efforts to present them to the readers in an altogether different style is commendable. They show that Qatar is on its way to become the region’s auto capital and also reflect people’s admiration for exquisite jewellery and watches. I hope the magazine continues to cover such events with similar zest in future. HAYA HASSAN Qatar Today’s cover story on the real estate industry once again brought the issues faced by the expatriates to the fore. The jacking up of land prices is an area of concern and the government should find a way where it’s a `Win-Win’ situation for all. RAMA MOORTHY

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affairs > local EMIR VISITS THE INDIAN SUBCONTINENT

AFP PHOTO/ PRAKASH SINGH and LAKRUWAN WANNIARACHCHI

The Emir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, as part of the many recent visits to countries of strategic and trade importance, called on the leaders of Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka during his tour of the subcontinent.

ccompanied by a high-level delegation that comprised ministers, senior officials and prominent business leaders, HH the Emir’s visit to these countries focused on expanding bilateral and trade relations beyond the energy sector. During his stay in Pakistan he met with President Mamnoon Hussain and Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif who urged Qatar to allow more Pakistani workers access to employment opportunities in Qatar. Both sides also signed three memorandums of understanding (MoUs) aimed at

increasing cooperation in education and culture. Continuing his tour, HH the Emir landed in New Delhi to meet with President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior ministers from the Indian government. Qatar expressed keen interest in investing in a number of “interesting initiatives” undertaken by India and conveyed trust in the country’s economy. The External Affairs Ministry reportedly highlighted railways, defence, infrastructure, Smart Cities, retail and LNG terminals as offering “immense opportunities” for

Qatari investment, while Qatar Airways Chairman HE Akbar Al Baker reinstated his interest in the domestic airliner IndiGo. Six agreements, in the areas of prisoner transfer, information & communication, diplomacy, news exchange and radio and television, were inked during this visit. In the concluding leg of the tour, HH the Emir visited Sri Lanka and met with the newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena, and the two countries signed nine MoUs covering investment, economic cooperation, tourism, education and agriculture.

NEW MOSQUE AND QFIS FACILITY OPENS

The first mosque at Education City, which will also serve as the campus of the Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies, was inaugurated in the presence of HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser. The stunning building can house 1,800 worshippers in its indoor prayer halls and outdoor courtyard. The ceiling is a sprinkling of lights resembling stars with large, embossed Quranic verses. The mosque rests on five structural pillars, representing the five pillars of Islam, with water flowing underneath: the architect’s interpretation of paradise. Two large minarets rise out of the structure towards Mecca. The mosque also houses classrooms, research centres and library serving the Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies. The building has taken three years to complete and the first prayer was attended by HH Sheikha Moza, dignitaries, Education City students and faculty. 12 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

AFP PHOTO / MICHAEL BUHOLZER

WORLD CUP 2022 FINALS ON QATAR NATIONAL DAY

Tourism adds $7.6 billion to Qatar’s economy

FIFA confirmed that the football tournament in Qatar will be a shorter 28-day affair (instead of the usual 32 days), with the finals falling on Sunday, December 18, coinciding with Qatar National Day. FIFA’s Communications Chief Walter de Gregorio said that deciding the date of the final was “an important step". "Finally, we know and we can move forward,” he said. At a meeting in Barcelona, the European Professional Football Leagues adopted a resolution criticising the decision to move the tournament to winter. While the English leagues announced that they will not take legal action against FIFA over the decision, other top European leagues like the French are still mulling the possibility.

Qatar saw 2.8 million visitors enter the country in 2014, an 8.2% increase in numbers over the previous year, generating 61,000 jobs in the tourism sector and an economic injection of $7.6 billion (QR27.7 billion), according to figures released during the Arabian Travel Mart. Several projects are currently underway that will set Qatar up as a major tourist and venue attraction, including Doha Festival City, Doha Convention Centre, Mall of Qatar, Doha Zoo, Lusail Museum, Katara Towers and football stadiums. The total number of projects planned or underway, according to MEED, include five museums and libraries; 57 hotels and resorts; 22 shopping venues; 21 sports facilities; convention centres; and a state-of-the-art theatre.

Currency peg to stay

While there have been murmurs that Qatar and other GCC economies might have to rethink the sustainability of their currencies pegged against the US Dollar, Qatar Central Bank Governor Sheikh Abdullah bin Saud Al Thani laid these to rest, declaring that Qatar remains fully committed to the Riyal's peg to the US Dollar and is not reviewing its currency policy.

QATAR JOINS ARAB OFFENSIVE AGAINST HOUTHIS IN YEMEN

ver the last few weeks, the situation in Yemen has been fluid and fast-acting. While the globally recognised president Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi moved to Aden to continue his rule from there, the Shia rebels in the north continued south to cement their coup. It is widely believed, especially in Saudi Arabia, that Iran is supporting the Shia insurgents militarily, and that this helped the rebels sweep across Yemen, taking Taiz and capturing the airport at Aden. President Hadi went underground but immediately after that Saudi Arabia launched airstrikes, together with Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, against the Houthis and their allies, which

AFP PHOTO / MOHAMMED HUWAIS

In a dramatic turn of events, Saudi Arabia, with the support of 10 countries, led air strikes against the Houthis just as they were starting to close in on Aden. include forces loyal to Yemen’s former leader, Ali Abdullah Saleh. The Arab offensive, called "Operation Decisive Storm”, targeted Houthi militia movements and all air defence armaments, including surface-to-air missile systems, anti-aircraft artillery and ballistic missile platforms. Tehran has condemned the Saudi-led attacks and called for an immediate halt to the campaign, which includes threats of a land invasion. While Egypt has sent its warships to Aden and the Saudi army is reportedly being amassed at the Yemeni border, analysts believe that a ground offensive is unlikely. Meanwhile, it is unclear how these events will affect the delicate Iran nuclear talks that are ongoing in Switzerland. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 13

AFP PHOTO / DPA / CHRISTOPH SCHMIDT

affairs > local

GULF AND AMERICAN AIRLINES INVOLVED IN SUBSIDIES SPAT The issue refuses to be put to rest and is, in fact, only getting louder with the rapid expansion of the Gulf carriers – Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad. The matter of government subsidies and unfair advantages was raised again by several American airlines. At a media event in Washington, representatives of American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta made public parts of a 55-page report that reportedly demonstrates billions of dollars in government subsidies and unfair benefits the three state-owned carriers have allegedly received since 2004. Claiming that this distorted international trade, the American aviation companies asked the US government to modify the “open skies” treaties with the UAE and Qatar, curtailing the carriers’ expansion in North America. All three Gulf carriers have denied these claims. HE Akbar Al Baker, Chairman of Qatar Airways, in his usual curt, frank manner, accused the trio (particularly CEO of Delta, Richard Anderson) of not knowing the difference between equity and subsidy. “We never receive any subsidy,” he said.”The state of Qatar is the owner of Qatar Airways and whatever funds are put into the airline is as equity, which is quite legitimate. The unfortunate thing is that because they are so inefficient they want to blame us (...) for their failures and drawbacks. First of all, we don’t fly crap airplanes that are 35 years old,” he was quoted as saying.

VINCI DENIES CLAIMS OF FORCED LABOUR

Turkey renames iconic street in Istanbul after Qatar In light of 2015 being Qatar Turkey Year of Culture and ahead of HH the Emir’s visit to the country, Turkey renamed a prominent street in Istanbul after Qatar. “Qatar Street”, which is 3.5 km long and overlooks the Bosphorus, is on the European side of Istanbul and was formerly called “Istinye Bayiri”.

Paris-based human rights group Sherpa accused French construction giant Vinci of using forced labour in their projects in Qatar, an allegation that the company denies.

LAETITIA LIEBERT, Executive Director, SHERPA

herpa filed a legal complaint against Vinci, which is behind several high-profile projects in Qatar as 49% owner of QDVC, for grave mistreatment of migrant workers in Qatar, asking the French courts to investigate the company’s practices. The NGO’s lawyers reported that some of the workers they had spoken to in Qatar reported instances of 66-hour weeks and confiscation of passports, which is illegal in Qatar. The company, meanwhile, denied these allegations. “Vinci absolutely denies the claims made by Sherpa. The group respects local labour laws and fundamental rights in Qatar as well as in all the countries where it operates,” a spokesperson was quoted as saying. “In Qatar, each QDVC collaborator has free access to his passport, while work and rest times are strictly respected.” While the company invited human rights organisations and journalists to visit their sites and newly built labour accommodations, they have also launched a lawsuit against Sherpa for attacking its image.

AFP PHOTO / ERIC PIERMONT, AFP PHOTO/STR

14 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

For illustrative purposes only

affairs > local

READY TO LEAD THE DRYLANDS Executive Director Badr Omar Al Dafa announced to the diplomatic community in Doha that the Global Drylands Alliance is all set to launch this May. He spoke to Qatar Today on the sidelines about how this new organisation would bring a fundamental change in the way drylands deal with food security, with a focus on policy, prevention and intervention.

BADR OMAR AL DAFA Executive Director Global Dryland Alliance

16 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

n his first ever address as the Emir of Qatar at the United Nations General Assembly in 2013, HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani spoke about Qatar’s initiatives in bringing together the world’s dryland nations, home to over two billion people, to face the challenges of desertification, drought and food security. He welcomed the member states to join and support the alliance. Just a few months later, Qatar launched its first National Food Security Programme and it already contained little hints of the country’s keen interest in putting these scientific and economic tools to use beyond its borders, helping neighbours and friends who were in the same boat. And the Global Dryland Alliance (GDA) would be the appropriate platform to address these issues, we were told at that time. Several months passed without any word about its status. Finally last month we were invited to what was the

Diplomats gather to listen to Badr Al Dafa introducing the GDA

formal announcement on the formation of the GDA. In May this year in Marrakech, Morocco, GDA will present the foundation treaty to the alliance’s founding member states (expected to be around 20 in number), a culmination of more than three years of strategising, diplomatic maneuvering and cementing partnerships. The architect of the initiative, Badr Al Dafa, in his introductory remarks said that this might be a small start but the problem they were trying to address was large and increasingly urgent, compounded by growing populations, climate change and conflict. “Our aim is to eliminate poverty and hunger in dryland countries, contributing to their peace and security,” Ambassador Al Dafa told the gathered diplomatic corp, representing various nations like Mexico, Netherlands, Chad, Morocco, Spain, India and more. “We hope you will support us irrespective of whether you are a dryland nation or not,” he said. Multilateral cooperation is at the very core of GDA, its small secretariat channeling resources across the intricate web that connects ministries, the private sector, the United Nations, international banks, NGOs and research institutes. A job that Qatar, which in recent years has proved its diplomatic chops, is perfectly prepared to undertake. More so under the stewardship of Ambassador Al Dafa, a career diplomat who, among other things, was previously the Ambassador of Qatar to the United States and served as Under Secretary General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia. He says the nitty-gritty of putting the GDA together has taken a while be-

The GDA will help countries without significant financial means to tap into development funds from various financial partners or foreign aid to fund their agriculture, water and energy programmes.

cause he has been working closely with the Food and Agriculture Organization, World Food Program and other such entities to look into the charter and help set up the organisation. Many entities today are producing valuable research and implementing development programmes in drylands and GDA’s role would be to serve as a link between these and the member states and to establish preventive and responsive measures while crafting integrated food security policies to address the needs of the individual states in making them food-secure. “Additionally there will be a price monitoring unit to predict fluctuations in the cost of important food items and effort to stockpile food that can be bought at a reasonable

price by member states during a crisis.” “Qatar learnt a valuable lesson during the global food crisis of 2008. We and other countries in the region have successfully created national food security programmes and have had a few success stories. Through this alliance we can transfer some of these experiences to benefit other lesser developed countries,” he says. The member states will be required to make means-based contributions to keep the secretariat functioning but in turn, the GDA will help countries without significant financial means to tap into development funds from various financial partners like the World Bank, African Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank and Asian Development Bank or foreign aid to fund their agriculture, water and energy programmes. “GDA will be someone to rely on for support, advice and intervention for our members,” he says. Ambassador Al Dafa says Qatar has long been a benefactor to many developing countries outside the framework of formal organisations like these. “Looking at how many countries are facing the threat of food insecurity, we decided we needed an international platform that is not just bilateral. A collective effort was needed to address this issue and its various connected challenges.” Ambassador Al Dafa’s voice softens as he talks about hunger and revolution. “Food is the prime mover behind political stability,” he says. “At least that is my personal interpretation of the Arab Spring. People were hungry.” And more than guns, tanks and Scud missiles, it is efforts like these that will bring peace to many of the troubled parts of the world QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 17

business > bank notes

“The downside of the low oil prices projected for 2015 and 2016 are likely to be moderated by the proactive policy responses of the GCC governments, which implies that each of the GCC banking systems will display varying degrees of resilience that are broadly in line with the pressures faced by their respective sovereigns.” KHALID HOWLADAR Senior Credit Officer Moody’s

GCC MONEY RESERVES CROSS $2 TRILLION Local banks on fundraising spree

Four Qatari banks have announced their plans to raise funds through various sources, including Tier-1 capital instruments and loans in preparation for new Basel III banking rules that require setting aside more capital from 2019. Qatar National Bank Group has closed syndication of its QR10.92 billion ($3 billion) three-year senior unsecured term loan facility, which was supported by 20 international banks and was over-subscribed. The new loan facility will be used for general corporate purposes. Doha Bank will issue Tier-1 capital instruments amounting to QR2 billion ($549 million) either directly or through a Special Purpose Vehicle in accordance with the terms of Qatar Central Bank. The issue date shall be on or before June 30, 2015. Commercial Bank of Qatar shareholders have also given their consent for the issue of upto QR3.64 billion ($1 billion) in capital-raising instruments while Qatar International Islamic Bank said it will raise upto QR3 billion ($824 million) through a capital-boosting Sukuk and Qatar Islamic Bank also disclosed its plans to raise QR2 billion ($549 million) earlier this year.

GCC’s money reserves have exceeded $2 trillion (QR7.28 trillion), according to Finance Minister HE Ali Sharif Al Emadi.

ccording to him, the GCC states enhanced their financial reserves during the past years, which witnessed sharp increases in oil and gas prices, as part of a conservative policy to face the prospect of price fluctuations in the energy markets in the future. These reserves will enable improved sustainable development plans in the region,

and cover any shortfall facing countries in the region during the current slump in oil prices, he pointed out. The Minister said that the decline in oil prices in global markets led to some pessimism about economic conditions in GCC as their budgets are heavily dependent on oil and gas revenues, but these countries have put in tremendous effort to diversify their economies.

Qatari banks lead GCC in asset growth Qatar-based banks witnessed the strongest growth in total assets (11.2%YoY), followed by those in Kuwait (10.6%YoY), the UAE (10.2%YoY) and Saudi Arabia (9.7%YoY), a report by Kuwait-based Global Investment House says.

Expansion in the asset base was supported by growth in the loan book. However, on a QoQ basis, asset growth was sluggish due to a marginal increase in loans. Among the individual banks, Qatar Islamic Bank (24.2%YoY), Masraf Al Rayan (20.4%YoY) and Saudi Hollandi Bank (20.1%YoY) recorded strong asset growth due to higher expansion in the loan book, the report adds.

BALANCE SHEET GROWTH YoY

Assets

Deposits

Loans

GCC

10.4%

9.2%

9.1%

UAE

10.2%

8.7%

5.9%

Kuwait

10.6%

6.1%

8.6%

KSA

9.7%

10.1%

9.2%

Qatar

11.2%

10.5%

13.7%

QoQ

Assets

Deposits

Loans

GCC

1.7%

2.1%

1.5%

UAE

0.1%

-0.8%

0.8%

Kuwait

1.6%

2.6%

1.4%

KSA

2.8%

4.2%

0.6%

Qatar

2.7%

3.2%

3.4% Source: Global Research

18 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

business > bank notes

“SUKUK CAN HELP COMPLETION OF PROJECTS”

Qatar International Islamic Bank (QIIB) CEO Albdulbasit Ahmed Al Shaibei discusses the oil price slump and its impact on ongoing infrastructure projects, and the developments relating to Islamic banking in Qatar, among other things.

20 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

hile oil-producing countries are worried over the impact of the oil price crash, which fell by more than 60% between June 2014 and January 2015, experts have been suggesting that sukuk is the best option for the GCC nations to ensure continuity in the execution of ongoing infrastructure projects. In Qatar, the government is implementing several mega projects, estimated to be worth more than QR728 billion ($200 billion), to strengthen infrastructure facilities in the country. According to reports, the global Islamic bond issuance is expected to touch QR637 billion ($175 billion) in 2015, up from QR400.4 billion ($110 billion) in 2014, and is expected to be around QR910 billion ($250 billion) by 2020. The total global outstanding sukuk, which is currently at QR877.24 billion ($241 billion), is also expected to grow to QR3.3 trillion ($907 billion) by 2020. Sharing the views of the experts, Al Shaibei says that the oil price decline is unlikely to impact the ongoing multi-billion infrastructure projects in the country as the government always has an option in the form of sukuk. “Sukuk funding has always played an integral role in the capital markets and will do so during the current oil price decline which the world is witnessing. Infrastructure projects may use this option regardless of the nature of the economic climate we are in,” he says. He also says that interest in Sharia-compliant banking products has been growing considerably and Islamic banks are trying to take advantage of the same to expand their operations as well as their customer base.“Islamic banking has been growing exponentially, especially in the last decade.

Consequently, various Sharia-compliant products have been introduced. Qatar International Islamic Bank has always been part of this development and we innovate and introduce products on an ongoing basis. We are fully committed to providing comparable financial offerings at competitive prices and using structures and terminology which respect Sharia directives,” he says. To a question on the way forward for the Islamic products that were running their business in a very narrow segment, he says that Islamic banking, as a market segment, was narrowly defined at the time of its inception. “But of late, Islamic banking concepts and products, guided by Sharia principles, are attracting larger market segments. This is particularly relevant at a time of the economic crisis we are witnessing now. Hence we see a widening customer base for Sharia products and services and a rising demand for Islamic financing from customers who were used to conventional products,” he says. High-Quality Liquid Assets One of the major concerns of Islamic banks around the world is acquiring High-Quality Liquid Assets (HQLAs) to conform to the Basel III standards and offset any volatility in the system. Since Islamic banks are not allowed to pay interest, as per Sharia principles, they are obtaining deposits mostly through profit-sharing investment accounts (PSIAs), which are said to be more volatile than conventional deposits. To negate this development, Islamic banks are expected to increase the amount of HQLAs which they hold. Since these banks are much younger and less developed compared with conventional markets, they do not have HQLAs.

Admitting that there is a short supply of HQLAs as far as Islamic banks are concerned, Al Shaibei says the landscape is changing slowly. New issues are also entering the market on a very regular basis, helping the banks to overcome the hurdle. “These are not purely rollovers but new capital requirements. Moreover, most Islamic banks hold high-quality assets until maturity, which creates less liquidity for them,” Al Shaibei points out. Growth strategy Explaining the strategy behind the bank’s development since it started operations in 1991, Shaibei says that the bank has been maintaining its growth along with improving customer experience. The bank has capitalised on new opportunities with aggressive sales and marketing activities and successfully acquired new customers. “Our strategy includes different phases: providing a consistent experience across channels, enhancing the front-end and back-end operations and achieving a higher degree of integration between our lines of business. The bank believes that it should shift its operating paradigm from a functional orientation to customer orientation,” he says and adds that QIIB’s focus since inception has always been to support and contribute to Qatar’s economy, and with prudent management it has been contributing to the success of the country. As far as use of technology to improve retail banking is concerned, he says that a significant shift in the business environment, economic volatility, changing customer and staff expectations and the adoption of new technology make it increasingly challenging for banks to navigate through an alternative technological strategy and prioritise technology investments. “We have always been strongly focused on developing and improving technologies to ensure customers' experiences are enhanced much beyond their expectations,” he says. He says QIIB operates in three segments – Retail Banking, Corporate Banking and Treasury and Investments. While the retail

“Our strategy includes different phases: providing a consistent experience across channels, enhancing the front-end and back-end operations and achieving a higher degree of integration between our lines of business. We believe that it should shift its operating paradigm from a functional orientation to customer orientation.” ALBDULBASIT AHMED AL SHAIBEI Chief Executive Officer Qatar International Islamic Bank

banking segment accepts various deposits and offers consumers, different financing facilities (including trade finance facilities to small and medium businesses and individual customers), the corporate banking segment provides deposit products, financing and other credit facilities to corporate and institutional customers, and the treasury and investments segment provides treasury services and investment banking activities. “Our approach is to build a very different bank; QIIB is well known for its performance with consistency. We see it as our responsibility and obligation,” he says. Future plans “We will continue to seek promising opportunities and this fits well into our strategy. We assess opportunities carefully and with due diligence. We will continue to examine regional developments and in other areas areas where we operate. For example, trade finance-directed transactions may form part of the desire to enter those markets, either by joining forces with partners or by establishing a representative office,” Al Shaibei adds QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 21

business > realty check “Inflation in the residential housing market in Qatar has seen rents increase due to an undersupply of good quality accommodation. By contrast, commercial rental levels have remained stable since 2011, with the availability of new office space matching or exceeding demand, and this trend is likely to continue into 2016.” MARK PROUDLEY Associate Director, Consultancy and Research DTZ

QIA IS SOLE OWNER OF PORTA NUOVA DISTRICT

Qataris buys London’s Halo Building

A member of the Qatari royal family has bought Halo Building, also known as Mabledon Place, located in the King’s Cross area in London, according to British media reports.

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has taken control of one of Italy’s prime business areas after buying out other shareholders. Property group Hines Italia says that QIA has taken 100% control of the Porta Nuova district in Milan, in which it has held a 40% stake since 2013. Hines, insurer Unipol and several investment funds were among the selling shareholders in a 25-building development conservatively valued at more than QR7.89 billion (€2 billion), according to media reports. Porta Nuova has been considered Italy’s new industrial and financial centre. It is home to a number of landmark buildings including the cutting-edge headquarters of Italian bank UniCredit and the Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest), considered to be the world’s most beautiful skyscrapers for 2014, the reports say.

