Qatar Today May 2015 by Oryx Group of Magazines

inside this issue May 2015 / Vol. 41 / Issue 5

COVER STORY

46 ISLAMIC FINANCE: GOING GLOBAL

A couple of decades ago, Islamic finance was a relatively unknown term but has become the buzzword in today’s financial world. Qatar Today takes a peek into the new directions it is taking.

22 “OPEC’S STRATEGY IS TO MAINTAIN PRODUCTION LEVELS”

HE Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah speaks exclusively to Qatar Today on about OPEC oil production and Qatar’s energy policy.\

26 UNDERSTANDING OIL AND GAS ECONOMICS

Energy expert Dr Mamdouh G Salameh says that, with the exception of Qatar and possibly Kuwait, most OPEC countries need oil prices above $100 a barrel to break even in their budgets.

58 “GOVERNMENT SHOULD PUSH FOR MORE IPOS”

The government has a role to play in supporting more Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in Qatar, according to Salah Shamma, Head of Investment – MENA Equities at Franklin Templeton Investments ME.

62 BEYOND THE BANNERS

Amy Johnson, Chief Development Officer for The Look Company’s Middle East operations, explains how the work they do is bigger than banners, flags and signs; it’s definitive of the look and feel of the event.

96 SOUNDS OF SCOTLAND

Doha’s residents were transported to the Scottish mountains by the soothing sounds of the award-winning folk band, Breabach.

40 THANK YOU FOR NOT SMOKING

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 3

inside this issue May 2015 / Vol. 41 / Issue 5 SPOTLIGHT

74 BEYOND CSR

Is CSR becoming second nature to Qatari corporations? What are the causes close to their heart? Does their perception of CSR go beyond the bottomline? These questions and more are explore in our annual section throwing light on the region’s CSR activities.

32 ENERGY INDUSTRY AND GENDER EQUALITY

The global energy industry is still far from achieving equal opportunity for women and needs to consider steps to accelerate real gender balance by reaching out to young female students and enlightening them on the long-term career prospects on offer with a commitment to flexibility in the workplace.

34 DIVERSIFICATION GIVES IMPETUS TO INVESTORS

A strong outlook for corporate earnings and the broader economy in Qatar, combined with an easing of restrictions on foreign ownership of firms, is pointing to a positive investment environment this year.

54 QATARISATION – ARE YOU INVESTING WISELY?

In the competition to attract and retain Qatari talent, it has become clear that generous pay and allowances are only a starting point to attract local nationals.

56 STRATEGIC WORKFORCE PLANNING: THE NEED OF THE HOUR

To cope with the rapid growth in Qatar’s business environment, most organisations have had to be more reactive than proactive when building their workforce.

70 “CATCH ‘EM YOUNG”

Good habits need to be inculcated in children in the early stage of their lives in order to make them “agents of change” in influencing their friends and family members in future.

and regulars 10

NEWS BITES

BANK NOTES

REALTY CHECK

O&G OVERVIEW

TECH TALK

AUTO NEWS

MARKET WATCH

DOHA DIARY

from the desk The figures are coming in: almost 8 million people affected, more than 1 million hungry, and the most urgent need, according to the UN is for body bags. More than 6,500 are confirmed dead and 14,00 injured. The numbers will only increase as information of deaths from remote villages pours in. This update is from Nepal, one of the poorest countries in the world, which is reeling following the deadly earthquake that hit the country last month. The crisis is in managing the relief that is now coming into the country through its only international airport in Kathmandu. While it seems quite callous to be writing about this disastrous human catastrophe from comfortable confines, we urge the international community to continue with the humanitarian aid support, for even though the earthquake lasted not more than a minute its reverberations will be felt by the people of Nepal for years to come. Our cover story focuses on Islamic Finance which, even with the recent growth of Islamic financial products, still has room for further expansion, both in relatively unbanked Muslim countries in the developing world and in the West. This month we are inspired by Dr Judith Mackay who has been campaigning against smoking for more than 30 years, convincing presidents and kings alike to get tough on tobacco.

Buddhist prayer flags flutter in the wind near tents as a rescue helicopter takes off from Everest Base Camp, after an earthquake triggered avalanche crashed through parts of the base camp killing scores of people. AFP PHOTO/ROBERTO SCHMIDT

Dipping oil prices may not affect the Qatari governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s GDP outlook but they have already shaken the foundations of the oil majors who amassed huge profits while prices escalated and are now downsizing their workforce. Qatari divisions of the oil majors have also begun their retrenching; hence the oil prices are, in fact, affecting many more than anticipated, at a more tangible level. But not everything looks bleak, according to an oil expert who predicts that the current low oil prices will start to rebound soon, reaching $65-$70/barrel by the second half of 2015 and recouping all losses by 2016/2017. Read our interview with Dr Mamdouh G Salameh in detail to understand the oil price dynamics and the worth of Iranian oil. In an exclusive interview with Qatar Today, HE Abdulla bin Hamad Al Attiyah agrees that in the new energy era of greater competition and new sources of oil, OPECâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s role will be different, though it will continue to balance world oil markets and lead a fruitful dialogue between producers and consumers. While we revel in how oil politics pan out and comprehend the clout of OPEC, the writing on the wall is not to be ignored; new markets and improved technology will eventually make an impact.