REAL ESTATE SERVICES GO ONLINE The Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning has launched a new online facility to offer real estate services to people who want to access the details of plots of land or houses. This service will help prospective buyers looking at buying land or property and those looking for exact locations. The website offers services such as Property Identification Number (PIN) to know details about a plot of land or property, its location, size, etc. It also offers real estate certificate issuance online without the need for a person to visit the ministry’s headquarters. The ministry’s licensing department will launch its website next month with new online services. 22 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

ocated on Euston Road, the value of the 90,500 sq ft building was said to be QR387.99 million. The Halo building lies in a strategic location opposite to the British Library in the heart of London. The building witnessed a series of redevelopments by Stanhope, the building developer, started in 2011 and ended in 2012. The redevelopments increased the building capacity by 60%. The Halo deal is considered the biggest real estate deal by a Gulf investor in the King’s Cross area for years, the reports add.

business > oil&gas

“In my opinion, we can live with oil at $60 per barrel, or even below it. But the condition is that we cut costs and reform the budget. We have lived with low oil prices in the 1990s with oil at $9 per barrel.” HE ABDULLAH BIN HAMAD AL ATTIYAH President Qatar Administrative Control and Transparency Authority

Change work policies to attract more women

Qatar’s oil and gas industry should introduce more flexible work policies that deliver a better work-life balance in order to attract more women into the national energy industry, according to “The Women in Energy 2015” survey conducted in Doha.

Iran produces more natural gas

he Women in Energy 2015 survey was produced by Gulf Intelligence in partnership with the Qatar Businesswomen Association. More than half of the respondents (55%) thought the energy industry would struggle to correct its gender imbalance without offering more flexibility in the work place, with 18% saying the industry needed to spend more time on educating young females about career prospects. While the overall number of women working in the oil and gas industry rose slightly in 2014 to 7.8% from 7.1% a year earlier, it will still take 30 years to achieve gender parity even though the number of men and women graduating from university with engineering or geosciences degrees is now fairly even. “Women have a responsibility to continue to push their companies and organisations to recruit, retain and promote women professionals, especially in engineering and science positions,” said Dr Jennifer Dupont, Research Director with ExxonMobil Research Qatar.

Pakistan receives first LNG cargo

For illustrative purposes only The first cargo of Liquefied Natural Gas exported by Qatari supplier, Qatar gas, reached the Port Qasim LNG terminal in Pakistan on March 26. The LNG will initially be provided to four Independent Power Producers (IPPs) in Punjab, including Kot Addu Power Company (Kapco). In the second phase of the operation, fuel will be used for Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and in the third, it will be supplied to the fertiliser sector. 24 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

ran has started producing more natural gas from a giant field shared with Qatar as part of efforts to expand gas production and alleviate setbacks caused by international sanctions. The additional production from the South Pars field – known as North Dome in Qatar – will add 81 million cubic metres of gas to Iran’s total production, currently at about 600 million cubic meters per day, most of which is consumed domestically. The expanded production at South Pars will also yield some 120 thousand barrels of liquid gas and 750 metric tons of sulfur per day. Tehran invested more than QR25.48 billion ($7 billion) in this phase. Qatar currently produces 40% more natural gas from the joint field. Qatar began production from its share of the field in 1989, while Iran only began working on its side in 1998. Now, Iran produces some 425 million cubic metres from the field.

oil & gas > viewpoint

What does a weak oil price mean for investors?

How should investors respond to lower, and more volatile, oil prices? Should we see this as a threat or an opportunity for savings?

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come down in favour of lower oil prices from a saverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s perspective. The argument is straightforward, but perhaps more nuanced than we might expect. I suggest an investment bias in favour of manufacturing stocks in industrialised countries. This is because, although oil producing countries may suffer from a decline in oil revenues, global economic growth will in aggregate benefit from cheaper energy. There are simply more countries, and industries, that are net consumers of energy than net producers. A fall in oil prices represents a shift in wealth from the latter to the former. Everything else being equal, this will translate into higher corporate profits in oil consuming countries and sectors than we would have seen otherwise. Assuming stable price per earnings ratios, higher profits should lead to higher share prices on global stock markets. So low energy prices are good news for stock market investors!

Casualties But there will be causalities and this is where my optimism becomes nuanced. Obviously, oil companies will be hurt, especially those who have taken on excessive debt to bring on new fields that are unprofitable at these prices. Downstream activities, such as refining and oil services companies, will also be affected. The combined weight of these sectors in some developed stock markets can have a significant dampening effect on stock market indices, such as the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100. At the country level, low oil prices introduce or heighten political risk. An illustration of what can happen in a modern, transparent economy is Norway. Analysts are sharply downgrading GDP growth forecasts (from an average forecast of 2% in 2015, to just 0.8% today). The currency is weak, having fallen 20% against the dollar in the second half of last year and the stock market declined by 9%. But Norway, with its $860 billion (QR3.13 trillion) oil-funded Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), is relatively well protected. And for global investors, it is relatively obscure.

Other oil producers, with a large SWF to act as a cushion, are also protected for some years to come. It is estimated that the combined foreign reserves of the UAE and Saudi Arabia are more than $800 billion (QR2.91 trillion). But there will be many countries that, while insignificant to most investors, represent a geopolitical risk that we need to be aware of. Libya, Iraq, Iran, Syria, Nigeria and Venezuela come to mind. A weak oil price may intensify the Sunni/Shia conflicts that currently ravage the Middle East, as governments have less money with which to buy off rivals and to spend on routine government welfare and services. This could intensify competition for what resources are available. What of the GCC region? Despite the increased diversification of the Gulf economies since the last period of low oil prices, it is impossible not to suspect a strong link between the price of crude and stock market performance. Are GCC stock markets immune? In the Gulf, many governments sit on large cash balances that will protect them against weak oil prices for some years to come. Many also claim that their economies are much more diversified than they were from 1985 through to the late 1990s, when oil prices were below $20 (QR72.8) a barrel for the most part, and so able to handle weak prices. Indeed, economic diversification appears to be reflected in stock market composition, which by definition excludes state-controlled energy companies. If we look at the MSCI GCC Index, which tracks the stock markets of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait and several smaller ones, we see that, by sector, Financials dominates at 55% (this will include property development), with Materials second at 20%. Energy has a weighting of just 2%. However, investors look beyond industry classifications and at economic fundamentals. What is the main financial driver of the region that allows these other sectors to prosper? If we look at the way that the MSCI GCC Index has responded to oil price

movements over the last six months, we get a sense that, rightly or wrongly, investors continue to see the Gulf stock markets through the eyes of hydrocarbon prices. Over the last three months of 2014, as the oil price slid from $95 (QR345.8) a barrel at the start of October to $56 (QR203.84) at the end of December, the MSCI World Index of stock markets rose 0.4%, while the MSCI GCC Index fell 21.5%. Perhaps, it was a coincidence? And indeed the Gulf stock markets began a recovery (in line with global stock markets) in early January before the oil price bottomed at $45 (QR163.8) mid-month. And yet it is difficult not to believe that the subsequent rise in oil prices, today’s $58 (QR211.12), is not reflected in the region’s stock markets outperformance on a yearto-date basis. Since the start of the year, the MSCI World Index is up 2.8% while the MSCI GCC Index has risen 11%. Qatar falls into the category of those Gulf States that, while exposed to weak petrochemical prices, has a substantial SWF that will protect its economy. However, with perhaps 70% of government revenues coming from oil and gas production, work on diversifying the economy must continue to be a priority. Summary Global investors should cheer lower oil prices. Even the oil-producing losers may see a silver lining in the form of increased trade and tourism, as real living standards for much of the world increase as a direct result of lower fuel costs. While the Gulf States have made strenuous efforts to diversify their economies, there remains a nagging sense of exposure to weak oil prices. What should investors do? Probably favour industrialised stock markets with a focus on energy-intensive manufacturing. However, investors should always be on the look-out for changes in fundamentals and if the Gulf States are seen to be able to weather weak oil prices, there would be a good argument for them to re-visit the region

BY TOM ELLIOTT

“Qatar falls into the category of those Gulf States that, while exposed to weak petrochemical prices, has a substantial Sovereign Wealth Funds that will protect its economy. However, with perhaps 70% of government revenues coming from oil and gas production, work on diversifying the economy must continue to be a priority.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Tom Elliott is International Investment Strategist at deVere Group, one of the world’s largest independent financial advisory organisations QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 27

insurance > viewpoint

HEALTH WINDOW LEFT AJAR FOR QATARI INSURERS A decision to defer extending a comprehensive state health insurance scheme to the expatriate community in Qatar means that private insurance companies will be able to tap into the segment for at least another 18 months.

nder the new health scheme, launched in August 2013, coverage was to be extended over five stages. In February, Dr Faleh Mohamed Hussain Ali, the acting CEO of the National Health Insurance Company (NHIC), announced that comprehensive compulsory medical insurance for expatriates – one of the final stages expected to be in place this year – would not be implemented until late 2016. Despite the short-term reprieve for private sector companies, the country’s underwriters will need to find alternative revenue streams in the long term to maintain premium growth in the wake of the full implementation of the scheme. Seha rollout The National Health Insurance Scheme, known as Seha, has been rolled out over the past few years. The first stage focused on women’s health services, and other stages progressively increased coverage to all Qatari nationals. The last two stages, covering white-collar and blue-collar expatriates, were to be rolled out in early and mid-2015, respectively. Currently, the premiums for Qatari nationals are paid by the government. However, for expatriates who make up the majority of the country’s 2.3 million population, the cost of their coverage is to be met by their employer, at rates set by the NHIC and paid to the insurer. However, a delay to the full implementation of the programme is in part due to the sharp rise in demand on Qatar’s health services stemming from the progressive introduction of the scheme. With comprehensive free healthcare now extended to include more than 190 private medical facilities that accept Seha insurance, along with the existing state centres that previously offered cost-free services to Qatari nationals, many hospitals

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“The full implementation of Seha is likely to drain away premiums from the private sector, with Qatari citizens who had existing health coverage, employers who had policies for their staff and expatriates who had taken out medical insurance, all shifting to the state system.” and clinics are struggling to meet demands, Dr Ali said. Temporary relief For Qatar’s insurers, the delay amounts to something of a temporary reprieve, allowing them a further opportunity to operate in the healthcare market. Under the regulations governing the scheme, private insurers are only being allowed to participate in the health segment by offering additional benefits. The NHIC has the sole responsibility for issuing the basic health benefits, unlike in some other countries in the region where coverage is carried out by private firms under compulsory health insurance systems. According to industry experts, opportunities for the private sector under the health insurance programme will be extremely limited. The full implementation of Seha is likely to drain away premiums from the private sector, with Qatari citizens who had existing health coverage, employers who had policies for their staff and expatriates who had taken out medical insurance, all shifting to the state system. The increasing profile of the state insurer in the market – which may be construed

as a competitor – will weaken the position of private insurance companies, limiting their potential for growth, while also having a negative impact on the sector in the longer term, according to Elias Chedid, the COO and Deputy CEO at SEIB Insurance. “The NHIC should be complementary to the private sector in every sense of the word and not a replacement. Otherwise, it would be drying the market and simply forcing private health insurers out,” Chedid told OBG. “Ultimately, while you will see benefits in the short term of having a single insurer, in the long term we run the risk of complacency underpinned by a lack of innovation due to lack of competition,” he added. This sentiment was echoed by Ali Saleh Al Fadala, Senior Deputy Group President and CEO, Qatar Insurance Group. “The National Health Insurance Company is now aiming at prohibiting all public entities in the country from using private insurance, virtually ending any sort of competitive environment and removing the private sector. This is a step backwards in my opinion,” he told OBG, adding that costs of the project are already running over budget. “Given current declines in oil prices, we doubt the scheme will be able to cover all expatriate residents in the country as originally intended.” Though opportunities will be limited in the basic healthcare market, Qatari insurers will have the incentive to target the higher end of the health sector, which could generate higher revenues per policy. The surge of visits to medical facilities since the first stages of Seha came into force resulted in an equally higher volume of processing and administrative charges, along with pay-outs, which would have kept earnings margins tight. Rather than targeting the mass market, insurers could set a premium on providing coverage for higher-end services

BY OLIVER CORNOCK The author is the Regional Editor of Oxford Business Group.

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 29

affairs > arab snippets

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A P L AC E O F WO RS H I P ?

A Yemeni man inspects the damage following a bomb explosion at the Badr mosque in southern Sanaa on March 20. Triple suicide bombings killed at least 55 people at mosques in the Yemeni capital attended by Shiite Huthi militiamen who have seized control of the city. AFP PHOTO / MOHAMMED HUWAIS QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 31

technology > viewpoint

Cybersecurity plan:

Need of the hour The governments in the Middle East urgently need a more strategic approach to national cybersecurity if they are to protect the continued expansion of digitisation initiatives and cope with the constantly growing and evolving threat of cyberattacks.

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igitisation is becoming an important driver of growth, and the level of digitisation in the Middle East has increased dramatically in recent years. Strategy& estimates that digitisation will add as much as $820 billion (QR2.984 trillion) to regional GDP and create 4.4 million new and much-needed jobs by 2020. The prominence of digitisation has increased these countries’ vulnerability to a new set of evolving threats that can impact the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information relied upon by governments, businesses, and individuals alike. Indeed, there has been a marked increase in cyberattacks on the region’s public and private sectors, including government agencies, banks, and oil infrastructure. According to the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of the UAE, 19 government websites in that country were attacked in July 2014. In 2012 and 2013, RAK Bank in the UAE and BMI in Oman were attacked by an international group of hackers. Saudi Aramco in Saudi Arabia and

RasGas in Qatar were victims of attacks in 2012. These, of course, are only a sampling of the reported attacks – many are not publicised and many go undetected. It is perhaps more telling of the current threat environment to note that the number of virus-infected computing devices in the Middle East exceeds the global average by more than four-fold, a differential that has increased in recent years. Spurt in activities The Middle East’s leaders have stepped up their cybersecurity activities to combat cyber-adversaries, which at the same time have transformed themselves into organised, networked groups with advanced capabilities. Too often, however, governmental responses are missing the wood for the trees. They are reactive, tactical, and fragmented. They tend to be focused on technological solutions as a consequence of a bygone view that often equated cybersecurity to technical security, leaving a wide array of cybersecurity topics unaddressed,

BY WALID TOHME, Partner and SEVAG PAPAZIAN and IMAD HARB, Senior Associates, Strategy& (formerly Booz & Company).

increasing the national cyber security risks for countries in the Middle East. Instead, Middle East governments should consider an approach to national cybersecurity that is comprehensive in nature, collaborative by intention, and capability-driven. Such an approach seeks to deter cyberattacks, as well as respond more rapidly and effectively when they inevitably occur. It would enlist government agencies, the private sector, and citizens in the effort to ensure cybersecurity. Moreover, it would develop and nurture the talent and expertise needed to man the bulwarks of national cybersecurity over the long term. Six strategies The Middle East’s national leaders can develop a strategic framework that embodies these essential traits by taking six initial steps: First, they should establish a Centralised National Cybersecurity Body (CNCB) with a clearly defined mandate. The CNCB should drive the national cybersecurity agenda and provide the necessary oversight to ensure alignment of efforts across the whole country. In order to enhance cooperation and ensure impartiality, this entity should be independent and not embedded within an existing ministry, council, or regulatory authority. At the same time, it should be empowered by the highest authorities, such as the National Security Council, and officially mandated through law or decree, in order to ensure its credibility and give it sufficient authority vis-à-vis public and private organisations. Second, the CNCB should define and articulate a national cybersecurity strategy. This strategy must be aligned with the country’s vision, interests, and national and regional security imperatives. One of the key success factors of the strategy is the full involvement of critical national stakeholders throughout the formulation process – this will ensure that major national directions are captured and reflected in

the strategy. Moreover, the involvement of critical stakeholders will facilitate its broad adoption through nationwide buy-in. Third, the CNCB should launch and maintain a national dialogue about cybersecurity. This dialogue could take many forms, such as working groups that focus on specific topics or industries, or through forums and other events. The goal is to socialise the strategy, sponsor collaboration across national stakeholders, and get input from key players and industry leaders. Fourth, the CNCB should build preventive cybersecurity capabilities. This includes the development of national cybersecurity standards and policies, such as a national information assurance standard, as well as the establishment of a national compliance body that ensures the implementation of such standards and policies. Fifth, the CNCB should build reactive cybersecurity capabilities. This includes the establishment or empowerment of a national computer emergency readiness team. Since such teams already operate in

The urgent need to formulate and implement national cybersecurity strategies is as obvious as the frequent front-page headlines reporting the magnitude and cost of cyberattacks that are being launched seemingly at will from anywhere in the world.

one form or another in Middle East countries, it will be necessary to align existing teams with the national cybersecurity strategy and establish a national information sharing platform to elevate the nation’s situational awareness. This leverages the power of collaboration to define the types of responses that the country wants to pursue and adopt. Sixth, the CNCB should develop and oversee the implementation of a national talent strategy. Attracting talent within this already high-demand space is inherently challenging and particularly difficult in most emerging markets. The talent challenge can be addressed by organic and inorganic means. Organically, the CNCB should work to increase interest in cybersecurity among citizens by incentivising promising candidates, especially students, to pursue careers in this discipline. It also should encourage national and regional universities to create cybersecurity curricula that are aligned with government and industry requirements. Inorganically, veteran talent can be recruited through collaboration programmes and best practices forums sponsored in conjunction with international organisations, as well as attractive financial packages. In countries that already have national talent strategies, cybersecurity should be incorporated into their existing development agendas. The urgent need to formulate and implement national cybersecurity strategies is as obvious as the frequent front-page headlines reporting the magnitude and cost of cyberattacks that are being launched seemingly at will from anywhere in the world. It is also obvious that the governments of the Middle East are the only stakeholders with the power, reach, and resources necessary to develop and drive a truly national cybersecurity agenda. All that remains is for Middle East leaders to address this critical problem, which threatens their national digitisation efforts and prospects for viable, twenty-first century economies QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 33

oil & gas > viewpoint

Big data, big challenges Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hardly a secret that the world is producing ever-larger amounts of data. Indeed, according to some estimates, about 90% of all the data available in the world today was created in the past two years alone. And the volumes are only going to increase further.

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y the end of 2020, about 25 billion objects, comprising everything from industrial machines to refrigerators, will be connected to the internet, an almost 30-fold increase from 900 million devices in 2009, making up what we commonly refer to as the Internet of Things (IoT) and continually pushing data growth to new peaks. As a result, the world will see about 1.7 megabytes of new information being produced every second for every human being on the planet by 2020, according to a study published by IDC Digital Universe in late 2012. The trend is supported by the emergence of virtually limitless computing power, which has become available at increasingly low cost through cloud technology. Over the past 10 years, the cost to store one gigabit of data has fallen significantly, dropping from close to $20 in 2005 to less than $0.10 today â&#x20AC;&#x201C; tendency declining. These are impressive numbers by any standard. The ability to produce and harvest growing amounts of big data with the intention of finding correlations and trends presents a unique opportunity for companies across the globe to optimise operations and drive efficiencies to unprecedented levels, thus producing major cost savings.

This is also true for the global oil and gas industry. Today, oil producers are in a position to capture more detailed data in real time than ever before at lower costs and from previously inaccessible areas. Oil fields, for example, today are essentially connected from end to end, enabling companies to harvest and analyse ever larger amounts of data generated by people and assets along the oil value chain at ever higher frequencies. As oil and gas firms venture into harder-to-reach and more challenging environments, while at the same time connecting more and more hardware to the Internet, these data volumes will continue to grow and become more complex. Strategies hold the key For oil and gas companies, the key will be to develop strategies and systems that integrate and manage these increased data volumes to use them in smarter, faster ways. If they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t manage to make this data work for them, they risk becoming less competitive. The reason is simple: access to data ultimately affects and determines project economics and plays a crucial role in the application and operation of technologies such as enhanced oil recovery (EOR) in oil fields.

“While gathering, storing and processing data has become increasingly sophisticated over the past few years, arguably the greatest challenge today is turning the massive amounts of raw data into insightful information. Yes, technology is critical to handling these streams of data but, by itself, it isn’t a silver bullet.” This is of particular relevance at a time when oil prices have fallen by about half from levels of above $100 a barrel, undermining the economics of many projects under implementation and casting new ones into doubt. With oil prices likely to remain in the $50-60-a-barrel range for some time, companies will therefore seek to boost efficiencies and optimise operations to get maximum value out of their investments. Putting in place the technology infrastructure needed to harvest big data is one thing, making sense out of this data is quite another, even for the largest of businesses. While gathering, storing and processing data has become increasingly sophisticated over the past few years, arguably the greatest challenge today is turning the massive amounts of raw data into insightful information. Yes, technology is critical to handling these streams of data but, by itself, it isn’t a silver bullet. What big data needs is robust analysis that’s relevant to a particular business, in this case, the oil industry. Data analysis as such isn’t anything new for companies; it has, for example, always played an important role in decision-making processes in the oil industry. Analysing the vast volumes of information being generated in today’s world of big data on a daily basis brings about a different set of challenges. What is critical today for companies seeking to exploit big data are people with the right skills. This includes everything, from specific expertise in big data and being able to understand, collect and preserve it, to knowledge of statistics, maths and data visualisation techniques. Shortage of skilled workers Meeting these requirements won’t be easy, however. McKinsey Global Institute has estimated that by 2018 the US alone will be facing a shortage of 140,000 to 190,000

people with deep analytical skills across industries as well as 1.5 million managers and analysts to analyse big data and make decisions based on their findings. This skills shortage means that, according to consultancy Gartner, more than 85% of Fortune 500 organisations won’t be able to effectively exploit big data this year. One important way of addressing this issue is for oil companies to place more emphasis on developing analytical, big data and other relevant skills internally. For national oil companies (NOCs) such as the ones operating in the GCC region in particular, the benefits would be twofold: they would potentially develop their national workforce on the one hand; on the other they would reduce their outsourcing requirements to third parties and build up their capabilities to analyse the data that sits at the core of their operations. This latter point in particular is important because ultimately, it’s the people who work in a company and who understand how the oil and gas supply chain integrates and what impact any actions along it may have that are best placed to use the knowledge they gain from analysing big data to identify the potential for optimisations and efficiencies. And the more people from within an NOC that are engaged in this process, the more the company at large can potentially benefit. Educating their employees on the value of the data they are using and the need to handle it systematically and rigorously will therefore be seminal to reap the benefits that come with the application of new IT infrastructure and technologies. Beyond this, there has to be more involvement between industry and academia on a general level, while partnerships between solution providers and NOCs could lay the foundations for a long-term solution to the skills shortage in big data

BY GHASSAN BARGHOUTH

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Ghassan Barghouth is the Vice President of Oil & Gas and Industrial Segments with Schneider Electric, the Middle East and North Africa QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 35

affairs > world view

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“I F N O B O DY I S A F R A I D O F M E , I’M M E A N I N G L E SS.”

Singaporeans pray in front of an image of the late former prime minister Lee Kuan Yew alongside messages and flowers left at the Tanjong Pagar community centre following Lee's death in Singapore on March 23. One of the towering figures of post-colonial Asian politics, Yew died at the age of 91 on March 23 in hospital, the government said. AFP PHOTO / MOHD RASFAN

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development > listening post

“The world needs a bouquet of energy sources” 38 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

Lady Barbara Judge CBE has strong views on subjects ranging from nuclear power to gender equality in the oil and gas sector. She also believes that Qatar has the right conditions to pursue nuclear energy.

f Lady Barbara Judge, Member of the UAE Advisory Board for the Development of Peaceful Nuclear Energy, looks formidable in her customary dark suit, high-collared, stiff white shirt, and her white blonde hair tucked into a stern bun at the nape of her head, it is deliberate. Everything about her especially her outfit, which doesn’t change much around the year, is resolute. “Men are uncomfortable around women and why dress in provocative outfits when you need them to listen to what you have to say?” she asks. “I want men to be so bored with my outfit that they have to focus on what I am saying.” And in that sense, the Arab women’s culture of dressing – the black abaya – resonates with her; she says, “You cannot go wrong with that.” Lady Judge believes very strongly in equality in the workplace, encouraging women to enter the workplace and, once they are there, push the boundaries, all because of the simple wisdom passed on to her by her mother: “Women should work not because they are poor or alone, divorced or single, not any of that, [but] because they have a brain, they should use it and they should earn their own money. Money is independence and they should be independent.” Speaking at the Gulf Intelligence Women in Energy Summit held last month in Doha

By Sindhu Nair on “Historical Setting – One Woman’s 50Year Journey,” Lady Judge recounted her career highs and some roadblocks faced and scaled in an era when women professionals were rare, especially in corporate boardrooms. She started her career as a corporate lawyer in 1969 and became a partner at Kaye Scholer, Fierman, Hays & Handler in 1978. One reason she was hired, she recounts, was because they wanted a woman to fill the position. Half a decade later, she still believes in the quota system: “You need to first get onto the ladder in order to climb to the top.” But gender balance in the industry is not the only subject that excites Lady Judge; it is also clean energy and specifically nuclear energy. In 2002 she was appointed as a Director of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, became its Chairman in 2004 and was reappointed in 2007. After completing two terms she was appointed Deputy Chairman of the Tepco Nuclear Reform Committee and Chairman of its Task Force on Nuclear Safety. Her tryst with the Middle East began seven years ago, when she was last in Doha, to give a talk on clean energy. She had then predicted that the Middle East countries are best suited for nuclear power projects because these countries meet the conditions necessary to initiate this form of renewable energy. “A stable political climate,

a rich country that can afford to build and maintain a nuclear power plant, a strong and enlightened leadership, high education levels and an intelligent press that can comprehend and report the truth to make the general public aware of the process and the safety measures,” she says, ticking off the conditions needed for a country to pursue nuclear energy. “I predicted then that sooner or later the GCC countries will have nuclear energy,” she says. “And the naysayers scoffed at my statement.” Seven months later, Lady Judge was in Abu Dhabi and met the ruler there, who expressed an interest in nuclear energy. Now Abu Dhabi is in the process of building a nuclear power plant and Lady Judge is on the Advisory Board. The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation, Unit 1 is expected to provide electricity to the grid by 2017 and will be the first one in the region. Plans are on for the following three units to be completed in 2018, 2019 and 2020. Saudi Arabia, with 16% of the world’s proven oil reserves and being the largest exporter of total petroleum liquids in the world, has started to think of nuclear power plants. “Things are changing. Oil and gas is not forever,” she says. While Qataris earlier had said that they were not interested in nuclear energy, according to Lady Judge, they are now considering the benefits from QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 39

development > listening post this source of energy as their neighbours are strongly pursuing it. “They have the risk anyway, being in close proximity to Emirates Nuclear Energy Plant and Saudi Arabia (when it will build its own reactor). There are also talks of having a regional power plant, and I feel that’s the best way to go, by joining workforce, education and resources,” she says. “I strongly believe that Qatar with a knowledge-based economy has all the conditions for nuclear energy to thrive,” she says. Predictions aside, it is necessary for every country to have a diversified energy mix, states Lady Judge. “Any country that aims at having energy security or energy independence would need to have a bouquet of energy sources; it needs oil, it needs gas, it needs renewables for people to feel good about carbon emissions and it needs nuclear energy,” she emphasises. Climate change is another factor that makes nuclear energy lucrative. But what about solar energy, the most abundant source of energy in the desert region? Doesn’t it seem more practical to opt for this renewable source than an option that comes with its own set of risks? Which source should a country lean towards in this scenario? “There is no choice,” she says. “It should be a mixture of all sources of energy.” “Solar is an excellent source of energy in conditions that are favourable but it is still a top-up source of energy. Nuclear is a baseload energy source. There may be days when there is less sun or still air. When this source of energy fails you could find yourself in darkness. What you really need is a combination,” she clarifies. Parts of the world at large seem to be against nuclear power as a source of energy. Germany is a perfect example, with all nuclear power plants shut down. “It is all a political decision in Germany,” says Lady Judge. “It demonstrates how wrong it is to turn away from nuclear energy. Germany is now buying nuclear energy from neighbouring France and gas from Russia. It is also burning coal and its carbon emissions are going up. The country has gone from being an energy exporter to an energy importer practically overnight, which brings along with it a number of negative consequences for its economy, consumers and security.” But it is also not true that the world is losing its nuclear energy supporters after the Fukushima incident. According to a survey done some time back, the

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NUCLEAR ENERGY FACTS AS OF JANUARY 21, 2015 IN

3I 439

COUNTRIES

NUCLEAR POWER PLANT UNITS WITH AN INSTALLED ELECTRIC NET CAPACITY OF ABOUT

377 GW 69

ARE IN OPERATION AND

PLANTS WITH AN INSTALLED CAPACITY OF

66 GW I6

ARE UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN

COUNTRIES. Credit: IAEA

support for nuclear power appeared to have bounced back in the UK after falling slightly in the aftermath of the Fukushima disaster and, as a result of the renewed trust shown by the people, the UK is now building three power plants. Now there are even more countries pursuing or building nuclear energy plants than there were before the Japan mishap;

Turkey, Vietnam, Korea, China, India and Finland, are all building nuclear power plants. Poland and Hungary are also in the process of discussing prospects. Lady Judge debunks another myth: Even though the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan in March of 2011 was a disaster of epic proportions, it was these natural disastesr that left over 15,000 people dead and over 300,000 homeless. There was a very serious accident at Fukushima but, contrary to the hype and fear, no one died due to the radiation. The problem arose because people had to be evacuated from their homes. Today, the food supply is safe and people are starting to move back into their homes and most of the other nuclear plants in Japan are considering a restart. As the Deputy Chairman of the Tepco Nuclear Reform Committee and Chairman of its Task Force on Nuclear Safety, Lady Judge feels that having a woman representative from outside the country is symbolic of the change that Japan is undergoing currently. She even has her own insights on the ongoing antagonism for nuclear energy projects: “The problem in America, France and UK is that it is highly educated women who are the most vocal against nuclear energy,” she says, and they are the ones who need to be convinced about the safety aspects of radiation. Education is vital according to Lady Judge and it is only through enlightening the masses that the message of nuclear energy can be spread. “Abu Dhabi is doing it the right way,” she says. “Educating the masses through movies and public shows, talk shows at schools and galleries.”

HUMAN CAPITAL THE NEW ORDER

HUMAN CAPITAL:

THE NEW ORDER

42 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

TRAINING, DEVELOPMENT AND INNOVATION ARE NOT THE ONLY KEY WORDS IN HUMAN RESOURCES. UNDERSTANDING CULTURE IS ANOTHER IMPORTANT FACET, ESPECIALLY IN QATAR. QATAR'S HR SECTOR MOVES AWAY FROM THE NORM AND PLAYS A FAR WIDER, THOUGH UNIQUE, ROLE SPECIFIC TO THE CULTURAL FABRIC OF THE COUNTRY IN AN EFFORT TO INTEGRATE AND UNDERSTAND THE DIVERSE WORKFORCE.

By Sindhu Nair

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 43

THE NEW ORDER

uman Resources (HR) management is growing beyond what it was meant to be. Today HR has become a “strategic business partner” with the company itself. They work closely with the top executive departments to help the company reach bottom-line results. This is accomplished by targeted recruiting, focusing on retention and developing employee talents and skills.

“MERE NUMBERS CAN BE MISLEADING, AS THEY MAY NOT POINT TO THE EXPECTED RESULTS, SUCH AS ENHANCING THE EMERGENCE OF A CRITICAL MASS OF COMPETENT AND COMPETITIVE LOCAL LEADERS, MANAGERS AND ENTREPRENEURS. QUALITY IS MUCH MORE DIFFICULT TO DEFINE AND MEASURE, BUT IS MUCH BETTER ADAPTED TO THE PURSUIT OF SUCH GOALS.” BRUNO LANVIN

Executive Director of Global Indices INSEAD

In Qatar, HR took a longer time to develop and be acknowledged as an important pillar in the success of organisations. But the time taken does in no way reflect the values some companies are keeping to or aim to follow while there still are others that do not keep to any standards. 44 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

From gestures like Sheroes, an event organised by Ooredoo Qatar to commemorate the real women heroes in life and at their organisation, to Vodafone becoming one of the first organisations in the world to introduce a mandatory minimum global maternity policy, and the most revolutionary cultural guidelines for workspaces that will soon be launched by Commercial Bank of Qatar to make it easier to work across cultural barriers, Qatar’s corporates have moved beyond the norm to take an active interest in human capital development. The Talent Index But the big question that seemed to worry most corporates is the shortage of skilled talent – the right person for the right job. INSEAD, an international business school, released the 2014 edition of its annual Global Talent Competitiveness Index (GTCI) that measures a nation’s competitiveness based on the quality of talent it can produce, attract and retain. The index ranked Qatar 25th globally and second in the Middle East, behind the United Arab Emirates (22nd) and ahead of Saudi Arabia (32nd). “These three countries combine a high degree of external openness (UAE ranked 3rd in the world, Qatar 4th and KSA 9th) with a high level of performance on talent and business enablers,” underlined Bruno Lanvin, Executive Director of Global Indices at INSEAD, and co-author of the report, noting that, “All three countries share the same approach by which their respective governments have given priority to making life easier for business and more attractive for external talents. This is proving a successful combination.” Qatar (ranked 34th in 2013) sits particularly high on the ‘Attract’ pillar, reflecting the government’s efforts to diversifying its resource-based economy. As part of its clear drive towards becoming a knowledge economy, the government has taken steps to attract foreign talent and expertise. This is evidenced by the country’s performance in areas of External Openness (4th) with top ranks

on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Technology Transfer (4th). Qatar is heavily biased towards the Input sub-index (20th). Challenges differ Sahiba Singh, Head of Leadership Consulting, Aon Hewitt Middle East, feels the challenges in the region are different as, unlike other countries, the dependence on outside workforce is greater in Qatar and other Middle East countries. In general, where government policies support a more flexible approach to talent immigration, employment practices and the provision of social welfare, the countries are able to better attract and retain a talent supply critical to businesses, she says echoing Lanvin’s observations. Currently no metropolitan from the Middle East features in the top ten cities with lowest risk on Aon Hewitt’s annual People Risk Index that is based on indepth research augmented by the assessment of Aon Hewitt’s local and regional human resources experts from around the world. The 138 cities selected were based on population size, rate of population growth, level of business investment and geographic spread. From APAC, only Singapore and Hong Kong make the cut. However, four cities (Tripoli, Libya; Baghdad, Iraq; Sana’a, Yemen; and Damascus, Syria) from the region feature in the top 10 high-risk cities. Qatar is placed 31st in the overall ranking falling between two cities in the US. Singh touches on aspects that are most important for the Middle East countries to feature high on this index. “Leadership pipeline build up, succession planning and improving talent attraction and retention are some of the aspects that should feature high on the agenda of the regional HR leaders,” says Singh. “With most first-generation employees in Middle Eastern organisations retired or close to retirement, the necessity to immediately fill up the gaps at top and middle management levels is being viewed as critical to business continuity.” She adds that organisations are looking

GLOBAL TALENT COMPETITIVENESS INDEX RANKINGS (MENA COUNTRIES) Country

Overall Rank 2014 Overall Rank 2013

United Arab Emirates

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Lebanon

Egypt, Arab Rep.

Morocco

Algeria

103

Yemen

Kuwait

Jordan

“LEADERSHIP PIPELINE BUILD UP, SUCCESSION PLANNING AND IMPROVING TALENT ATTRACTION AND RETENTION ARE SOME OF THE ASPECTS THAT FEATURE HIGH ON THE AGENDA OF THE REGIONAL HR LEADERS.” SAHIBA SINGH

Head of Leadership Consulting Aon Hewitt Middle East

at both proactively building a leadership pipeline (future-oriented view) as well as planning for known successions. “High mobility amongst both the national and QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 45

THE NEW ORDER

CROSSING CULTURAL BOUNDARIES Sharoq Al Malki, Chief Human Capital Officer, Commercial Bank of Qatar, believes that finding and retaining the best candidates is a continual challenge and must be tackled with a varied approach.

“THE KEY CHALLENGE WE FACE AS AN ORGANISATION IS SOURCING CANDIDATES WHO HAVE THE RIGHT BALANCE OF SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND BEHAVIOUR THAT FIT OUR ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE. LOCAL CANDIDATES MAY HAVE A LIMITED FINANCIAL SERVICES PERSPECTIVE IN SOME AREAS OF THE BUSINESS, WHILE EXPATS WHO HAVE NOT WORKED IN THE GULF CAN STRUGGLE TO INTEGRATE INTO THE CULTURE." SHAROQ AL MALKI

Chief Human Capital Officer Commercial Bank of Qatar

“I

n some cases we need a readymade solution, someone who can take on the job from day one,” she says about the challenge of finding the right talent when justifying the need to recruit externally. “The financial sector is a small

and competitive market and so it is often difficult to recruit experienced Qatari candidates who have been exposed to similar challenges. Our competitors are well known and limited in number, so we can look to our competitors to find Qataris for these positions but even then a shortage of experienced Qataris makes us opt for expats.”

expatriate workforce further augments the need to continuously attract and retain talent to fuel business growth,” says Singh. Is there a talent crunch? According to INSEAD, a country’s interest in attracting and retaining talent (locally or externally grown) generally corresponds to a long-term vision by which the country aims at seeing talent stay and contribute to creating value and jobs locally. “Whether it is about attracting or retaining talent, countries have a set of potential tools in their hands, which will be more or 46 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

Al Malki feels that Qatar’s oil and gas sector has now matured with experienced Qataris who have been at the helm for over 20 years, yet the financial sector by contrast is in its relative infancy with new recruits still being trained for managerial positions. Commercial Bank is compensating hiring expats by taking in large numbers of new Qatari graduates each year through its Graduate Development Programme, which places heavy emphasis on training and gaining hands on experience through rotational placements.

less critically important depending whether the targets of their efforts are individuals or companies,” says Lanvin. “To attract and retain individual talent, economic instruments (level of compensation, tax incentives) remain important, but other – more qualitative – elements matter more and more, which relate to quality of life (security, cultural activity, presence of other talents). Since a large proportion of the talent that can be attracted and retained are employees of foreign companies, critical tools to be considered relate to the ease of doing business, investment climate and fiscal re-

“Commercial Bank recruits many Qatari graduates who have sufficient knowledge but who need time and training develop the right skill sets,” says Al Malki. Need for expats Despite a preference for training Qatari graduates and external Qatari hires, there is still a large gap which can be filled only through hiring expats. Al Malki explains: “The reality is that the Qatari working population is very small and we need expatriates to provide expertise in a large organisation such as Commercial Bank. Recruiting quality Qatari employees should also never be compromised, even when meeting our Qatarisation obligations.” With a diverse set of employees, hiring people with interpersonal skills is vital, says Al Malki. “The global setting of multiple nationalities and different age groups who form the workforce, together with young and inexperienced nationals paired with mature and technically efficient expats, is a circumstance that is unique to the GCC countries and good ethical and interpersonal skills are an imperative prerequisite. We need people to understand the culture of the country and act accordingly,” she says. Al Malki, with her passion for people and wide expertise across the oil and gas, government services and financial sectors, has developed an innovative idea, that when implemented, will make it easier for the workforce to work in harmony. Al Malki has used her expertise and insight into HR culture, supplemented by strong research findings through surveys conducted across different sectors, to author a book identifying the challenges that the Qatari community faces while working across cultures. This book will be published gime.” Looking at the parameters, it is easy to comprehend why Qatar and even the rest of the ME countries rank high. But that’s while talking about the country as a whole and how it attracts talent. The Middle East countries face a unique challenge: the lack or a shortage of local talent and hence the dependency on an outside work force. Recent World Bank estimates show that the MENA region as a whole will need to create 200 million jobs by 2050 in order to fulfil its development needs and also to pre-

and made available to Qatari organisations as part of Commercial Bank’s CSR programme. “There will be workshops as part of the book’s findings, explaining cultural gaps and showing how to tackle them in the workplace. For example, finding the easiest way for Qatari talent to mingle with non-Qatari talent and communicate, the challenge of working with Qataris and other nationalities, understanding their weaknesses, their working styles and ways to motivate and empower them,” she says. Understanding cultures Solving HR issues in Qatar regularly requires an understanding of both Qatari and Western cultures and Al Malki uses the example of workplace policies. “Western expats are often comfortable in a workplace culture based on strict rules and policies as practiced in their home countries. The culture is different here and people are used to doing things a different way. Qatari society runs on social relations and human interactions.” Al Malki continues: “From a generation that didn’t have any policies in place, we have now changed into a generation that is making policies. Qatar is undergoing change, and this transformation takes a long time when it comes to perceptions or mindset change. It should also be done with utmost care so as not to destroy the fabric of the society,” maintains Al Malki. She advises that Qataris should be understood through their unique ethos: “Utilise their networking skills, their personal skills, and their strong family bonds.” Being a Qatari HR leader with the intrinsic quality of empathising with employees from different cultures makes Al Malki a true blue HR professional. One saying Al Malki often quotes goes: “You (the

employee) look after the company and I (HR) will look after you well.” This saying is taken very seriously by Commercial Bank’s HR team headed by Al Malki. Commercial Bank recently went through a remuneration restructuring exercise where both Qatari and non-Qatari salaries were reviewed on an intra-organisational level and with respect to global standards. After review, new benefits and policies were put in place and every employee’s pay scale was adjusted to reflect best practices, industrial standards and individual capabilities. Al Malki takes each case personally and if ever there was the situation of an employee coming to her with a complaint about reward or compensation, she feels she has failed them. “I make sure that I recognise the work put in by an employee, and even before he or she comes to me I make sure that they have been rewarded as per their capabilities.” Healthcare Healthcare is another important facet within HR that has not been given enough attention and this is something Al Malki wants to change. “Healthcare is an important part of HR. Wellness, work-life balance, and mental health are all important issues that need to be addressed as we are, after all, human beings not machines,” she says. “The Biggest Loser is a weight loss challenge that is being launched by Commercial Bank,” she mentions. From detection of health issues such as free cancer screening, to advice and motivation, Al Malki takes an interest in each and every employee that goes beyond the standard scope of HR. “You cannot just do a job in HR; you have to love what you do, feel for people, understand them and work for their welfare,” Al Malki adds.

vent unemployment from rising, especially among younger generations. “The situation of countries with small local populations is quite specific in this respect, since they face an immediate challenge to provide their nationals with growth opportunities (and hence develop the local entrepreneurship and leadership that their sustainable development will require in the decades to come) while continuing to attract foreign talent to address the various skills gaps resulting from fast economic growth combined with a small local population,” according to Lanvin. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 47

THE NEW ORDER

“I DON’T BELIEVE IN THE QUOTA SYSTEM” Ooredoo Qatar had recently organised an event to commemorate their female employees.

“HR LEADERS SHOULD SIT TOGETHER AND BRAINSTORM ON THE OTHER FACETS THAT HR CAN GENERATE BEYOND THE ONES HERE, AND PUT IT TO USE.” BOTHAINA AL ANSARI Senior Director, HR Ooredoo Qatar

he setting in the ballroom at Sheraton Convention Centre was immaculately white; the flowers, the cutlery and the table setting were all in perfect coordination, and Qatari women, clad in black Abayas, were moving around animated, their excitement highly-infectious. Spearheading this yearly event entitled "Women in Focus", was Bothaina Al Ansari, Senior Director, HR, Ooredoo Qatar, who was the busiest person around, meeting and personally greeting all women employees. If this reads like a corporate gig, it is not meant to be. On the contrary, it highlights the necessity of small gestures, as inconsequential as it may seem, to put focus on thw employees and acknowledge their efforts. Bothaina Al Ansari sits down with Qatar Today to discuss the HR issues plaguing the country. She debunks the theory of a lack of able talent, saying that Ooredoo, being a global telecom company is the “employer of choice”, and has never faced issues of

48 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

finding talent. “The theme now for Ooredoo is innovation, and for ideas we need motivated and talented people,” says Al Ansari, a motivational speaker, who is known for taking on the cause of women in the work place. She is the founder and manager of Qatariat, a company that specialises in helping Qatari women advance in the workforce. Qatar is implementing the National Vision 2030 and Ooredoo is intent on investing in human capital and empowering women, two important pillars within the QNV 2030. Women dominate The percentage of women enrolled in universities in Qatar is nearly twice as much as the males, and nearly two-thirds of all graduates are women, according to official figures released a year back by the Ministry of Development, Planning and Statistics. But while expat and Qatari females are more likely to enroll in and graduate with university degrees here, their male coun-

terparts still outperform them when it comes to success in business. Touching on this fact, Al Ansari says that Ooredoo is trying to enhance the capabilities of these graduating women so that they become suitable for managerial positions in the company. Al Jiwana is a one-year programme that has three levels which women can enroll in, depending on their capabilities. “This programme started in 2010 and initially had just six to eight women. Their numbers have gone up to 64 now,” says Al Ansari. “We have developed many programmes for fresh graduates that make it easier for them to understand the culture and working of a global telecom company and also to put emphasis on the role of the individual in the company. Later on, once the employment is confirmed, the next development programme called Masari ("My Path") is started. It is a collaborative programme with three important people – the HR, the business unit head and the employee. It gives a full insight into the employee and his or her core capabilities.” Retaining talent Al Ansari has a completely new take on retaining talent. She feels that employees should be developed, their capabilities should be built to meet the job at hand and finally, their compensations should match their capabilities while keeping to global standards. After all this is done, if the employee still feels that they have to move on, they should be free to do so.