SINDHU NAIR Managing Editor

PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF YOUSUF JASSEM AL DARWISH CHIEF EXECUTIVE SANDEEP SEHGAL EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT ALPANA ROY EDITORIAL MANAGING EDITOR SINDHU NAIR DEPUTY EDITORS V L SRINIVASAN IZDIHAR IBRAHIM SENIOR CORRESPONDENTS ABIGAIL MATHIAS AYSWARYA MURTHY ART SENIOR ART DIRECTOR VENKAT REDDY DEPUTY ART DIRECTOR HANAN ABU SAIAM ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR AYUSH INDRAJITH SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER MAHESHWAR REDDY PHOTOGRAPHER ROBERT F ALTAMIRANO MARKETING AND SALES BUSINESS HEAD FREDRICK ALPHONSO MANAGER – MARKETING SAKALA A DEBRASS ASSISTANT MANAGER – MARKETING HASSAN REKKAB MATHEWS CHERIAN SONY VELLATT A H M IRFAAN ASSISTANT EVENTS MANAGER JASMINE VICTOR SENIOR ACCOUNTANT PRATAP CHANDRAN DISTRIBUTION SR. DISTRIBUTION EXECUTIVE BIKRAM SHRESTHA DISTRIBUTION SUPPORT ARJUN TIMILSINA BHIMAL RAI BASANTA POKHREL

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QATARISATION The interview with the HR head at CBQ was very insightful. Though I don’t necessarily agree with the approach, it is true the Qatari workforce, at least at this stage, demands a different kind of handling. With more accomplished and clear-thinking Qatari themselves at the helm of HR, one hopes that Qatarisation will be a smooth, efficient and farreaching process.

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ALI ABDULLAH E-ACCESSIBILITY I never really thought about how people with disabilities access the online world. It’s good that others in Qatar have been giving this due considersation and it was inspiring to read. Although I work at a relatively small company, I am trying to persuade our management to make our website diasbled-friendly.

STEFAN K WOMEN IN THE WORKPLACE While I can see the point behind Lady Judge’s austere attire, I feel it’s too much of a compromise. There’s is nothing wrong in being a career-minded woman who is also fashionable and we are kidding ourselves of women’s emancipation until we don’t have to pretend to be something else to get ahead in the workplace. I guess to each her own. JULIE BENETTE

BEST OF ONLINE Qatar Today, @QatarToday: Qatar is the 28th happiest country in the world according to 2015 World Happiness Report. If you are happy and you know it, clap your hands. Tracy Edwards, @TracyEdwardsMBE: Unless you are held there under the Kafala system or die building #football stadiums - obviously.. #WorldCup2022 Jane Smith, @RandolpheLibre: @ TracyEdwardsMBE @yakuza72 Happy despite entering contract and then changing it retrospectively and unilaterally? Football Cup date deceit.

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affairs > local QATAR SENDS AID TO QUAKEHIT NEPAL Aircraft laden with Qatari aid materials were sent from Doha, Qatar News Agency reported.

T EMIR JOINS TURKEY COMMEMORATION The Turkish presidential press office released a handout picture showing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shaking hands with HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani during a session at the High Level Peace Summit in Istanbul, on the eve of the 100th anniversary of the Canakkale Land and Sea Battles, as part of the Battle of Gallipoli. AFP PHOTO / TURKISH PRESIDENTIAL PRESS OFFICE / KAYHAN OZER

wo planes, each carrying, 60 tonnes of relief materials including food, medicines, power generators and tents, left for Kathmandu immediately after the severity of the situation on the group became clear. The aid was put together by the Permanent Committee for Rescue Works, Relief and Humanitarian Aid, headed by Lakhwiya. Two other aircraft were sent out a couple of days later with 120 tonnes of relief materials, in addition to a field hospital provided by Qatari Red Crescent to deliver medical aid to the affected people, according to the statement.