“At Ooredoo, I offer the best care as per global standards and also help in developing the employees but the final choice of continuing with the company is still with them,” says Al Ansari. “The employee has the freedom to make the move. I don’t want to own them. It is always good to have new blood which will bring in innovation and new thought.” There has been a marked increase in the number of women in senior positions in Ooredoo and Al Ansari’s role in developing their capabilities is not to be ignored. Al Ansari doesn’t believe in the quota system as an answer to the gap of women in the workforce or even for Qatarisation. Instead she works on building capabilities and improving skill sets so that employees are fit for the job at hand. There are two facets to the context of Qatarisation, says Al Ansari. “We cannot ignore the fact that we need Qataris in important roles as they have to be part of the country’s success.” She says: “In Ooredoo, we have touched 41% in Qatarisation and I am proud to say that 98% of these 41% of Qataris are in (level 2) secondary positions. We need to have Qataris in important decision-making roles and that is what we have achieved.” “I agree that we should promote Qataris but I don’t think we should build our strategy based on Qatarisation,” she says quite specifically. She says that the telecom sector as such has no HR challenges except when it comes to the “people-issue”, as “HR is all about understanding each one’s needs and it is not humanely possible to keep every employee happy”. HR is about recruitment, manpower planning, talent sourcing, Qatarisation, compensation, employee services, says Al Ansari. “HR leaders should sit together and brainstorm on the other facets that they can generate beyond the ones present and put them to use with all these capabilities in place.” “If I am good at building capabilities, why not use my resources to build on the resources of those outside the company,” she asks and this is one of the dreams that Al Ansari has for Ooredoo. And the process is in the works and will be revealed soon if approved. That’s not the end of it. Al Ansari who is constantly thinking out of the box, has another idea in her kitty of innovations. “Since we are all about people, why not have an HR clinic?”

Another HR expert, Elizabeth Fleming, Managing Director of Qatar Development and Consultancy Centre, who has over 20 years of international human resources and business solutions experience, feels the constraints that the Middle East faces is part of a global phenomenon, as countries across the world are faced with similar challenges to attract the right talent and at the same time develop their populations’ skills and technical knowledge. “Countries throughout the Middle East, such as Qatar, can attract the right talent because of career opportunities and growth, but we often see a disconnect when it comes to retaining that talent,” she says. “Today’s world is an increasingly global one and employees are much more inclined to move countries for a new job and to further develop their career. There is a larger focus on short-term career growth rather than long-term career development. When we took this same question to corporates, to understand their limitations and challenges, Sharoq Al Malki, Chief Human Capital Officer of Commercial Bank of Qatar, explains: “The key challenge we face as an organisation is sourcing candidates who have the right balance of skills,

knowledge and behaviour that fit our organisational culture," she says. "Local candidates may have a limited financial services perspective in some areas of the business, while expats who have not worked in the Gulf can struggle as far as cultural assimilation is concerned. We hire about one fifth of our workforce from outside of Qatar," she says about the national versus the expat equation in their workplace. One of the companies within the ambit of Industries Qatar, a major player in Qatar’s diversification process, QAPCO, has a different story to tell. According to Eng. Abdulla Ahmed Naji, Learning and Development Manager, QAPCO was established in 1974 and pioneered petrochemical production in the Middle East. “At that time, no one in the GCC had had any experience in operating a petrochemical plant. We then embarked upon a recruitment drive and hired international and local talents. Envisioning the workforce of the future and to equip its employees with the most advanced technical skills to operate a complex petrochemical plant, the company focused strongly on training. Many Qataris participated in those intense coaching and development courses and went on to

“ENVISIONING THE WORKFORCE OF THE FUTURE AND TO EQUIP EMPLOYEES WITH THE MOST ADVANCED TECHNICAL SKILLS TO OPERATE A COMPLEX PETROCHEMICAL PLANT, QAPCO FOCUSED STRONGLY ON TRAINING. MANY QATARIS PARTICIPATED IN THOSE INTENSE COACHING AND DEVELOPMENT COURSES, BECOMING THE FIRST GENERATION OF QATARI PETROCHEMICAL EXPERTS." ABDULLA AHMED NAJI

Learning and Development Manager QAPCO

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 49

THE NEW ORDER

"TODAY’S YOUTH PUT A LOT OF TRUST IN COMPANY LEADERSHIP AND THIS LOYALTY GOES BOTH WAYS. IF THE YOUNG EMPLOYEES DON’T HAVE CONFIDENCE IN THE LEADERSHIP AND IF MANAGEMENT DOESN’T DEMONSTRATE FAITH IN EMPLOYEES, IT CREATES AN ENDLESS CYCLE WHERE PEOPLE ARE NOT MOTIVATED OR READY TO GET THINGS DONE." ELIZABETH FLEMING

Managing Director Qatar Development and Consultancy Centre

LOWEST RISK CITIES

become the first generation of Qatari petrochemical experts.” The oil and gas sector, which had an early start compared to other emerging companies in Qatar, seems to have given due importance to development and training. “Forty years after our inception, we can proudly say that thanks to our focus on training we have built local capacity, developed downstream skills and shaped an extremely talented pool of local petrochemical experts,” says Naji. The telecommunication sector though, faces some challenges. According to Anita Tomany, Head of Centers of Expertise, Vodafone, there is a challenge in attracting local talent to join Vodafone Qatar. Tomany says that Qatar has an excellent young and motivated workforce and she believes that as a leading global organisation Vodafone can bring best practice to Qatar but there seems to be a road block. Tomany is positive that Vodafone being a fast-paced exciting company, with great opportunities to learn and grow, will provide the right mix for young Qataris to enjoy a highly vibrant corporate career. She continues listing the attributes of the forward thinking telcom: “A friendly and dynamic open-plan office with regular access to our CEO and Executive Team. Our learning and development support is fantastic plus we offer a generous employee benefits package irrespective of gender.” Another strong-edged player in the telecommunication sector, Ooredoo, meanwhile faces no talent crunch. According to Bothaina Al Ansari, Senior Director HR, “There is no talent crunch. Ooredoo, being a global telecom company, is the "employer of choice' and has never faced issues of finding talent.” Nationalisation is not about numbers One factor brought up during the Women in Energy conference organised by Gulf Intelligence was the need for a quota system for women to increase the number of women in boardrooms. The survey taken indicated that there was still no strong argument against or for it. Looking at the nationalisation pol-

1 NEW YORK

6 MONTREAL

ZURICH

50 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

HONG KONG

10 BOSTON

COPENHAGEN

LONDON

LOS ANGELES

RANKING CITY RATING

TORONTO

SINGAPORE

10 CHICAGO

VANCOUVER

icies though, there are no doubts as to the importance of having these in place. Lanvin looks at this thus: “For many of the reasons already discussed, competitive and innovative countries will be on the side of those that encourage openness, fluidity and diversity in their labour markets,” he says. “This is a context in which nationalisation policies (understood as maintaining critical levels of national presence in specific layers of the labour markets) need to be handled delicately. Mere numbers can be misleading, as they may not point to the expected results, such as enhancing the emergence of a critical mass of competent and competitive local leaders, managers and entrepreneurs. Quality is much more difficult to define and measure, but is much better adapted to the pursuit of such goals.” When it comes to Qatarisation, numbers or quantity should not be the main focus. Fleming too feels strongly about this. “While a quantity quota is still going to continue being a key metric of Qatarisation, it is not indicative of the quality of the Qatarisation.” Instead, she feels: “What supports Qatarisation programmes and, most importantly, Qatari nationals, is the learning and development that occurs. A learning and development metric considers the change (a measurable output) that occurs through a wide variety of learning mediums.” Some view the nationalisation policy as a numbers game with Qataris recruited just

GTCI INPUT SUB-INDEX RANKINGS Country

Enablers Rank (Regulatory, Market and Business Landscape)

Attract Rank (External and Internal Openness)

Grow Rank (Formal Education, Lifelong Learning and Access to Growth Opportunities)

Retain Rank (Sustainability and Lifestyle)

Labour & Vocational Rank (Employable Skills and Labour Productivity)

Global Knowledge Rank (Higher Skills, Competencies and Talent Impact)

United Arab Emirates

Qatar

Saudi Arabia

Lebanon

Egypt, Arab Rep.

Morocco

Algeria

for the sake of maintaining the requirement. A demotivated Qatari national, who did not want her name to be revealed, mentioned that while she was recruited as soon as she finished graduation, she was not assigned any work since there were others taking on her responsibilities. Fleming stresses that money is not the only thing that today’s youth desire as they also want to feel as if their work matters and really counts for something. “When there are too many unnecessary rules and limitations put in place in the name of inculcating

129 LAGOS

DHAKA

179

130

132 TRIPOLI

180

133

180

181

136

190

LUANDA

186

137 ADDIS ABABA

PORT MORESBY

186

RANKING CITY RATING

138 SANA’A

191

HIGHEST RISK CITIES

133 BAGHDAD

KARACHI

135

130

DAMASCUS

198

204

Out of 138 cities worldwide in People Risk Index 2013 by Aon Hewitt Based on a rating of 30 factors across 5 categories of risk QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 51

THE NEW ORDER discipline that neither benefits the company nor the employee, then employees start to feel hindered and demotivated. Also, in every organisation no matter what the industry, there has to be proper communication among employees, as well as between employees and the leadership,” Fleming says. Today’s youth put a lot of trust in company leadership and this loyalty goes both ways. If young employees don’t have confidence in the leadership and if management doesn’t demonstrate faith in the employees, it creates an endless cycle where people are not motivated or ready to get things done, according to her. QAPCO registers a high rate of Qatarisation: “Today, as evidence of our success, we register a Qatarisation rate of 30%, which is higher than the national average in the oil and gas sector.” This also comes with development as required by the nature of the oil and gas business that needs strong technical and physical skills alongside an unwavering appreciation for safety and responsibility. Naji says: “For us, human capital is our greatest asset and we have never ceased to invest in the learning and development of our employees. For example, last

“AS A PERFORMANCE-BASED ORGANISATION, WE KNOW THAT WE ARE NOT FOR EVERYONE. PUBLIC SECTOR ROLES, FOR EXAMPLE, MAY OFFER GREATER STABILITY, SHORTER HOURS AND MORE PREDICTABILITY BUT A PRIVATE SECTOR COMPANY LIKE VODAFONE OPERATES ON MERIT. WE BELIEVE THAT PROMOTIONS TO THE NEXT LEVEL AND GREATER RESPONSIBILITY SHOULD NOT BE AUTOMATIC BUT GIVEN AS A REWARD TO THOSE WHO REALLY WORK HARD AND PROVE THEMSELVES. WE WANT TO ATTRACT THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE FANTASTIC AND HELP THEM ACHIEVE THEIR FULL POTENTIAL.” ANITA TOMANY

Head of Centres of Expertise Vodafone Qatar 52 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

year we provided over 20% more training hours than ever before. Building skills and strengthening our employees’ capacity is essential for our long-term success. Many of our training courses are technically specific and time-intensive and ensure that our teams stay abreast of the latest advancements within the industry.” Organisations must focus on what, how and when employees need to learn the required skills in order to advance confidently and competently within an organisation, Fleming maintains. Fleming has founded a platform for Qatari nationals – Launch – to start to rethink on how they are being developed. Launch offers a series of learning events, all focused on exploring and developing Qatari nationals within their current organisations. Most of the companies do look at the nationalisation policy as a tool to develop, retain and build a strong leadership of Qataris and invest in this for the best results. Commercial Bank of Qatar has grown its talent through graduate development programmes and augments the experienced talent through a variety of development programmes. “The key to supporting our national talent is the identification of their strengths and capabilities to ensure that they are in suitable career paths. We continuously assess our programmes to ensure that they meet the current and future objectives for both employees and organisation,” says Al Malki. Just as Fleming mentioned, the programmes developed have a direct relation with the employee capability. “As our employee capability develops so must our programmes to reflect this. Our intent is not only to create best-in-class initiatives but to also upgrade them in line with the growth of both our talent and our organisation,” says Al Malki. Vodafone Qatar is also increasing recruitment of young Qataris. “We are currently looking for 10 new graduates, 34 new Al Johara sales staff and 34 new staff for Retail. In addition, we are increasing our University Scholarship programme from 10 to 25,” says Tomany. Talent retention Sahiba Singh explains who an engaged employee is: “We call employees engaged when they speak positively about the organisation (say), have a desire to be a part of the organisation (stay), and are willing to make extra effort to contribute to the organisation’s success (strive).”

According to Aon Hewitt’s global research, engaged employees deliver better performance, which is essential for business success. They understand their role in the business strategy, have a strong connection and commitment to the company, and strive to go above and beyond in their jobs. “Our engagement studies show that the average employee engagement globally hovers around 58%. However, our flagship research study Qudurat tells us that, compared to the rest of the world, employee engagement in the GCC is among the lowest at 49.5%. A much graver issue is that engagement levels for the region’s workforce have been declining,” she says. The key to retaining good talent is to understand what drives them and to provide them with opportunities that are challenging and foster them to grow, take initiative and be innovative. Global research and engagement data often points to the underlying relationship between a manager and an employee that can lead to employees leaving an organisation. Al Malki feels that though this can be true in some instances a key factor that leads employees to leave an organisation is lack of organisational fit or developmental opportunities. QAPCO, meanwhile seems to have a very good track record. “Despite our successes, employee retention is a recognised challenge for every company. In 2013, we increased our retention rate while also increasing our overall employment. We are proud to celebrate that more than 500 of our employees have achieved the 10-year employment anniversary. This means that more than 40% of our employees have ten years of experience at QAPCO, a clear indicator of our success in retaining employees by providing challenging and rewarding employment opportunities,” says Naji. This was achieved through stimulating career opportunities and growth evolution within QAPCO. “We also have in place a number of fast-track programmes and training solutions such as our award-winning LEAD development programme to ensure our employees can realise their professional ambitions. We also strongly support the pursuit of postgraduate education within our teams,” says Naji. Rewarding talent is embedded within QAPCO’S corporate culture. “Strengthening employee engagement through rewarding packages and a multitude of employee benefits, combined with an array of stimulating CSR initiatives focusing on our employees and their families’ welfare, are also

playing an important role in talent retention,” he continues. Lanvin from INSEAD feels that talent motivation has to take on new forms as our economies have moved from mining, agricultural and manufacturing to service societies, and companies have become less dependent on physical location and assets. All companies, big or small, must accept that their key resource will be their human resource, and that this is a highly fluid asset which may join or leave the company at any point in time. “Companies like IBM or General Electric have become well known for their ability to grow talent internally. More recently, companies like Google have shown how they could attract the best talents. Others have shown how ‘employee loyalty’ could become a key competitive asset. Companies will need to develop imaginative and innovative ways to grow, attract and retain talent. Encouraging diversity (of background, experience, cultures, gender, age) will be a critical way of doing it, as will be the development of attractive global brands,” he says. At Vodafone Qatar, diversity is seen as an asset that brings people closer within work

LEVERAGING ADVANCED ANALYTICS, AON HEWITT FIND THAT THE TOP THREE DRIVERS FOR IMPROVING ENGAGEMENT IN THE REGION ARE:  Building stronger confidence in leadership: There is a greater need for leaders to invest time in communication with their employees. Leaders need to increase their channels for open, genuine formal and informal communication. Human resource teams also must ensure that any peoplerelated projects, policies and practices are actively supported by the organisational leadership in order to achieve a larger impact.

 Enhancing Learning & Development: A key measure to accelerate and amplify learning and development is to provide more ongoing coaching and mentoring to employees across all levels within the organisation. Focus is shifting towards applied learning versus classroom training, which is more prevalent in the region. By emphasising action-oriented learning such as job rotations and cross-functional projects, organisations may be able to nurture and groom their nationals for senior positions.

 Managing Career Growth Expectations: It is critical to set and communicate tangible goals for employees and to tie these objectives to actual performance, so that employees hold more realistic expectations for their career growth.

spaces.“We love the diversity in Qatar and we aim at reflecting that in Vodafone Qatar with our 46 nationalities and a healthy mix of men and women (around 28% of our staff are females). Diversity brings new ideas, different ways of working, and of course allows us to reflect our customer base. It also provides a fantastic environment to work alongside many different national cultures. It is a great way to learn about the world and learn new perspectives,” Anita Tomany adds QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 53

business > bottomline

Middle East and the rate of attrition There’s no doubt about it. Today’s employees are harder to retain. The majority of professionals in the Middle East seem to agree on this point as well, with 60.2% of those who took part in the Bayt.com 'Employee Retention in the MENA Workplace' poll saying that, compared to previous generations, employee turnover now is much higher.

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mployee turnover is a hot topic in today’s workplace and HR circles and leading organisations recognise the importance of actively measuring, monitoring and maximising the level of loyalty and engagement among their employees, and ensuring it is not left to chance. Why is employee turnover today higher than it was 20 years ago? The Bayt.com 'Workplace Dynamics in the MENA' poll points out the reasons why professionals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region would leave their job and what they look for in an ideal job and manager. Challenge is obviously important, as 17.5% of respondents saw no clear advancement path in the organisation, prompting them to leave their job. In a new job, a fifth of MENA professionals (20.3%) are looking for companies that will help them develop

their skills and provide learning and training opportunities. Eight out of every 10 respondents (81.6%) have an online CV and online public profile, and 96.6% are always open to new career opportunities. According to the 'Workplace Dynamics in the MENA' poll, the industries that are seen to attract the most talent in the MENA are Oil, Gas and Petrochemicals (30.2%) and Information Technology and Telecommunications (24.1%). High rate of attrition Most professionals in the region claim that the average amount of time they have spent in a job is no more than five years, 27.7% have stayed between two to five years and 20.5% have stayed for no more than two years, while 22.2% have stayed for an average of less than one year in a given job. While a whopping 54.7% state that they want to leave their job immediately, only 16.4% intend to remain in their current

job until retirement. 36.8% of respondents hope for career longevity and would never want to retire. Interestingly, the departments with the highest turnover in the MENA are Sales and Marketing (43.9%). IT comes second on the list at 14.3%. Addressing the problem Providing a competitive salary is considered the most important factor in employee retention by 26.6% of respondents. A better salary is followed by performance recognition (17.7%) and good manager-employee relationships (17.6%). Nine out of 10 (86.1%) said that having higher levels of job security will improve retention rates. Data from the 'Employee Motivation in the MENA' indicates that 47% of MENA professionals consider recognition of one’s work the key element that drives motivation. This was closely followed by training and development (45%) and career advancement opportunities (42%). Training is the key Training is very, very important. The Bayt. com 'Workplace Dynamics in the MENA' poll shows that the majority of professionals in the Middle East (20.3%) are looking for companies that will help them develop their skills and provide learning opportunities and training programmes. 19% look for a good work environment. In light of the above, employers in the MENA should recognise the importance of fostering an environment of growth and learning to bring out the best in their employees. Companies can develop in-house training departments, ally themselves with special training providers and universities, send employees to relevant external training programmes, offer internal rotational programmes and overseas assignments as a key career development opportunity, and commit to their employees' learning and development in a multitude of other creative and meaningful ways. Besides the

company’s training activities, career plans and professional development opportunities should be routinely discussed and formalised. Employees who feel that the company has invested in them in this manner are far more likely to remain loyal to their employer. Management style also plays a significant role in employee levels of satisfaction. 27.6% of MENA professionals feel that management in their company is unprofessional; 36% confirm that communication channels are open but not enough; while 39.2% don’t feel there are enough opportunities for advancement and promotion at their company. In its 'What Makes a Company an Attractive Place to Work?' poll conducted last year, Bayt.com revealed that half of the region’s employees want to work at a company where they feel the work they do is part of a greater purpose – 22.6% wanting to believe in the company’s mission, vision and values. According to the same poll, a company that provides opportunities for employees to do their best while leading them on a successful career path is most appealing to 19.7%. A final word It goes without saying, but we’ll repeat it anyway: open communication channels, a clear career path, good training opportunities, and a competitive pay are absolutely vital for smooth sailing in a business. These are the pillars of employee loyalty in your company. Listening to employees’ opinions and feedback is a surefire way to communicate your appreciation and respect. Learn from them what they hope to contribute to the business, how they see the business moving and improving, and where they see themselves down the line. Having the opportunity to share their thoughts and ideas and the authority to take decisions that relate directly to their roles are great boosters for both selfesteem and job loyalty

Providing a competitive salary is considered the most important factor in employee retention by

26.6%

of respondents. A better salary is followed by performance recognition

(I7.7%)

and good manageremployee relationships

(I7.6%)

ABOUT BAYT.COM Bayt.com is the #1 job site in the Middle East with more than 40,000 employers and over 19,750,000 registered job seekers from across the Middle East, North Africa and the globe, representing all industries, nationalities and career levels. Post a job or find jobs on www.bayt.com today and access the leading resource for job seekers and employers in the region. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 57

bottomline > viewpoint

Pension Potential Companies in Qatar and the region have much work left to do in order to help the massive pool of expat labour secure their retirement days.

atar is a country which has already seen so much development and progress over the past two decades. For those of us who have witnessed it first hand, we can only marvel at the scale of the transformation. However, some parts of the existing financial system are still in need of further reform. One such issue is the need for a comprehensive Qatari pension system - notably for the many expat workers who live in the country. In Qatar, there are essentially two ‘systems’ when it comes to pensions, one for Qatari nationals and one for expats. Most nationals already have a pension scheme in place, owned and operated by the government. These schemes are well organised and take good care of the beneficiaries; for example, if someone dies before their retirement age then their pension is usually transferred across to their family. The socalled ‘defined benefit’ scheme means that the total pension is calculated before it is

58 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

paid and usually it is a quite generous percentage, perhaps as much as 70% or 80%, of the beneficiary’s final salary. End-of-service benefits The same cannot be said for expats who are living in Qatar. Whereas Qatari nationals are well provided for and financially covered for their old age, expats are not so fortunate - unless they are very disciplined in how they manage their financial affairs. There is currently no law or mandatory scheme to take care of them or provide a pension to them. Whilst many of them enter Qatar on good packages and can boost their relative incomes during their stay, often very little of this money is saved for their long-term future. In some ways this is understandable, as expats will eventually leave, usually to return back to their home country, and therefore they do not want to leave pensions or other assets in Qatar after they have departed. The government in Qatar, mindful that

it wishes to attract the best talent from abroad, is now looking into changing this status quo and their proposals are sure to be interesting. As in other GCC countries, such as the UAE, we currently have the ‘end-ofservice benefit’ – namely the payment by an employer to an employee when they leave a company, designed to acknowledge their length of service. Typically an employee can expect around one month’s salary for every full year they have worked at their company. In theory this is a good idea; it is a substitute for the lack of a formal pension scheme and an opportunity for expats to top up their savings when leaving their employer. However, there are two issues. Firstly, there is no obligation for an employee to save their end-of-service benefit for their longterm financial wellbeing. It would perhaps be advisable and more responsible that at least some of this money is put aside into a savings scheme. The role of GCC governments in educating and advising expats in

cial outcomes for everybody? I suggest we should look at creative solutions and try and fit existing programmes into a more widely-recognised pension structures. One option is to create an independent and secure end-of-service benefit pool which is partially funded and maintained independently by the employer itself.

doing this could be beneficial to all involved. Secondly, and more worryingly, some companies donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t put this end-of-service benefit money aside in an appropriate manner, meaning that the amount â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which grows every single year â&#x20AC;&#x201C; is often classified as a liability for the business. Furthermore, the payment of any endof-service benefits is also contingent on the company not going bust; in the months after the financial crisis, there were people who saw their companies collapse and were unlikely ever to receive anything for all the years of work they put in. So the longer you are employed by a company, the greater the risk that if something goes wrong you could be left without an important and potentially substantial end-of-service benefit payment at the end of your employment. The disadvantages of the existing setup are being reviewed by some GCC governments and may well be subject to a number of changes in the near future. So what can we do to ensure that any such review or reforms improve the finan-

Comprehensive insurance scheme The implementation of a fully comprehensive pension scheme, to be paid out incrementally when a person reaches retirement age in their home country - remember that currently no expats can retire in a GCC country - is also desirable. Of course there will be challenges as to how we structure these funds, built up whilst working in Qatar, to get them to recipients who have retired in their home country, or any other country, especially as they would be liable for tax. Perhaps one option would be to transfer these funds to a domestic pension scheme once an expat leaves Qatar, although a lot of work will be required to set such a programme up. Given the large number of expats currently working in Qatar and the recommended contribution rate to any pension scheme of 8-12% of monthly salary, these funds could quickly grow to an enormous size, representing a real opportunity for global pensions companies which have traditionally not had much of a presence in this region. It would also create another pool of money for Qatar and other GCC countries, which could be used for further investment purposes as has been seen in countries such as Australia where there is now a huge pool of long-term investable capital. I began this article by talking about the progress and change witnessed across Qatar and indeed the whole GCC region in recent times. This is one area where we have yet to see many steps forward. As more and more people make their home in this part of the world, that is a situation which cannot continue for much longer. The current offerings for expats are inadequate and we need wholesale considerable change in this regard. I fully expect the next few years will begin the process of that change and mark the birth of a potentially vast regional pensions industry

BY WIM DAEMS

ABOUT AUTHOR Wim Daems is an actuary and business development manager for Insurance and Pension Solutions at SunGard in the Middle East. In this role, he is leading and developing a business plan and a market strategy for SunGard Insurance and Pension Solutions across the Middle East QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 59

development > tag this

60 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

DEMOCRATISING THE INTERNET

AT THE RECENT DEFINITELY ABLE CONFERENCE, WE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN ABOUT THE RELATIVELY LESSER KNOWN WORK DONE BY MADA (QATAR ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGY CENTER) ON E-ACCESSIBILITY. By Ayswarya Murthy

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 61

development > tag this

A DEARTH OF STATS Habib says that accurate enough statistics on people with disabilities in Qatar are not available. “A national registry will help policy makers and decisionmakers design the right kind of programmes for people with diabilities. For now we try to work with international estimations and assume that 10-12% of the Qatari population might be suffering from disabilities. But that’s not the complete picture. How do you define disability? Is it a functional limitation? A medical diagnosis? There has to be synergy across sectors and a clear understanding of what qualifies as disability. More importantly, one of the main issues is that many people with disabilities are hidden in the households, particularly women, because of social and cultural reasons. They are seen as someone to be ashamed of.”

A panel discussion in progress at the 'Definitely Able' conference at MIA

62 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

ased out of and supported by the Ministry of Information and Communication Technology, this 35-member non-profit organisation works primarily on providing assistive technologies for those with disabilities, and assessing and training their use to improve access to the online world. Mada’s efforts in the areas of e-accessibility, policy, R&D and awareness are no less important. The Internet has changed our lives unrecognisably and being able to get online takes on even greater significance in the life of a person with disability. “It gives them the ability to work or study from home, complete transactions online and access services remotely. Digital access is a right and with the future poised to revolve increasingly around these, this right must be accorded to all,” says Ahmed Habib, Head of Communications at Mada. “People with disability deal with a litany of social, cultural and economic barriers, even in countries that have advanced legislation. They have traditionally been marginalised members of the society and giving them access to these digital tools is an opportunity to break these barriers.” And while keeping inclusivity in mind when designing physical spaces has had relative success in becoming the norm, the battle for inclusion in the digital space is only just beginning in Qatar. Both in the real and virtual worlds, accessibility does not mean making special provisions but instead build best practices into everything you do – from running your organisation and the way you communicate, to constructing physical spaces and

writing programs, Habib feels. “Ensuring accessibility is not a cumbersome, onerous activity that degrades our ability to provide services but is instead built into those services. It’s more about common sense.” Also, accessibility not only reduces the impact of a person’s disability but also allows them to be more involved. When we see people with impairments in public spaces and interact with them, mindsets begin to change. Many stereotypes, which are the leading cause of obstacles, fall apart, leading to even more access. “It’s like a tree that waters itself,” Habib says. Mada recognises and works towards building up the two major components of digital access – assisted technology and content. “Assisted technology is the equipment, adaptations, and programs that enable access to people with different kinds of disabilities; like alternative keyboard/ mouse, eye-based switches, close captioning or FM loops in public spaces,” says Habib. While these are constantly evolving and Mada works closely with people with disabilities, providing 360-degree service to support them in accessing digital content, the content aspect itself is yet to catch up. If you think Arabic digital content has to ramp up, then it is nowhere close to the work that needs to be done in the space of making this same Arabic digital content disabled-friendly. But Mada is involved in the other half of the equation too, working with organisations in helping them build their digital systems and policies and training staff that create the content. At the helm of these efforts is Senior e-Accessibility Specialist, Mike Park. “The National e-Accessibility Policy launch by ictQATAR in 2011 (the first of its kind in the region) details how websites, mobile applications, electronic documents, ATMs, kiosks providing e-government services, digital television, basically any information offered electronically, must comply with international standards, specifically the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Access Guidelines (WCAG 2.0). This spells out extensively the incorporation of best practices in code and usability,” says Park. “And since then we have been working with organisations in Qatar to help them get their websites compliant, in addition to constantly monitoring them. We compile a list of accessible websites on our National Accessibility Monitor and colour code them depending on their degree of compliance and usability.” While the monitor automatically scans websites every month and gives you an idea

AHMED HABIB

MIKE PARK

Head of Communications Mada

Senior e-Accessibility Specialist Mada

about technical compliance with the standards, the usability (or the human factor) can only be judged by testing it personally, Park says. Currently the monitor has 99 sites; Park hopes to bring the number up to 200 by the end of the year. While this might not seem like a significant number when we consider the scale of the internet, Park assures us that the progress is slow but steady. “Not very many websites have passed our standards,” he says. “We don’t give out our certifications like candy. The Museum of Islamic Art had to really work for it. We sat down with their head of web for four to five months which involved several audits, reviews and training sessions and now they are very close to getting it right.” While Park hopes to see more certified websites in the coming days (currently only two websites – ictQATAR and Hukoomi – have been certified by Mada), what he hopes more is that this would lead to a change in mindsets where developers working on websites automatically adhere to these standards without having to be told to do so and get used to the idea of incorporating access into everything they do. So when they create a website they automatically programme all the links to be keyboard accessible and attached to audio files that tell users what it does, insteading of thinking of it as extra work. “People still ask me why they have to do this and how many blind people could possibily be using the website. But it’s not a difficult thing to do; it’s just a matter of habit,” he says. Park conducts a four-day accessibility workshop, free of charge, every few months for developers and web designers. This workshop additionally addresses dealing with Arabic content. “While international

guidelines do quote on a general level the use of different languages it’s not very specific; but we work extensively on how to make Arabic content usable by everyone in this region,” Park says. Another challenge they face is the fact that much of this ground work is often outsourced. “It is an awkward thing to work with; relaying information to a middle man, who may or may not be technically sound, who then passes on these documents to the developers in another country. But these developers don’t have the advantage of the same training; they just receive an email with plenty of attachments. Many times I have offered to travel to these countries to offer the training but it hasn’t really happened,” Park says. One way around it, he feels, is to use home-grown talent. “It’s easier for us to work with local web designers and developers; we have seen this in our interactions with Mannai, Fuego, iHorizons and the like.” Habib feels now it’s time to start bringing awareness among decision makers – the VPs of IT and CTOs – the people who are actually procuring the services themselves. “High-level buy-in is necessary so we can create nationwide policies that overlap other sectors. This work can’t be done in silo; it is part of a larger ecosystem. “We recognise that in order to achieve true access, we need to work with people in transportation, healthcare, education, cultural engagement, sports and recreation and ensure people with disabilities are taken into account and programmes are designed around them. So our stakeholders are many and we try to see different ways in which technology can be used to create accessible spaces and fit into all these verticals.”

ELECTRONIC EARS Mada worked closely with the developers of the app Brassy, which was created as part of the Arab Mobile App Challenge. This Arab-language app, designed for those with hearing impairments, will detect sounds in the immediate environment, like a fire alarm for example, and send notifications to a smartwatch. “We worked closely with developers to provide guidance and expertise and, most importantly, facilitate user testing,” says Habib.

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 63

infrastructure > tag this

Roads from Rubble

Disposing of construction waste is a major concern for any country. Qatar has taken a step towards environmentally-friendly roads by initiating a novel project to lay new roads from debris. By V L Srinivasan

64 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

hen the Minister of Environment, HE Ahmed Amer Mohamed Al Humaidi, issued Qatar Construction Specifications (QCS) 2014 two months ago, one of its core objectives was to reuse the huge debris, a fallout of the rapid growth of Qatar’s construction sector, which has been contributing significantly to waste generation with an adverse impact on environment and human health. According to the Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics, more than 77% of the 12,163 MTs of the solid waste generated in Qatar in 2013 was from the construction sector which not only posed health hazards but also occupied huge amount of space. In a novel initiative, a project entitled “Innovative use of recycled aggregate in construction” was taken up by the TRL (UK Transport Research Laboratory) together with Qatar Standards in the Ministry of Environment, Qatar University, and the Public Works Authority (Ashghal). The project was funded by Qatar National Research Foundation (QNRF) and the TRL’s role was to bring the government and industry to work in partnership for the use of recycled aggregates as well as develop national recycling specifications. As part of the project, Boom Construction laid a one km-long stretch of road costing around QR1.2 million and made use of 210,000 tons of reclaimed rubble in October 2014. The road section is an access road to the landfill at Rawdat Rashid near Salwa road and is used by about 1,500 trucks and

other vehicles every day at present. The success of the project infused more confidence among the authorities in the use of recycled aggregate in the country and QNRF awarded another project to TRL for the implementation of recycled materials in various construction applications. “In the second project, we will collaborate with Qatar Standards and Ashghal to implement the use of recycled aggregates (granular materials) in selected government projects and monitor performance in practice. This project is again in collaboration with industry and will make recommendation on the wider implementation of recycled aggregate in Qatar and the region,” Dr Khaled Hassan, Regional Manager of TRL and Lead Principal Investigator of the project, says. Benefits The benefits of using recycled aggregate are many. They include low carbon dioxide emissions, reduced transport distances, preventing adverse impacts on the environment due to dumping of material, and also saving money as importing aggregate is costly. Besides, this will also meet the given target for recycled aggregates as part of the Qatar National Development Strategy. Professor and Chair of the Department of Civil Engineering in Qatar University, Dr Ramzi Abd Taha, says that Qatar has a severe aggregate shortage and most of it is imported from the neighbouring UAE. The capacity of the port in Mesaieed is limited in terms of receiving and stockpiling all the aggregate needed for building and road construction projects. Thus the advantage of using alternative materials such as construction and demolition debris will generate economic benefits, speed

“The greatest benefit of recycling is protecting the environment by reducing the amount of construction waste accumulating in landfill sites as well as reducing reliance on imported aggregate, and therefore the high carbon emission associated with extracting and transporting virgin aggregate from neighbouring countries.” Dr Khaled Hassan Regional Manager TRL (UK Transport Research Laboratory)

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 65

infrastructure > tag this

Newly constructed access road to the landfill at Rawdat Rashid near Salwa road, made with recycled debris

“The long-term field performance of such materials has to be monitored under actual environmental conditions such as temperature, rain, traffic, etc. This takes time. But laboratory results are encouraging. It is important to do research to establish the final acceptability of using such materials in road construction and elsewhere.” Dr Ramzi Abd Taha Professor and Chair, Department of Civil Engineering Qatar University 66 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

up construction and conserve good limestone aggregate sources in Qatar for future generations, he says. Though Prof. Taha is unsure of the cost data, he says the economic benefits are immense, considering that most of the aggregate used in Qatar is imported from outside. “The long-term field performance of such materials has to be monitored under actual environmental conditions such as temperature, rain, traffic, etc. This takes time. But laboratory results are encouraging. It is important to do research to establish the final acceptability of using such materials in road construction and elsewhere,” he says. The cost of recycled materials is always less than the conventional, particularly in low-lying countries such as Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain with a shortage of local aggregate, Dr Hassan says. “The saving is related to the allocation of recycled aggregate whether it’s replacing imported or local aggregate. However, the greatest benefit will be in protecting the environment,” he says. Extensive laboratory and site trials have indicated that the appropriate use of recycled aggregate can provide at least similar performance and durability to virgin aggregate in various construction applications, Dr Hassan says. “The greatest benefit of recycling is related to protecting the environment by reducing the amount of construction waste accumulating in landfill sites as well as reducing reliance on imported aggregate, and therefore the high carbon emission associated with extracting and transporting virgin aggregate from neighbouring countries,” Dr Hassan points out. First in GCC Dr Hassan says Qatar is the first country in

the GCC to develop recycling specifications at a national level with close collaboration between government and industry on implementation, and the government has made a commitment to the Qatar National Vision that economic growth will be balanced with protection of the environment. Moving towards a unified GCC Building Code, it is expected that recycling specifications will be spread and implemented across GCC countries, he adds. However, Prof. Taha points out that reuse of construction debris has been going on in the region as Abu Dhabi, in partnership with an Australian firm, started screening and processing construction and demolition waste for road construction a few years ago. “Kuwait also experimented with laboratory testing of construction and demolition waste for use in road construction,” Prof. Taha adds. Concerns remain One of the main concerns about the use of recycled aggregates is the quality and consistency of the materials. The development of the recycling construction specification was associated with the development of a quality management system to ensure the quality of recycled aggregate. “The system is audited by Qatar Standards, the government authority for certifying all construction products, and it is anticipated that the recycled aggregate will be included in the certification scheme in the near future. This will give further confidence that the materials are fit for purpose,” Dr Hassan says and adds that a sustainable supply of recycled materials together with proper quality production and monitoring can enable wider uptake in high-value applications

business > tag this

Deals pertaining to Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) in the Middle East, Qatar in particular, are unlikely to be affected despite wobbling oil prices and political unrest, says Leif Zierz, KPMG’s Global Head of Deal Advisory. By V L Srinivasan

“Oil price drop will not impact deals”

ierz says uncertain conditions are nothing new for the region which has witnessed financial downturn and political crisis following Arab Spring and now is in the grip of oil price related issues. While everyone is cautious, that has not changed the government’s spending plans or investments going abroad. “We don’t know whether the current events will change the situation dramatically,” says Zeirz. “However, there is nothing to suggest that they will impact the spending plans or slow down infrastructure projects, especially in areas on which the governments want to focus, like outbound investments. However we do know that Qatar will continue to diversify its economy in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030 and this will have a positive impact on the M&A landscape,” says Zierz, who was in Qatar to address Heads of Deal Advisory from across the Middle East and South Asia (MESA). Qatar leads GCC According to Zirez, Qatar led the GCC in terms of the growth rate of M&A deals as the number of completed inbound transactions increased by 63%, from 8 to 13, compared with 20% in Kuwait, a 7% decrease in the UAE and a 23% decrease in Saudi Arabia from 2013 to 2014. Qatar’s number of completed outbound transactions rose by 85% in 2014, from 14 to 26, compared with 38% in Saudi Arabia, 12% in the UAE and a 18% drop in Kuwait. The total value of outbound acquisitions

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rose from QR5.24 billion ($1.44 billion) in 2013 to QR14.49 billion ($3.98 billion). These investments were mostly in commercial real estate, financial, hospitality and energy-related sectors and some of the trophy assets that Qatar has invested in the past where the government found more cash flow and yield-driven appetite rather than in green field or manufacturing industrial businesses. “The increase in transactions in Qatar is representative of the rest of the world, where we can see the return of deals market, and it’s safe to say that progress in Qatar has been significant. Although M&A spend in the energy sector is high, it’s clear that, as oil prices remain low, Qatar’s infrastructure spend will have a positive impact on ensuring that the frequency and value of transactions remain high,” he says. Giving a global perspective of M&A deals, Zierz says the latest trends clearly indicate that there has been an upward movement in the markets in the last 12-15 months compared with the “jam of transactions” caused by financial turmoil a few years ago. Due to a lack of debt financing and confidence in the economic environment, many transactions that ought to have taken place all these years for strategic and restructuring reasons, were happening for the last one and a half year. The main drivers for this are strategic interests of the corporates from around the world. “There have been fast developments in the global technological environment and this, combined with abundant liquidity and solid profit levels in the corporate

environment in both mature and emerging economies, have resulted in a significant increase in the deal activity across the world,” Zierz says. According to him, these deals are mostly happening in sectors like healthcare, pharmaceuticals and chemicals and in everything that is affected by the impact of the technological advancements. It is also happening in the energy sector which in some major economies affected important regulatory changes. “As far as the Middle East is concerned, I would say that the activity is also higher in two countries – the UAE and KSA. We have a lot of outbound deals happening from Sovereign Wealth Funds or large institutions. Even family wealth is going into outbound deals,” he says. Within the GCC, there is some activity in limited sectors like food, retail industry, medical care and education. The rest is outbound, with Europe being the favourite destination. While it is limited in extent to the US, investors are exploring new opportunities in the East. More investments Saudi Arabia and the UAE governments are expecting more IPOs as Morgan Stanley Capital International is likely to upgrade Saudi Arabia from frontier to emerging market in June this year. “With Kuwait already opening up its market and allowing 100% foreign ownership in the companies recently, we have to see how these measures will create a more conducive atmosphere for a surge in M&A deals in the region,” he says. Qatar, obviously on the back of high oil prices and surplus reserves, has been acquiring strategic assets overseas, mainly in Europe through SWF, HNWIs and institutions. Venkatesh Krishnaswamy, Head of Deal Advisory with KPMG Qatar, says: “There are high expectations from the region, and more specifically Qatar, with regard to outward investments and it will be interesting to see whether lower oil prices will impact such plans in the coming years.” Qatar’s revenues are mostly from LNG sales which should be invested in assets which give good returns. The government will continue to look for strategic trophy assets that meet their investment objectives as they have done in the past. But given priorities in the local markets and in terms of infrastructure spend, they will be more cautious in view of the lower oil prices. “This caution will extend to where and

how much they invest, as compared with when the oil price was $100. They will continue to look for good investment opportunities in markets they are familiar with,” Krishnaswamy says. Leif Zierz feels that the government should now look at new emerging markets like China, India and South & East Asia countries. However, Europe will remain a favourite destination for investments and that will not change. IPO activity More IPO activity is expected this year, not only in Qatar but also globally if you look at how strong the stock exchange markets are, mainly driven by huge liquidity, and in the economies like the US and Europe, where volatility is at a very reasonable level, Zierg feels. As far as new IPOs are concerned, Zierz says that for any company to raise equity from the market, it should have a good reason besides investors’ appetite. “The regulators are keen to see more companies get listed, but Qatari firms have full access in terms of liquidity from banks and it is not difficult for large businesses to borrow money from traditional sources. Hence, money is the not key driver for the companies to go for an IPO; they wait for right time,” he adds

“There have been fast developments in the global technological environment and this, combined with abundant liquidity and solid profit levels in the corporate environment in both mature and emerging economies, have resulted in a significant increase in the deal activity across the world.” LEIF ZIERZ

Global Head of Deal Advisory KPMG

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 69

green scene > tag this

Imparting values of conservation

ecalling his childhood days in India, Shrivastava says that his parents made him use a handkerchief for personal hygiene; "but now children use loads of tissue papers,” he says. “We are wasting so much paper, water and electricity and I personally feel that children should be advised about nature conservation so that they respect the environment and become good citizens,” he says. The simple reason why children were not made aware of such things was the growth of nuclear families.

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The children born and brought up in this region have no contact with nature since the climatic conditions make it impossible for them to venture out and it is difficult for them to be anything other than “couch potatoes”. “These are some challenges which we need to face and our school is working in this direction so that the kids get educated accordingly,” Shrivastava says. Appreciating Qatar Today for its efforts to inculcate these values among students by launching Green Programme for Schools, Shrivastava feels that more agencies should come forward to spread the message. “It is a fantastic idea. On our part, we too have propagated the message among the

“Children are custodians of the environment and they should pass on the baton to future generations.” A K SHRIVASTAVA

Principal Birla Public School Doha

students as Qatar Today gave us the material like stickers which calls upon the children to save electricity and water,” Shrivastava says. “GPS is not only relevant to students in Qatar but to those from across the world. It is a wonderful programme and I want Qatar Today to continue the noble work with the same zeal and enthusiasm. They should also hold seminars and workshops to make it more attractive to further the cause,” he says. Monitors have been appointed who have been tasked with the job of switching off the lights and air conditioners before leaving their respective classrooms. In a country of abundance, conservation is a difficult path to take especially for children who have never faced any difficulties nor have they ever had to tackle shortages of water and electricity. GPS is meant to pass the baton of responsibility to the children and make them understand and realise their mistake in taking the environment for granted. The school has also set up an eco club with subdivisions for cleanliness, electricity and water conservation. The eco club has been active and the students take part in a march to declare their goals. “Children are custodians of the environment and they should pass on the baton to future generations,” Shrivastava adds.

RAKESH VERMA

Incharge, Birlasphere Birla Public School

Rakesh Verma, another green activist and a teacher at the same school, who has been in charge of Birlasphere (eco club of Birla Public School) since 2012, is also actively involved in activities like quiz competitions and Disaster Management projects. He campaigns for minimum wastage of paper in school by reusing one-sided printed papers, sending e-circulars instead of printed ones, and recycling waste papers by creating models from them. He believes that "human beings are the only species on Earth to cut down trees, make paper from it and then write on the paper to campaign for saving trees"

ABOUT GPS This second edition of Green Programme for Schools is a nationwide initiative spearheaded by Qatar Today and supported by ExxonMobil, which aims to inculcate green values in children by making environmentally-sound habits a subconscious part of their everyday life. Several private and independent schools are part of this year-long programme which ends in an award ceremony recognising students who have done incredible work in encouraging and promoting green practices. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 71

CONSTRUCTION

SPOTLIGHT

BUOYED BY GOVERNMENT SUPPORT, GROWING CONSUMER DEMAND AND A STABLE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT, QATAR’S CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IS ON A GROWTH TRAJECTORY, WITH MOST OF THE MEGA INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS EXPECTED TO BE COMPLETED BEFORE THE NATION HOSTS THE 2022 FIFA WORLD CUP.

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IFA’s latest announcement that Qatar will host the tournament for four weeks during November and December instead of July/August has not only provided much-needed relief to the construction companies in the country but is also expected to expedite the ongoing mega infrastructure projects. The FIFA decision has given the construction industry additional time of six months but the government is confident that the country will be ready well ahead of schedule. The country’s banking sector is playing a key role in financing these projects to the tune of over QR364 billion ($100 billion) for their timely completion.

Besides preparations for the FIFA World Cup, the government has drawn up massive plans to develop infrastructure by taking up projects such as the Qatar Integrated Rail network for more than 700 km, Lusail City, hospitality and retail, expressways and a new seaport, among others. Qatar’s desire to develop infrastructure for hosting international sporting meets, conferences and exhibitions was a follow-up to the successful hosting of the Asian Games in 2006 which culminated in being selected to host the FIFA World Cup. Hamad International Airport, which was delayed by many months, was finally opened in May 2014, indicating the government’s commitment to develop infrastructure.

With all these projects, estimated to cost nearly $1 trillion (around $275 billion), Qatar’s construction sector has been witnessing unprecedented expansion, thus reflecting extensive growth. They include infrastructure projects estimated to cost around QR364 billion ($100 billion), building projects worth around QR 300 billion ($82 billion) and oil and gas projects QR225 billion ($62 billion). Finance Minister HE Ali Shareef Al Emadi, while announcing the extension of Budget for nine months beginning April 2015, said that the government is expected to allocate a large portion of its spending on 2022-linked development projects on an assumed oil price of $65 per barrel. The government is confident that it can weather the crisis caused by the low oil prices and continue the projects without any hindrance. The construction contracts awarded were around QR66 billion ($18.02 billion) in 2012, QR138 billion ($37.88 billion) in 2014 and is expected to be QR178 billion ($48.9 billion) in 2015. The oil-rich state of Qatar has only recently joined the bandwagon to rapid infrastructural growth. A decade or two ago, the only iconic building on the corniche was the pyramid-inspired Sheraton. However, with its growing recognistion as a potential host of regional and international games, the country has witnessed massive developments. The face of Qatar has rapidly changed since the Asian Games, and now with the declaration of the National Vision 2030, there are numerous projects on the rise. Qatar is a booming market and for the construction sector, the country is definitely an attractive on. According to Business Monitor International, Qatar’s construction industry continues to perform strongly and lower oil prices are not likely to have a notable impact on growth, given the centrality of infrastructure spending to the government’s well-financed plans

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 75

CONSTRUCTION

SPOTLIGHT

TWELVE AND GOING STRONG TRUE TO ITS NAME, WEN STANDS FOR THE THAI WORD “WATTANA" ENGINEERING WHICH MEANS “DEVELOPMENT FOREVER” TO THE SATISFACTION OF ITS CLIENTS.

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EN Qatar WLL has been active in Qatar for the last 12 years and has inherited over 45 years' experience from its mother company in Thailand. The firm’s first involvement in Qatar was at Hamad Medical City and the Asian Games Athletes Village. The company’s president was appointed as president of FEDCON (Federation of Design and Construction Services of Thailand) which successfully designed and supervised construction of the 2006 Asian Games facilities in Qatar. WEN Qatar Vice President Dr Eknarin Sriprasert says: “Qatar’s success in organising the Asian Games has built its confidence and recognition to host the FIFA World Cup in 2022. To be a part of this new global challenge, our company has diversified and strengthened our expertise in various construction fields to support the World Cup as well as the National Vision. We have been participating in pre-qualifications and tenders of upcoming stadium, metro, road, and infrastructure projects.” He says that the latest trends in Qatar’s construction sector are well aligned with the National Vision 2030, in which the aim is to sustain the country's development and provide a high standard of living for its growing population. “When we mention sustainability, this means that both public and private sectors have long-term and well-balanced plans for construction of all necessary facilities for

the country,’ Dr Sripasert says. Some of the new projects, with an estimated value of $280 billion (QR1 trillion) include, but are not limited to, Road and Expressway, Doha New Port, Mega Reservoirs, Doha Metro, Qatar Rail, Sewerage Treatment Plants & Network, FIFA World Cup Stadiums, Entertainment City in Lusail, schools, hospitals & healthcare centres, hotels and residential and office buildings.

Good support from banks The company is also getting good project financing support from several major banks including Doha Bank, Ahlibank, Commercial Bank, and Barwa Bank. The banks understand the nature of construction projects in Qatar, which are on fast track and prone to changes. Therefore, the banks usually provide extra funds to cater for these contingencies and are patient for lengthy claim procedures by clients, he says. While the mother company in Thailand has completed over 100 projects globally, WEN Qatar has successfully delivered over 15 projects so far in the country. They include Areen Residential Tower in West Bay, Islamic Institute at Al Waab, Sidra Medical and Research Center, Al Jassimya Tower in West Bay, National Museum of Qatar, bridges in Lusail, desalination plants in Ras Abu Fontas, etc. “Our future plan is to form joint ventures and partner with other major construction firms to prequalify and win large-scale project awards to support the FIFA World Cup and Qatar National Vision as elaborated above,” he adds

affairs > tech talk

MICROSOFT LAUNCHES LUMIA 532 IN QATAR Offering the latest Windows Phone 8.1 capabilities, Lumia 532 is now available in Qatar for QR395.

umia 532 is a powerful quad core smartphone that builds on the success of the Lumia 530 and features a premium layered design, Glance screen, and more memory. The device comes with a front-facing camera that helps you switch effortlessly between voice and video calls, the full Microsoft Office suite, 30GB of free OneDrive cloud storage, and more. Lumia 532 is available in Qatar with a free screen protector, back cover and exclusive app offers, all worth over QR350. Users will get one month free and unlimited access to movies and TV series on icflix app, two months free and unlimited access to movies and TV series on Box TV app, QR100 off on their first ride if they book it through UBER, one month free premium membership on Gaana mobile app and 15 GB of storage space on OneDrive. The Lumia 532 is available in a range of colours including bright green, bright orange, white and black.

QCRI: The year past

Qatar Computing Research Institute conducted an annual review to talk about the progress of some of the research work it is conducting in collaboration with MIT’s CSAIL.

R Inroads into e-ticketing

esearchers from QCRI and Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory presented the current findings and future goals of many of their joint research projects in the fields of Data Integration, Cyber Security, Advanced Analytics and Visualisation in Sports, Speech and Language Processing and Data Management for Social Computing. Sports analytics is specifically a field that QCRI is keen on and scientists spoke about 3D video optimisation and streaming for sports, video enhancement for sports, quantitative player scouting for football, passing strategy in professional football, etc.

Ticketfun, an online ticket booking and social event discovery platform announced the launch of its website.

eople across the gulf region can now discover events and activities in Qatar as well as buy tickets through Ticketfun, CEO Hamad Al Rewaily said. Three years since he pitched the idea at Al Fikra Business Plan Competition and was selected to be part of the Digital Incubation Center at ictQATAR, Ticketfun launched this month, announcing its partnership with Qatar National Bank. All transactions through the website, including advance reservation to events and ticket purchases will be through the QNB’s secure payment gateway system. Ticketfun is expected to announce its collaboration with several Qatar-based event organisers and cinemas soon and will begin selling tickets online, starting this summer.

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GOODBYE, INTERNET EXPLORER At one point in the early 2000s, Microsoft’s venerable browser commanded over 90% of the market share. The world was exclusively using Internet Explorer to access the World Wide Web. But for years now the browser has seen an embarrassing decline in use along with a reputation that, the company has come to realise belatedly, is tarnished beyond repair – it is clunky, slow and is only good for downloading other browsers. It was inevitable that Microsoft would put the Internet Explorer to rest and this happened last month at the Windows Convergence conference where it was announced that in all Windows 10 devices IE would be replaced by a new default browser, currently codenamed Project Spartan. The 20-year-old browser which has seen 11 iterations will continue to exist in some versions of Windows 10 mainly for enterprise compatibility, the company said.

Is Mars One a smoke dream?

Former astronaut Buzz Aldrin, a vocal proponent of a manned Mars mission, is also skeptical of Mars One’s capability of putting the first human on the Red Planet.

SPACE X CHOSEN FOR ES’HAIL 2 LAUNCH The Qatar Satellite Company, EshailSat, has announced that Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) has been selected to launch the company’s second satellite. The communications satellite, currently under construction by Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, will be launched on board a Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX’s Launch Complex 40 at the Air Force Station, Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA in the fourth quarter of 2016. According to a statement from the company, Es’hail 2 will be a high-performance satellite, providing TV distribution and government services to strategic stakeholders and commercial customers. The website Spacenews claims that the European launch provider Arianespace, which launched Es’hail 1, was not able to bid because of the weight of Es’hail 2. “Es’hail 2, expected to weigh 5,300 kilograms at launch, will be too heavy to ride in the lower position of Arianespace’s Ariane 5 rocket. Arianespace is fully booked through 2016 for the Ariane 5 upper berth, which accommodates heavier satellites,” it said.

Cracks are appearing in the much-publicised Mars One mission which held global “auditions” for those looking to be part of a one-way trip to establish a human colony on the Red Planet.

ver since the Dutch Non-profit Organisation announced in 2010 that it was now accepting applications for astronauts to be among the first Martian colonisers, skepticism has been growing in the scientific community about the feasibility of the endeavour. These murmurs have become louder after one of the finalists selected by Mars One went public with some of the company’s dubious practices. Dr Joseph Roche, who holds doctorate degrees in physics and astrophysics, told the media that not only did Mars One not receive the amount of applications it said it did, but those on the final list had to pay for their place there; Mars One went as far as asking the finalists to donate any money they made from guest appearances. He also cast doubt on the selection process, saying that despite being one of the 100 finalists the sum total of his direct interaction with Mars One employees was a 10-minute Skype interview. He feels the whole exercise is a giant money-making scam. While the company has denied these allegations, it also announced that the first of the many missions it had planned has been delayed due to lack of investment funding. This has slowed work on a robotic precursor mission that Mars One had wanted to send toward the Red Planet in 2018, Mars One CEO Bas Lansdorp said, resulting in a corresponding delay in having the first human land on Mars. This has been now rescheduled for 2027.

GOOGLE GLASS IS NOT DEAD

"We ended the Glass Explorer programme and the press conflated this into us cancelling the whole project, which isn't true. Google is about taking risks and there's nothing about adjusting Glass that suggests we're ending it." ERIC SCHMIDT

Executive Chairman, Google QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 79

development > tech talk

THAMER AL THANI

Business Development Manager Digital Incubation Centre

ICTQATAR’S DIGITAL INCUBATION CENTER INVITED QATAR TODAY TO TALK ABOUT ITS NEW DIRECTION AND PROGRAMME OF DIVERSIFICATION.

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or a while now the Digital Incubation Center has enjoyed (and suffered through) a fair share of our focus. First because it has been an interesting, and necessary, vigil: watching the evolution of what has now clearly become one of the epicentres of the country’s tech innovation. And second, the various companies that are incubated here (and the enthusiastic young entrepreneurs at their helm) are an endless source of material for an ever-hungry publishing house. So while we had been aware of the changes in management at the DIC over the last few months, we couldn’t guess what this would mean for the centre’s operations. During a discussion with Thamer Al Thani, some, if not all, were revealed. Al Thani is a relatively new presence in DIC, though not ictQATAR itself, where he has managed various projects aimed at getting citizens to engage with e-government initiatives. And now he is taking on a supporting role as DIC’s Business Development Manager. “Like any startup we have to stay lean, and wear multiple hats. And it is always good to bring in people with new perspectives and different experiences,” he says. This partly explains DIC’s “reboot” and the ambitious strategies that have been put in place. Starting this year, DIC will restructure its programmes around two tracks – launch pad and startup. “Applicants who have an idea that could potentially be something can submit it online, come in for a screening and live pitch and, if we are sold on it, they will be selected for a six-month programme. They will be supported both in the technology and business side, allowing them to test the viability of their business and craft a business plan,” Al Thani says. Those who have completed this track can either take this forward independently or stay on to become part of the two-year startup track. It is difficult to imagine why anyone, given this option, would choose to forgo the training and mentorship and wide-ranging support, from infrastructure and financial to legal and networking. “For this entire

duration all these early-stage startups have to worry about is developing their products and finding clients,” he says. For Al Thani, the true value lies in the environment these startups will come together to create, resulting in exciting collaborations. The equity/debt-free funding doesn’t hurt either. DIC has tiedup with Qatar Development Bank for the early-stage funding needs and is developing an angel network for the scale ups later on. Al Thani admits the latter is a little slow on the uptake (“It’s still very much about knowing someone who knows someone”) but there is interest. “All we need is to see one success story.” Also new this year is the concept of dedicated mentorship; during the early stages, startups will be matched with relevant industry experts, both regional and international, from companies like Microsoft, Vodafone and Siemens who will help guide the entrepreneurs from idea to prototype. Startups will also benefit from the experience of home-grown entrepreneurs (“We have a partnership with Khalifa Al Haroon, for example”) and past DIC graduates. The 20 launch pad and 10 startup companies DIC hopes to start grooming this year will hopefully be capable of sustaining digital clusters like the one planned in Ras Abu Fantas. “This new economic

area will host several industries that will support the plants there and tech is a vital industry,” says Al Thani. This is part of the reason why DIC, which has hitherto been populated mostly with startups in the Arabic digital content space, is pushing for diversification. “We are looking for ideas and businesses around specific emerging technologies like smart city solutions, Internet of Everything, cloud computing, drones & robotics, cybersecurity, Big Data and predictive analysis, digital transformation, social media, infotainment, machine to machine, mobility and wearable solutions, e-commerce, digital content, and telecom services, which seek to support various key sectors.” Many of these are new technologies while some are mature ones which are yet to see sizable application in Qatar. We have said this before and we’ll say it again: DIC’s incubation terms are generous by any comparison, unprecedented even. And it has, even before its fifth anniversary, had a few meaningful successes. But is that alone enough to attract technologically inclined minds in Qatar? Yes, the entrepreneurial landscape here is littered with challenges and is certainly not for the faint-hearted but what DIC is giving young startups is an opportunity to try and quite literally lose nothing in the process

Digital Incubation Center Admissions Process Map

Launchpad Program Online Application

MARCH

Screening

Live Pitch

Announcement

APRIL

Start 6 Months Program

Eligible for Atart-up Program

MAY

Start-up Program Online Application

Screening

Live Pitch

Announcement

Business Plan Training

JUNE

Business Plan Refinement

Business Plan Pitch

Start 2 year Incubation

QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 81

business > tech talk

WATCH WHAT YOU ARE WATCHING Across the planet the entertainment industry is plagued by piracy. The story is no different here in the Middle East.

he illegal sharing of copyrighted material can take place through a wide variety of different means. This includes file sharing across peer-to-peer networks – of which PirateBay and Napster are two of the best known examples – through to more lo-fi solutions like the distribution of fake DVDs and CDs. These actions happen to content creators from across the creative industries; including movie makers, musicians, games studios and software providers. Research published in the UK by Ipsos last year suggested that the cost of this to the British audiovisual industries was

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By Damian Radcliffe around £500 million (QR3 billion) per annum, with cinema’s estimating that they lose around two month’s income a year – estimated to be around £220 million (QR1.18 billion) – due to piracy. In the USA – home to a much larger entertainment industry with 2.4 million employees – evidence presented to Congress in 2012 suggested that online piracy was costing the US economy between $200 and $250 billion per year, resulting in the loss of 750,000 American jobs. And these problems are not unique to Europe and North America. MENA’s problem In the Middle East, piracy and copyright

infringements don’t just include torrent sites, online restreaming of broadcast signals and bootleg DVDs. Other illegal routes to eyeballs include pirate satellite channels – which air premium content without appropriate the rights or licenses – and cheap set top boxes imported into the region, providing access to hundreds of premium channels from around the world. Sam Barnett, CEO of MBC Group, the MENA region’s largest free to air broadcaster, noted last year that there were at least 12 channels in the region that broadcast content that is still in cinema theatres. “Piracy is a big issue for us; there are a number of channels that take movies they don’t own and broadcast them free on satellite,” he

told The National. “We pay a chunk of money six months to a year after the films come out,” he said, and “they beat our window and pay nothing.” That these channels are then selling advertising around this illegal content was a trend that Barnett described as “disturbing”. Reports also suggest that alongside these examples of piracy, over 1 million set-top boxes are imported illegally into the GCC every year, providing another potential route for the consumption of premium content. Some of these are sold by vendors, whilst others are brought in by people coming back from the Indian subcontinent. “What happens,” David Butorac, Chief Executive Officer at OSN has explained, “is that people with legitimate subscriptions in India bring over their set-top boxes and watch these channels here.” Given that subscriptions in the sub-continent are typically cheaper, this makes sense for consumers, but it does mean that because viewers are not subscribing to region specific services, and potential revenues of MENA’s media companies can be hit hard. Impact It’s estimated that although 27 million households across the Middle East and Northern Africa have access to pay TV services, fewer than seven million are actually paying for those services. Not surprisingly, this impacts on the business models of TV operators, as they are unable to track the true viewing numbers or they see them diluted by content being offered elsewhere. In an environment where advertising sales and subscriptions are the primary sources of income, this sort of audience erosion can clearly affect the bottom line. Barnett has stressed the potential scale of the problem by highlighting how MBC2 slipped out of the rankings of the 20 mostwatched channels in Egypt as a result of illegal retransmission of films. But, following the recent closure of about 15 of the biggest copyright infringing channels in the country, the MBC movie service bounced back to number six in the rankings. The impact of piracy “is costing broadcasters tens of millions of dollars,” Butorac agrees. In total, he estimates, the region loses about Dh1.8 million to pirated material a year, with illegal operators impacting on opportunities to invest in up-and-coming creative talent, as well as the purchasing of premium content like movies and sports. For global players the stakes can be even higher. Over 17 million copies of James

Cameron’s movie Avatar were pirated in 2010 alone, whilst in 2012 it is estimated that over 4 million episodes of HBO’s Game of Thrones were downloaded illegally. As Qatar increasingly becomes home to a number of creative rights holders, like beIN sports, this issue will become one of bigger concern; especially as the impact of this illegal activity can leave less money to invest in new services and jobs. Analysis from Dataxis suggests that as a result of signal piracy, black market usage of subscribers for beIN Sports in Algeria is estimated at three times the total official beIN Sport Arabia subscriber numbers. beIN Sports has also attracted a lot of media coverage in this space for other reasons too, following a series of ‘black outs’ related to their coverage of English Premier League football matches. The cause? Online piracy of these live transmissions. According to Rachael Hammond, an Associate in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications team at the Middle East based laywers Al Tamimi & Company, the English Premier League detected and removed more than 45,000 illegal internet streams of its matches in 2013 - 2014 football season alone. It is estimated that these streams impacted UK rights holders to the tune of over £10 million, nevermind the cost to legitimate (and legitimately disgruntled) beIN subscribers in the MENA region who found their access blocked due to activity happening in another part of the world.

TOP 10 PIRATED TV SHOWS OF LAST YEAR, RANKED BY NUMBER OF WORLDWIDE TORRENT DOWNLOADS

1. GAME OF THRONES 48.369 MILLION (HBO) 2. THE WALKING DEAD 47.642 MILLION (AMC) 3. THE BIG BANG THEORY 33.431 MILLION (CBS) 4. ARROW 29.296 MILLION (CW) 5. THE VAMPIRE DIARIES 22.921 MILLION (CW) 6. SUPERNATURAL 21.201 MILLION (CW) 7. HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER 20.282 MILLION (CBS) 8. AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. 16.334 MILLION (ABC) 9. SUITS 14.910 MILLION (USA NETWORK) 10. THE BLACKLIST 14.211 MILLION (NBC)

Solutions Given the scale of this problem, the onus is on rights holders, regulators and ISPs to work together to identify potential remedies. This won’t necessarily be easy, given that globally 95% of online music downloads are illegal, and the average mobile, iPod, or tablet is believed to contain around $800 worth of pirated content. Moreover, in a separate study, 52% on nonsubscribers in MENA cited the availability of free-possibly pirated-content as a reason not to pay for TV subscription services. Interested parties may therefore have to deploy a number of different tools include a range of remedies to address these issues. One solution involves introducing more flexible, and potentially cheaper, pricing models. Understandably it’s not necessarily a route that many media players want to go down, but evidence does suggest that some audiences are willing to pay for content if QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 83

business > tech talk TOP 20 PIRATED MOVIES OF THE YEAR RANKED BY NUMBER OF DOWNLOADS (ALONG WITH STUDIO AND ORIGINAL THEATRICAL RELEASE DATE)

1. THE WOLF OF WALL STREET 30.035 MILLION (PARAMOUNT, DEC. 25, 2013) ................................................................................ 2. FROZEN 29.919 MILLION (DISNEY, NOV. 27, 2013) ................................................................................ 3. ROBOCOP 29.879 MILLION (MGM, FEB. 12, 2014; AND ORION, JULY 17, 1987) ................................................................................ 4. GRAVITY 29.357 MILLION (WARNER BROS., OCT. 4, 2013) ................................................................................ 5. THE HOBBIT: THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG 27.627 MILLION (WARNER BROS., DEC. 13, 2013) ................................................................................ 6. THOR: THE DARK WORLD 25.749 MILLION (DISNEY/MARVEL, NOV. 8, 2013) ................................................................................ 7. CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER 25.628 MILLION (DISNEY/MARVEL, APRIL 4, 2014) ................................................................................

8. THE LEGEND OF HERCULES 25.137 MILLION (SUMMIT, JAN. 10, 2014) ................................................................................

14. TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION 21.65 MILLION (PARAMOUNT, JUNE 27, 2014) ................................................................................

9. X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST 24.380 MILLION (20TH CENTURY FOX, MAY 23, 2014) ................................................................................

15. GODZILLA 20.956 MILLION (WARNER BROS., MAY 16, 2014) ................................................................................

10. 12 YEARS A SLAVE 23.653 MILLION (FOX SEARCHLIGHT, OCT. 18, 2013) ................................................................................ 11. THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE 23.543 MILLION (LIONSGATE, NOV. 22, 2013) ................................................................................ 12. AMERICAN HUSTLE 23.143 MILLION (SONY/COLUMBIA, DEC. 13, 2013) ................................................................................ 13. 300: RISE OF AN EMPIRE 23.096 MILLION (WARNER BROS., MARCH 7, 2014) ................................................................................

they can. As an example, it’s estimated that there are around 200,000 users paying for Netflix services in the Middle East, even though it does not officially offer services here. Alongside this, some efforts in other countries have elected to focus on educating users about the impact of their behaviours; stressing the potentially detrimental effect of their actions on jobs and reinvestment in the creative industries. This approach often stems from a view that some audiences, especially younger users, don’t necessarily think of their actions as stealing until it is described to them as such. (And to help reinforce this point, in many of these nations, ISPs will write to users to inform them of the illegality of their actions; threatening to cut off their Internet connections if they do not desist.) Education, coupled with more competitive pricing models, may play a role in tackling some of these issues. Technological solutions can also play a role, and this might involve blocking illegal websites or using enhanced encryption services. OSN has reported the potential impact of the latter since switching to a more secure platform – which included deploying improved satellite receivers and changing its set-top-box in 2010 – it has seen a 30% increase in subscribers. Although how much of this can be attributed to their new platform is perhaps a moot point. 84 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

16. NOAH 20.334 MILLION (PARAMOUNT, MARCH 28, 2014) ................................................................................ 17. DIVERGENT 20.312 MILLION (LIONSGATE, MARCH 21, 2014) ................................................................................ 18. EDGE OF TOMORROW 20.299 MILLION (WARNER BROS., JUNE 6, 2014) ................................................................................ 19. CAPTAIN PHILLIPS 19.817 MILLION (SONY/COLUMBIA, OCT. 11, 2013) ................................................................................ 20.LONE SURVIVOR 19.130 MILLION (UNIVERSAL, DEC. 25, 2013) ................................................................................

Nonetheless, rights holders do believe that these remedies work, even though there are those who argue that the real challenge isn’t price or technology. It’s enforcing the law and creating compelling reasons to get people to buy premium services. In the content camp, this might include adding further incentives to subscribe – from interactive services to personalisation, more 3D or HD channels – as well as material in a greater range of languages, especially those aimed at South East Asian audiences. Meanwhile, law enforcement authorities, rights holders and industry also need to work more closely together, given that it is in everyone’s interests to come together to defeat piracy. After many years of talking, there are signs that this is finally starting to happen. Last year the sector came together to start to tackle some of these issues through the creation of Broadcast Satellite Anti-Piracy Coalition. The Coalition has already forced the close-down of 15 pirate TV channels in the region after they were found to have failed to secure the appropriate rights for the programming they broadcast. But of course piracy is a rapidly changing and evolving beast, so businesses and policy makers will need to remain vigilant in keeping across these issues. If they don’t, then the impact on the region’s emerging creative industries could be substantive

business > marketwatch

NESPRESSO OPENS AT THE PEARL Nespresso recently opened a new boutique located at The Pearl Qatar under the patronage of HE Martin Aeschbacher, the Swiss Ambassador to Qatar; Fawaz Idrissi CEO of High Trading international; and Pierre Debayle, Regional Manager of Nespresso Middle East, Africa and Caribbean.

his new boutique will serve Doha’s luxury clientele in one of the city’s newest and most popular shopping and leisure districts, which is home to some of the world’s most luxurious and fashionable brands. The opening brings the total number of Nespresso boutiques in the MEAC (Middle East, Africa and Caribbean) region to 39, making it one of the fastest growing markets for Nespresso globally. The new boutique is the second in Qatar. It first opened in the country at Blue Salon on Bin Hamad Street in 2006. “We are very proud of our nine-year partnership with Nespresso and extremely excited about opening its second boutique in Doha at the prestigious Pearl Qatar; we’re looking forward to continue strengthening the positioning of Nespresso in the Qatari market

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to satisfy our rapidly growing customer base,” said Fawaz Idrissi, CEO of High Trading International Co., the exclusive Nespresso distributor in Qatar. The boutique provides customers with a comfortable and relaxed coffee tasting and shopping experience, featuring designated zones displaying the wide variety of products available. Staffed with Nespresso Coffee specialists, the welcome desk serves as an information centre, helping guide consumers through the varied selection of award-winning single-serve coffee machines, 23 Nespresso Grands Crus coffee and a wide range of accessories. Pierre Debayle, Regional Manager of Nespresso Middle East, Africa and Caribbean, said, “By setting ourselves in the Pearl, we have chosen an iconic part of Doha to extend our presence in Qatar.”

MAKING A SPLASH

Venturing into the lifestyle segment, Splash, the Middle East high-street retailer, has announced the launch of its perfume line as part of its growing business.

itled ‘Love Splash’, the range consists of two variants, namely Classic and Sport for both men and women. The perfume has been created exclusively for Splash by perfumer Sergio Momo from Italy, bringing in the fashion element via packaging and design and ensuring quality and price levels are met via the scents produced. Talking about a category expansion in the business, Raza Beig, CEO of Splash and Iconic said, “As a business we dress millions of customers across the region and, with an aim to constantly improvise, we ventured into perfume which will be an important category for us to complete the look and feel. The Splash perfume is made in Italy with no compromises on ingredients and design. We wish to offer this product at QR100 for a 100 ml bottle, thus cementing our fashion and affordability proposition to our deserving customers.” "‘Love Splash’ currently includes four options and, if well received with the audience, we aim at growing this category further,” he adds.

LUXURY REDEFINED

ALI BIN ALI OPENS FRETTE STORE The Ali Bin Ali Group announced the opening of Frette, provider of luxury linens to hotels and homes worldwide.

he store will be housed at Qatar’s Lagoona Mall. Frette carries a superior range of bed and bath collections, home décor, clothing and gifts for clientele with discerning taste. The upscale brand is highly popular not least for its class but also its quality. The Ali Bin Ali Group has continued being a partner of choice for many international brands of repute. Leila El Rajji, Brand Manager Frette, said, “The opening of a Frette store at Lagoona Mall is a continuation of our vision and commitment to bring the world’s best brands to Qatar. Frette serves a wide range of audiences and has over the years captured the loyalty of its customers for its elegance. The store at La-

goona Mall will carry Frette’s latest ranges from the Minimal Collection, which is the finest representation of relaxation and understated elegance, right through to more opulent creations which we are certain will be valued and appreciated by clients.” Frette has produced linens and home accessories since 1860. It is based in Monza and Milan. The brand employs only the finest fibres and most skilled artisans to craft a range of products that have come to embody luxury, comfort and creativity. Frette’s bed linen can be found in many of the world’s most prestigious hotels, from Raffles to the Ritz, as well as in the most discerning private homes, yachts and aircrafts.

IN ALL ITS MAJESTY

Gulf Craft unveils Majesty 122 in Qatar

he UAE-based superyacht shipyard, Gulf Craft, held a private showcase of the latest in their line of luxury fly-bridge superyachts at the Pearl Qatar. The Majesty 122, built for extended sea travel, comes with a fully equipped galley and luxurious accommodation for ten guests, with five spacious en-suite staterooms. The garage at the rear of the vessel can hold a tender and two three-seater watercraft.

THE GRAND MASTER OF WATCHES The eagerly anticipated new Minute Repeater model by JaegerLeCoultre showcases a mechanical automatic movement perfectly meeting the desires of numerous connoisseurs. This new creation joins the Master Grande Tradition line, the epitome of the 19th century pocket-watch tradition. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 87

business > marketwatch

BELGIUM HONOURS CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF SALAM INTERNATIONAL

In a recent ceremony at Doha’s Gate Mall, Issa Abdul Salam Abu Issa, Chairman and CEO of Salam International Investment Ltd received the honorary title of “Commander in the Order of Leopold II.” The award was bestowed by HRH Princess Astrid, on behalf of His Majesty Philippe, King of Belgium.

he award recognises his significant contribution to the Belgian presence and activities in Qatar, strengthening the cooperation between the two countries. The ceremony was held on the occasion of the Belgian Economic Mission to Qatar and was attended by high-ranking officials, including the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, SMEs, Foreign Trade and New Technologies of the Walloom Regional government and Minister of Higher Education of the fresh community government, HE JeanClaude Marcourt; Flemish Minister for Work, Economics, Innovation, and Sports, HE Philippe Muyters; Federal Secretary of State for Foreign Trade, HE Pieter De Crem; Ambassador of Qatar in Belgium, HE Sheikh Ali bin Jassim Al Thani; Ambassador of Belgium in Qatar, HE Christophe Payot and many other VIPs. As part of the event, several B2B meetings were held with Salam subsidiaries, which saw the participation of about 109 companies.

88 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

Abu Issa has been instrumental in diversifying the family business portfolio by establishing strategic partnerships with several reputable international firms. One of the strongest and most successful collaborations has been with BARCO – a display hardware and software manufacturer founded in Belgium. Salam Technology, one of Salam International’s business units, has over 80 installations of BARCO products in the country, with over 1,000 users per day, resulting in an annual revenue generation of $5 million (QR18.2 million). Shortly after receiving the award, Abu Issa said, “I am greatly humbled by this honourable felicitation. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to HRH Princess Astrid and His Majesty King Philippe for recognising Salam International’s role in fortifying ties between Belgium and the State of Qatar.” He added, “Through the wise leadership of the Emir of the State of Qatar, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani,

and His Highness Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, the Father Emir, Salam International has developed strong alliances with some of the leading companies in Belgium. We are deeply committed to expand and nurture our collaborations to revolutionise the trade between the two major economies.” HRH Princess Astrid said, “It is our honour to bestow upon Mr Abu Issa the prestigious “Commander in the Order of Leopold II” title. Mr Issa has played a tremendous role in facilitating trade relations between the Kingdom of Belgium and the State of Qatar. It is under his leadership that Salam International has successfully opened up new avenues for commercial activities and strategic collaborations between the two nations.” The Order of Leopold II award was established on 24 August 1900 by King Leopold II. The order is awarded to both Belgians and foreigners in recognition of their commendable services to the Sovereign of Belgium

business > auto news AUDI A6 DEBUTS IN QATAR

Q-Auto, the official dealer for Audi in Qatar, has announced the launch of the updated 2016 Audi A6 model. Audi has updated the model with new engines, transmissions, headlights and an advanced infotainment system. All of these features have made the sedan more powerful and sophisticated than ever before.

he new Audi A6 embodies Audi’s brand values of lightweight, efficiency and aerodynamics. The product improvement gives the exterior a clean-lined, sportier look; with the most prominent features being the single-frame grille, 3D bumper design, tailpipes and LED headlights. The stunning exterior is enhanced by 10-spoke V-design cast aluminum wheels, further adding to the model’s confident appearance. Moreover, the luxu-

rious sedan also sports an opulent interior, one that is impeccably spacious, making both long and short trips a relaxing ride. Audi Sales Manager Ala Makey said: “Packed with a range of upgraded features, this new model is a step ahead of Audi’s world-renowned superior technology. The model’s innovative design features combined with an upgraded dynamic engine promise customers spectacular road performance and effortless driving.”

RECORD GROWTH FOR A8

NISSAN PATROL “SUV OF THE YEAR” The Nissan Patrol has won ‘SUV of the Year’ in both the Automan and Evo Magazine awards, adding more prestigious accolades for the Japanese automaker’s iconic model. “This is a competitive and elite segment but the Nissan Patrol leads the pack. For the Nissan Patrol to be awarded the title of SUV of the Year is a tremendous honour for Nissan,” says Samir Cherfan, managing director of Nissan Middle East. “Once again the Nissan Patrol has proved why it is dubbed ‘Hero of all Terrains in Life’. The Patrol’s reputation as a highly capable, extremely powerful, reliable and durable vehicle is second to none in the Middle East market,” says Cherfan. Evo is one of the most highly regarded automotive publications in the UAE, while Automan is the leading automotive publication in Oman. Their annual Car of the Year awards command a great deal of respect throughout the Middle East.

Q-Auto has also reported impressive year-onyear sales in the country. The best performing model to date is the brand’s flagship A8, achieving a phenomenal 333% growth in sales compared to the same period last year. Ala Makey said: “This year has most certainly kicked off to a good start for Audi Qatar. Our record sales accomplishment is solely attributed to the brand’s innovative product introductions, customer oriented campaigns and excellent after-sales services. The increase in demand in the market is a result of a maintained premium promise to Audi buyers, one which we will continuously strive to uphold.”

ALFARDAN AUTOMOBILES APPOINTS NEW GM

orking alongside Mohammed Kandeel, who is now Chief Operating Officer for Alfardan Group Automotive Operations, Allam will utilise his vast experience to drive Alfardan Automobile’s expansion as the company looks to build on its 2014 success, in which sales of BMW and MINI vehicles increased by 10% and that of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars grew 17%. In his comments Mohammed Kandeel said: “Allam brings with him a wealth of industry experience and knowledge and as such, we are delighted that he is joining

Alfardan Automobiles, the official BMW Group importer in Qatar, has appointed Ihab Allam as General Manager to continue the BMW Group brands’ success story in Qatar. our team and are confident that he will be a strong asset and a dynamic driving force to our automotive division.” Allam added: “The role at Alfardan Automobiles presents an exciting challenge – one that I will embrace and use my experience to work closely with the strong team already in place to take the company to even greater heights. We have a number of exciting new model launches planned this year, so I have arrived at an exciting time when the company is ready to offer greater customer service and increase its market share.”

TEARING THROUGH THE TRACKS

Aston Martin Doha Chairman SALMAN ABDULLAH ABDULGANI, CEO ALAA ABBAS and General Manager NEIL SLADE unveiling the New Aston Martin Vulcan track-only supercar (limited edition) in Qatar.

Top ranks for Nissan Altima, Frontier and LEAF

ome say there’s more to life than popularity, but for car researcher Edmunds.com's “Most Popular” awards, it seems to be rather important. Edmunds.com named the 2015 Nissan Altima “Most Popular Midsize Car,” the 2015 Nissan Frontier “Most Popular Compact Truck,” and the 2015 Nissan Pathfinder “Most Popular Midsize Traditional SUV.” These three vehicles stood among the top three most-researched vehicles in their respective categories on Edmunds.com. “Nissan products are getting the attention of in-market car shoppers on our site,” says Edmunds.com CEO Avi Steinlauf. “Winning so many awards bodes well for the company’s sales in 2015.” With regards to the 2015 J.D. Power Vehicle Dependability Study, four Nissan vehicles ranked among the top three most dependable within their respective segments, with the 2012 Murano taking top honour in the Midsize SUV category – up two spots from the previous year. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 91

business > auto news

Lexus compacts luxury

Qatar Today took the new Lexus NX for a spin and found that it scores high in the luxury-to-price ratio. By Ayswarya Murthy

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ompact SUVs have come to be a popular market segment; they satisfy the need for space and safety while not compromising too much on the fuel efficiency front. So when Lexus launched their new model internationally at the end of 2014, they were looking to carve out a piece of this pie for themselves while looking to attract a new customer base to the Lexus brand by offering Premium Urban Sports Gear to meet the needs of the young 25-35 somethings on the lookout to upgrade their vehicle to one that will carry them to work in style but also for that adventurous weekend off-road beach barbeque spot. In this regard, and as a compact luxury crossover, the Lexus NX checks all the boxes. Both the turbo and hybrid models boast of purposeful and aggressive exteriors that mean business. Reportedly under development for five years, over 2,000 engineers worked on this innovative, youthful design and a matching powerful performance. The headlamps (made of three separate LED lights) and lightning-spaced indicator

lights are chiselled and fit into the body like pieces of an exciting puzzle. The fog lights not only complement the edgy look but correspond with the two exhaust pipes at the back (in the turbo model), cool trapezoidal shapes reportedly inspired from sports bikes. The black exoskeletal casing on the rear lights also adds a certain “oomph” to the vehicle when seen from behind. The four door handles light up when you unlock the car, welcoming you into the car’s warm, rich interior. The seats (in leather, faux-leather and fabric options) are the epitome of sophistication and we couldn’t resist continually running our hands over the luxurious burgundy red ones that were available in the vehicle we were given. The leather-trimmed steering wheel (with controls for audio, voice recognition, handsfree and multi-information display) and the material covering portions of the dashboard come with the popular stitch detail that never fails to give you that hand-crafted feel. Being averse to complicated interfaces in cars (as most of the one-buttonto-rule-them-all generation is likely to be), the Lexus NX’s easy-to-use layered central

SPECIFICATION HIGHLIGHTS DIMENSIONS: : 4630 MM : 845 MM : 1630 MM : 2660 MM

OVERALL LENGTH OVERALL WIDTH OVERALL HEIGHT WHEELBASE FUEL TANK CAPACITY 56 LITRES (HYBRID), 60 LITRES (TURBO)

ENGINE TYPE (TURBO) 2.0 LITRE, 4 CYLINDER IN-LINE, TWIN CAM 16-VALVE, TURBOCHARGER PISTON DISPLACEMENT (TURBO) 2494 CC ENGINE TYPE (HYBRID) 2.5 LITRE, 4 CYLINDER IN-LINE, TWIN CAM 16-VALVE PISTON DISPLACEMENT (HYBRID) 1998 CC

stack is a welcome feature. A fixed 7-inch display comes standard in all the models and the full option comes equipped with the 8th generation navigation system. It displays images from the back camera with dynamic gridlines. This, along with the 4.2inch display in the metre cluster, keeps the driver updated with all the necessary information. The full option also comes with a colour head-up display. Right below is the dual-zone automatic climate control, media controls, drive mode switch (normal, eco and sport) and electronic parking brake. A flock-finished sunglass holder (with a handy vanity mirror), dual cup holder (with clamps that allows you to open a bottle with one hand) and the console box with a wireless charging station and Aux/ USB and power outlet complete the picture. The overhead lights are touch sensitive and turn on and off when the proximity sensors register your fingers. The 8-way power front seats can be heated/ventilated and the driver’s seat comes with 2-way lumbar support for those long drives or traffic jams. The power rear seats allow you to extend the luggage space. The full option includes adaptive cruise control (with lane departure warning and forward collision warning; the steering is automatically corrected and brakes are applied when the respective warnings are ignored), blind spot monitoring, a 10-speaker audio system, panoramic view monitor and navigation with Lexus’ Remote Touch controller. On the road, the ride couldn’t be smoother, the car gliding across the lanes like a silent bat. The powerful air conditioning keeps the heat at bay while the ultra-smooth steering almost reads your mind, responding to the slightest nudge. The vehicle accelerates from 0-100 Km/h in under 7 seconds and crosses the quarter-mile mark in

about 15 seconds. And even in Doha, which is sick with luxury cars and the population might be desensitised to the sight of one, the Lexus commands a certain respect on

the roads. It was awe-inspiring to see more people giving way than usual. It was with a heavy heart that we returned the Lexus NX back to the showroom QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 93

culture > doha diary

Filmmaker ABDULLAH AL MULLA

Nurturing homegrown talent Qumra turns the spotlight on Qatari filmmakers. By Abigail Mathias

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The team from Image Productions share their ideas with film director ELIA SULEIMAN.

Film makers discuss their projects with master film maker ABDERRAHMAN SISSAKO

atari writer and filmmaker Hend Fakhroo sums up Qumra thus: “Put the best of all festivals and labs and roll them into one sweet baklava, that is Qumra for you.” She was talking about the recently concluded industry event by the Doha Film Institute (DFI) which spanned six days with mentorship labs, master classes and working breakfast sessions. Twenty nine projects by Qatari, Arab and international filmmakers were selected for the event, offering filmmakers an unprecedented opportunity to network with more than 100 industry delegates from around the world. For the public, it also presented the opportunity to watch films by some of the leading voices in world cinema today, alongside work by emerging talent. It was also a time for filmmakers attached to the ten Qatari projects in development to participate in individual ‘Meet the Master’ mentoring sessions with the likes of actor and director Gael García Bernal, and directors Cristian Mungiu, Abderrahmane Sissako, Elia Suleiman and Danis Tanovic. Rémi Bonhomme, Programme Manager, Cannes Critics Week, arrived in Doha despite the hectic schedule of screenings at Cannes. He said that ten years ago, films from the Arab world were funded by

non-Arabs, which would mean the “the stories are told from a European point of view for a European audience”. He added that, “Every year, new ways of filmmaking evolve, the trends change year after year in every country, and the only way to know the trends is to meet the filmmakers.” Close to home For Abdullah Al Mulla, the most compelling part of the event was that it helped him gain an understanding about the non-creative aspects of filmmaking – a process that tired him and also affected his health. He says, “As a filmmaker I want to focus on my art and the creative side. But, filmmaking is also about the non-creative part. It is about understanding how the industry works, which can be very stressful. For me, that was like a second job.” The 25-year-old filmmaker has made seven short films to date. He wrote and directed Old Airport Road in 2014, which won an award at the last Ajyal film festival. The film focuses on mental health and how it is handled within a family. Abdullah grew up in Qatar and says the film’s title came naturally: “Simply because as I wrote it, any place I had in mind or visualised was on that road. In fact, half the

film was shot there.” He adds, “I was pleasantly surprised to listen to people’s interpretation of the film and what it meant for them.” His current project Green Eyes deals with the topic of internal strife through the life of a coma patient. Through discussions with other filmmakers, Al Mulla was advised to make his stories simple, as opposed tp his usual style which is more abstract. Yet with all the inputs, the final story is the director’s own. He says, “I can retain my individuality as a filmmaker while listening to divergent views.” Al Mulla’s co-producer Mohammed described attending a recent Hollywood summit which was a completely different experience from Qumra. “We were meeting executives at big studios like Fox, we still felt like we had to struggle for their attention. There was a distance between us and the executives. Qumra is a closeknit event where people are much more approachable.” Regional voices H’aifaa Al Mansour, the director of the ground-breaking film Wadjda, the first feature shot entirely in Saudi Arabia, acted as a mentor at the event. He said, “All the projects were carefully selected and there are many projects created by women that deal QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 95

culture > doha diary The Masters: From bottom, Elia Suleiman, Gael Garcia Bernale, Cristian Mungiu, Danis Tanavoic and Abderahman Sissako

IMAGES COURTESY:

Doha Film Institute

The producers of the film Green Eyes discuss their project with filmmaker Sissako.

Breakfast sessions held at St Regis hotel, during the Qumra festival. Master GAEL GARCIA BERNALE with Qatari Filmmaker MOHAMED AL HAMADI

with our causes in a wonderful way. These stories are derived from the real life of our society.” Filmmakers like Hend were fascinated to meet accomplished industry professionals, who are otherwise beyond reach. She said, “Ten years ago, I could not have dreamt to be sitting with the masters here in Doha.” She grew up heavily influenced by her Egyptian grandfather, Mohamed Tawfiq, an acclaimed actor and director. Her first film, His Name made in 2012, was screened at the Cannes film festival and the River Film festival besides other locations. Her latest project, Parijat, revolves around a Qatari woman’s efforts to save her family’s third-generation perfume business. She hopes to bridge the gap between Arab films and international audiences. The film involves an international team. “I am working with Caroline Palia, a visual artist and screenwriter from Switzerland, and we are hoping to develop the film into a feature-length screenplay,” she says. 96 > QATAR TODAY >APRIL 2015

Anxiety and excitement It was easy to sense the anxiety and excitement of Qatar’s first-time filmmakers like Mohamed Al Mahmeed who calls himself “an engineer by day and a filmmaker by night.” A former student of Carnegie Mellon University, his project Superpower is about a Qatari family falling apart as they deal with their son’s battle with cancer. “Paying attention to short films is rare, especially in this region,” adds Meriem Mesraoua whose project Our Time is Running Out explores what happens to children when they reach puberty. She admits having been influenced by The Lord of the Flies, and has explored the theme of loneliness in her previous film, Coucou. Mesraoua was born in Qatar and raised in France and has worked on Micheal Winterbottom’s award-winning film, Trishna. “The most important aspect of film events is to gain access to people,” said Rashid Abdelhamid, the Palestinian producer of

Dégradé, another project in development. He mentioned that one of the first funding for the film, with an all-women cast and directed by Tarzan and Arab Abunasser, came from Doha. Set in a strife-torn neighbourhood, the film is an attempt, said Abdelhamid, “to prove to myself that I am a human being. People are tired of all the distributing images they see every day from the region; we are attempting to find some humour in the crazy situation.” Writer and director Shaikha Al Thani, whose feature narrative project Little River is in production, reflected on her experience: “One thing I learnt is that there are so many opportunities available if we just apply ourselves – and I’m proud to be part of Arab cinema moving forward.” Her script is heavily influenced by verses from the Quran, lines from Don Quixote, and the poetry of Jalal Ad-Din Rumi. She says, “I have never felt more passionate about a project with its integral notions of loss, strength and glimpses of hope.”

culture > doha diary

â&#x20AC;&#x153;Nothing is impossibleâ&#x20AC;?

auren Fryer is a marketing and communications expert whose successful media career has seen her work with many prestigious companies in both television and publishing, from the BBC and CNN to TIME Magazine and Harpers Bazaar. After working in Melbourne, London and Dubai, Lauren moved to Qatar in 2008 and was appointed Director of PR & Marketing at the Ritz-Carlton Doha. Less than three years later she spotted an opportunity to channel her experience and industry knowledge into a new project, and in 2011 Lauren founded her own marketing agency, Qanect. “In an industry that is significantly male dominated, not only was it ‘a first’ in Doha, but also quite uncommon globally,” she says. The male-dominated media world that Lauren was used to was somewhat amplified in Qatar, though she never let it slow her down. “I was very much aware that I was a woman working in a 'man’s world’, but in Qatar it was more obvious across my clients, while I was setting up business with government entities, my partners etc. I never thought, ‘Oh I’m a woman, this is going to be harder for me.’ I always thought, ‘I’m a woman, so let this work just right for me!’” And it was this positivity that helped Lauren when things became challenging. “Walking into the Ministry of Business and Trade as an expat, single female, or attending your first pitch where the panel is entirely men talking in another language was very daunting – but you very quickly realise that persistence is key; so is a nice smile, a professional candor and knowing your stuff. And not taking no for an answer!” she says. Lauren soon recognised that she could use her skills, and what may be typically female traits, to her advantage. “As women we tend to overthink, overanalyse. This can sometimes work in our favour – we have back-up plans for back-up plans, we have options 1, 2 and 3 for every scenario and we have different tactics for different people based on thorough analysis. You are one step ahead.” She also knew that Doha presented a unique set of issues for business owners, but that being a woman did not have to be a further hindrance: “In Doha everyone faces the same challenges; it’s just how you approach them. This is the same in business. It doesn’t matter if you are male or female, knowledge is power and in the end this will be more important in

whatever situation you find yourself .” Among some of the business lessons Lauren has learned from difficult scenarios is that team work was vital. “One thing you need to learn is that you just can’t do it all! Hire strong people, people who are experts and it will make the business stronger.” And Lauren admits now that this impacts not just the business. “I am more resilient than I ever thought possible. It has taught me the value of relationships; the value of the people around you working with you and supporting you is far greater than the impact you would ever be able to make on your own, and is so much more rewarding as well,” she says. Lauren was primarily motivated to start her business because of the passion she has for the work she does. “It was never a goal of mine to start an agency. But there was big demand for the work I was doing, and that I loved doing. I was working across many projects in Doha and I had to decide whether to cut back or expand, opening a company that would then enable me to deliver. I chose the latter!” The strong work ethic Lauren brings to her organisation was instilled in her from an early age. “My family have always been great supporters of mine, always encouraging me to dream big. My biggest supporter has also always been my dad, an entrepreneur himself, and someone who has been in business for a long time all around the world. He was a great asset to have when we were starting up. Nothing was ever unattainable, nothing is impossible and if you put in the hard work, consistently, then the rewards will be there.” Now that Qanect is successful and continuing to expand, Lauren is realising how she may help others. “Being the change is, for me, about embracing what I have accomplished and sharing the experience and knowledge where I can. As pioneers, I believe it is our duty to lead by example and to encourage others,” she says. And the advice she has for aspiring businesswomen is practical as well as inspirational: “If you want something to change, don’t expect someone else to do it for you. Ask yourself – can you face a thousand no’s before you get that one amazing yes? Are you willing to sacrifice almost everything and work 24 hours a day? If the answer is yes then go for it and take everything that is thrown at you, because the feeling of fulfillment is worth every moment of the hard work, sweat and tears that have gone into building your dream!”

How Women Work - Empowering women to grow and succeed The sixth annual HWW conference is coming up on May 20 & 21, 2015 with the theme ‘Be the Change.’ Once again it will be interactive and relevant to you: the women with aspirations and ambitions who live and (want to) work in Qatar. For more inspiration and tickets, please go to hwwqatar.com. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 99

culture > doha diary

CELEBRATING BRITANNIA This year’s celebrations showcased British expertise and specialties and encouraged Qatari investment in British business, tourism and education.

he British Festival 2015, put on by the British Embassy in collaboration with the British Council, concluded on April 5 with a Breabach Concert at the Al Rayyan Theatre in Souq Waqif. The month-long celebration of the two countries’ partnership featured contests, product promotions and over 40 events including a performance of Macbeth by the Doha Players, a football tournament at Aspire, a Proms Night presented by the Qatar National Philharmonic Orchestra featuring Scottish-born conductor Bob Ross, an exhibition of the art of Scottish artist and writer David Batchelor, a debate at Georgetown University on whether parents should monitor their children’s social media usage, and finally a gala event at the British Embassy celebrating the Queen’s

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birthday. “The British Festival provides a platform for nurturing existing partnerships and forging new ones – in art, commerce, culture, education and science,” Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Qatar, His Excellency Nicholas Hopton said at the festival’s launch event at the British Embassy. This was Qatar’s second British Festival. The first was in 2014, which followed the Qatar UK 2013 Year of Culture. “I hope many residents of Qatar get involved in the festival and are inspired to visit, study and invest in the UK in the future,” Hopton said at the festival’s launch event. “We are, frankly, two countries who are intrinsically tied together in so many ways. We walk through the world in step, together.”

culture > qt take All creatures, great and small By Abigail Mathias

An exhibition on mythical creatures from familiar fables opens in Qatar

DR LESLEE MICHELSEN and DR THALIA KENNEDY at MIA. Image by Abigail Mathias

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ho would have thought that inanimate animals would make a good subject matter for an exhibition? The Marvellous Creatures exhibition at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) got us curious. In an effort to bring their extensive collection to life, the MIA has used animals to introduce timeless stories such as the wellknown and beloved classics: Shahnameh, Kalila wa Dimna and a Thousand and One Nights. A regal painting of an Indian elephant from the 16th century brings back the glory of earlier kings. Mughal rulers valued their elephants highly, and court artists were often commissioned to paint portraits of these valuable battle companions. The portrait is an example of how Dara Shikoh, the eldest and most favoured son of the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, was portrayed in princely regalia in a number of albums produced at the Mughal court. Dr Leslee Michelsen is the Head of Curatorial and Research at the MIA. “We don’t

look at these objects as mere artworks, but contextualise them in a specific way,” says Dr Michelsen explaining the two-year span taken for the curation of this exhibition. The exhibition is divided into the natural quadrants of earth, air, fire, and water. Each of the stories has a connection to each element. Dr Thalia Kennedy, Deputy Director Education at MIA, says: “We have included a number of storytelling sessions in the museum library, along with other activities which run through the week.” A museum theatre has been set up where stories are being read out in 10 different languages. An interesting puppet workshop is also being organised with the Istanbul Karagoz Puppet Foundation and will include a contemporary Karagoz performance. Karagoz shadow puppetry began in the Mamluk period in Egypt, and travelled to Turkey with the Ottoman conquest of the region. As we walk through the exhibition it’s clear that a lot of effort has gone into bringing these fables to life. Fascinating objects from the 17th century such as a brass engraved Astrolabe turn the spotlight on objects which have been long forgotten. Astrolabes were used to project what the sky looked like at a given time of day or night, which assisted navigation by the stars on land and at sea, as well as determined the direction of prayer. The 46 star pointers of this astrolabe contain images of humans and animals, as well as fish and fishtailed sea monsters associated with ocean voyages. There’s also an activity zone where people can offer feedback on what emotions the exhibition has inspired. There’s also a section where children can create and submit their own monster animals. Dr Kennedy closely interacts with educators in Qatar on behalf of the MIA. She has been teaching Islamic studies for the past 10

Polychrome Underglaze Painted dish with hare motif. Ottoman, Turkey (Iznik), 16th century. Iznik was a major pottery centre for the Ottoman Empire. This rather unusual ‘animal style’ dish depicts two hares, a rare subject for Turkish ceramics, and one which probably came from the designs of Balkan silver in the Ottoman provinces. Its adaptation into a lively design shows the wit and humour of the Iznik potters.

Planispheric Astrolabe, Safavid, Iran, 17th century. Artist: Hasan Husni Al Husayni Al Kirmani.

‘Prince Dara Shikoh riding a royal elephant’ from a Royal Album of Shah Jahan Mughal, India. 1628-30 CE, artist: Balchand.

years. She says, “Something we haven’t used so much before is an emphasis on sound.” Translators and narrators have been called in from different embassies in Qatar. “This has helped us encourage collaboration with different communities, making the exhibition more inclusive,” says Dr Michelsen. One can explore the historic and artistic development of the Shahnameh, the famed epic poem that tells the stories of the heroes and rulers of ancient Persia, at a daytime workshop. Leading scholars, Dr Sheila Canby and Dr Mariana Shreve Simpson, will present the development of historic illuminated manuscripts that depict the poem, whilst artist Hamid Rahmanian will explore his own recent illustration of the Shahnameh. Bringing in the crowds The museum also puts the perspective on real time and the importance of stories that formed the new generations. Dr Michelsen says, “A lot of the feedback we receive from the residents is that the museum is a place that is used to ‘unplug’ from all the

electronic devices and distractions. The idea that people are looking closely at what we’ve put together is the best compliment we can receive.” In an era where one is bombarded with information, it is nice to go back in time to these fables with their simple meanings. Dr Michelsen agrees: “These stories are very much relevant to the modern world. One of the reasons we want to incorporate them is that they are such an integral part of our current lives.” One concern was about the timings of the exhibition as the schools would close for summer vacation, thus losing out on valuable exhibit time for the MIA. Dr Kennedy says: “We make sure that all our exhibitions tie in very closely with the Supreme Education Council curriculum. We just concluded an educators’ programme in February where we showcased how visiting this exhibition will help with what is being taught in the classroom. It’s something we do for every exhibition. Schools can plan ahead and trips can be organised.” Walk-in workshops where children and

parents are invited to make masks, silk painting workshops for teens and film screenings in collaboration with the Doha Film Institute are the activities planned around this show. Dr Michelsen will host a talk on April 15 at the MIA auditorium exploring images and symbolism of elephants in the arts of medieval Iran and Central Asia. Guided late family tours on Thursday evenings are also in place. The MIA will also organise design workshops with young adult students from the various universities which will then be published in a book. Dr Michelsen says: “There are many different exhibitions. This is a lively one that will make people smile and think.” She adds: “Our goal is to help people understand these objects. We are all about learning and engaging with the audience.” On a final note she says, “If you’ve ever listened to a story or been told a story you will find this exhibition interesting.” The exhibition is on from March 4 to July 11 at Museum of Islamic Art, Special Exhibitions Gallery, 1st Floor. Entry is free of charge QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 103

culture > doha diary COMMITTED TO PEACE

Reach Out To Asia organised its seventh Empower conference in Doha which attracted close to 500 young people aged between 17 and 26 from over 20 countries who gathered to discuss how they can better contribute to peace.

E Sheikha Al Mayassa inaugurated the conference in the presence of the Minister for Youth and Sports HE Salah bin Ghanem Al Ali and Sümeyye Erdogan, daughter of the Turkish President, who delivered the keynote address. HE Sheikha Al Mayassa stressed the importance of youth in changing the global media narrative on Islam in general, and Qatar in particular. Saying she is proud of ROTA's journey and especially the

youth-led Empower conferences, she said, “This year we want to focus on peace. We will help each other become more open-minded, accepting of different ideas and learn mutual respect.” Over two days, the participants attended several workshops and panel discussions, and announced the formation of a special task force to give young people a more prominent voice in building “peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development” across the region.

DOHA FOR ART With the active patronage of art and culture by the royal family, it was only imperative that the country played host to a range of artists and architects at the three day International New York Times ‘Art for Tomorrow’ conference, held at the W Hotel.

rganised under the patronage of Her Excellency Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Chairperson, Qatar Museums, and the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage of Qatar, the conference reflected the growing international recognition for Qatar’s contribution to dialogue and progress through art, and showed Qatar Museums’ success in becoming a vibrant centre for the arts, culture and education. HE Sheikha Al Mayassa impressed the packed hall with her keynote address where she highlighted the importance of culture and its growth as being a direct reflection of the growth of the economy. While Qatar has been creating a local narrative that is diverse, it also reminds each one of us of who

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we are and what we are, she said. She called on regional cultural institutions to work together. “Art has no religion and comes in different variations,” she said. Over 500 senior leaders from the arts, public and private sectors, tourism experts, city planners and business developers were in attendance to discuss the changing dynamics of art and architecture, and their potential to transform people and places. Celebrated artist Jeff Koons talked about art being a culmination of life’s experiences, architect Zaha Hadid threw light on her projects and the inspiration she has drawn from nature in designing each of them, while Jean Nouvel explained how he incorporated elements of Islamic art into the Doha Tower.

Top: High-ranking Qatari dignitaries at the opening of Art of Tomorrow including HE Hamad bin Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, HE Akbar Al Baker, and HE Sheikh Abdulla bin Ali Al Thani; Below: Arthur O Sulzberger Jr, Chairman & Publisher, The New York Times Company & The New York Times; Jeff Koons, Artist; and, Jean Nouvel, Architect were among the world-renowned figures who attended the event

NEW LUXURIOUS DINING OPTIONS AT THE PEARL QATAR

A NEW RETAIL EXPERIENCE IS LAUNCHED

f the launch of a retail project is anything to go by, the Ali Bin Ali groups’s Katara Plaza project did scale all set guidelines with a live 4D experience that showed the many details of the luxury Plaza. The project that is being built on an area of over 38,000 square metres in the Cultural Village Foundation, the Katara Plaza will bring Galeries Lafayette for the first time to Qatar and another tenant is evianSpa, a wellness experience that is said to be “beyond classic spa experiences”.

COLOURING OUTSIDE THE LINES Dr Naif Al Mutawa, the founder and CEO of Teshkeel Media Group and the creator of THE 99, a bestselling comic book featuring superheroes based on Muslim culture, gave a keynote address at the Translation and Interpreting Institute’s annual conference.

Speaking at the launch of this new venture, Nabeel Ali Bin Ali, Vice Chairman & EVP of the Ali Bin Ali group said, “We recognise the tremendous potential for growth in the Qatari market and this unique shopping experience offers many first of its kind experience that can be enjoyed by the consumers.” While the cost of the project was said to be close to QR400 million, the project is being designed by architect Bruno Moinard who is known for his intrinsic designs blending art and luxury.

Marsa Malaz Kempinski at The Pearl announced the opening of three new restaurants – El Faro, Al Sufra and Sawa – last month.

A MELTING POT OF FOOD The sixth edition of the Qatar International Food Festival was hosted at MIA Park for five days in March and featured unique bites from around the world with a special focus on Turkey, adventure dining in air and on water, engaging stalls that promoted health and live cooking, as well as great entertainment activities for the family. QATAR TODAY > APRIL 2015 > 105

Qatar CLOUD

Xavi

confirmed to join

Al Sadd?

What the world was saying about the country around their dinner tables last month. The deal came as a surprise to

many who believed earlier reports that Xavi would join Major League Soccer’s New York City FC. “Good riddance. There are plenty of European stars who would want to come play here and are both younger and better. Go Blue!”

No loss, no harm. Xavi was a phenomenal player and he can provide a boost to any team he would choose to go to. But for €10 million a year is just bad business for the Qatari league, and an offer that just couldn’t be refused for Xavi.

The Barcelona midfielder, Xavi Hernández, reportedly travelled to Doha to further talks of his move to the Qatari club Al Sadd. Al Sadd revealed that the player was taking a tour of their facilities, sparking speculation that the football star will sign a three-year contract replacing Raul Gonzalez at the end of the season. The club said in a statement on its website, “Al Sadd confirms the latest news about the club’s interest in signing the Spanish star Xavi Hernandez is still under negotiation. On the matter, the FC Barcelona player is currently in Doha with his family to know more about the country he would live in if he were to decide to join the club. The club would make any further official announcements only if further developments take place.”

Here’s my guess: Barring catastrophe, Xavi will be coaching Qatar at the 2022 World Cup.... Xavi could transition into a high-profile name off the field almost instantly. Qatar’s national team, on press alone, would become a perpetual talking point globally. Everyone’s profile wins, if things go according to plan.

Oil money can buy just about anything.

One of the all-time great central midfielders! Won everything there is to win and then some. Who could blame him for taking it easy, getting paid a fortune, and living a life of luxury in Qatar. Deserves it. He will run the show every game over there. Not one player will be able to get the ball off him! Xavi has been a great player for Barcelona; there is no denying that. However I think now is probably the right time for him to leave. Xavi will also begin working on his coaching badges once a move to Qatar is confirmed and will help with the Aspire Academy, which is trying to develop players ahead of the Qatar World Cup in 2022.

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