PM LAUNCHES J-BOG PROJECT

One of the major environment projects in the world, Qatar has launched the Jetty Boil-off Gas (J-BoG) recovery project under the patronage of the Prime Minister and Minister of Interior HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani.

ocated on the Ras Laffan Industrial city, the $1 billion (QR3.64 billion) project will recover and collect boiled-off gas from LNG ships during loading, which will then be compressed at a central facility close to the loading point of LNG either to use as fuel for generating electricity or for conversion into LNG for exports. As much as 90% of gas flared can be saved by the project at the half a dozen LNG berths at the Ras Laffan port. This is equivalent to annual Green House Gas savings of 1.6 million tonnes of CO2. The project will help recover 29 billion standard cubic feet of gas per year which is enough gas to produce 750 MW of power to light up 300,000 homes.

12 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

GOING GREEN The Qatar Green Building Council has launched a Qatar Green Directory, an online interactive platform aimed at increasing awareness of sustainable products and services in the state and the region. This was announced at the inaugural Qatar Green Building Conference which was attended by more than 500 delegates from Qatar and around the world.

AFP PHOTO / STR

CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

DOHA FESTIVAL CITY TO OPEN IN LATE 2016 Clearer details emerged last month about the longawaited Doha Festival City, a mixed-use complex offering retail, dining and entertainment experiences. Currently under development and set to open in the third quarter of 2016, the QR6.5 billion project will be home to 550 shops, stores and outlets, more than 100 restaurants, cafés and food court stalls, a five-star hotel and convention centre, four entertainment attractions and 8000 car park spaces with an efficient vehicle management system. Doha Festival City will also be the Qatar debut of a myriad of luxury brands and flagship stores, in the same vein as the first IKEA store in the country which opened in 2013. The mall will be home to Qatar’s first Harvey Nichols department store, a Vox 4D cinema complex, a full-size Monoprix hypermarket, among many other new offerings, it was announced last month. The City will be constructed in accordance with the Qatar Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS) green building standards and 80% of the mall’s 244,000 sq.m. of total gross leasable area is already committed, according to a statement.

The Happiness Index

Qatar ranked 28th in the 2015 World Happiness Report, second in the region only to the UAE, which came in at number 20. Qatar’s high living standards and life expectancy and lack of corruption make it one of the happiest countries on the planet, according to the report that assessed conditions in 158 nations. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Qatar’s Prime Minister HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani at the United Nations Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice in Doha.

uring the UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, members signed the Doha Declaration to take definitive action on comprehensive crime prevention and criminal justice policies and strategies. The declaration, which has been in the works for a while, was unanimously adopted by delegates at the opening of the Congress on April 12. The document puts an emphasis on important aspects of fighting transnational organised crime and strengthening criminal justice systems and crime prevention. The tragedies in the Mediterranean Sea last month were a sharp reminder to everyone present to implement the Doha Declaration, “on behalf of the victims of crime, including migrants, and that we track down the smugglers who feed off desperation,” according to UN Office on Drugs and Crime Executive Director Yury Fedotov.

QIA PURCHASES ICONIC LONDON HOTEL The Qatar Investment Authority now owns majority shares in the prestigious Claridge’s, including sister properties after winning a bid that drew several interested parties, including the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. No disclosure was made about how much QIA’s Constellation Hotels paid for the property which has been mired in a legal battle for the past four years. Claridge’s is the epitome of London luxury that has housed kings, queens, dignitaries and celebrities and is often referred to as the “annexe to Buckingham Palace”. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 13

affairs > local

AFLOAT IN DOHA

A helping hand REUTERS REPORTED THAT THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY RECEIVED A $100 MILLION (QR364 MILLION) LOAN FROM QATAR TO HELP PAY CIVIL SERVANTS' SALARIES AND ALLEVIATE AN ECONOMIC CRISIS TRIGGERED BY A ROW WITH ISRAEL OVER TAXES. PRESIDENT MAHMOUD ABBAS, WHO WAS AT THAT TIME VISITING QATAR, ISSUED A STATEMENT THANKING THE STATE FOR THE LOAN.

Businesses in Qatar extremely resilient

AFP PHOTO / YASSER AL-ZAYYAT

QATAR IS RANKED SEVENTH GLOBALLY FOR BUSINESS RESILIENCE AMONG 130 COUNTRIES, THE HIGHEST IN THE REGION, ACCORDING TO THE 2015 FM GLOBAL RESILIENCE INDEX REPORT WHICH MEASURES BUSINESS RESILIENCE TO SUPPLY CHAIN DISRUPTION. QATAR ROSE EIGHT PLACES FROM LAST YEAR PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF “ITS MACROECONOMIC STABILITY, EFFICIENT GOODS AND LABOUR MARKETS AND HIGH DEGREE OF SECURITY. THE COUNTRY OWES ITS RISE TO A CONSIDERABLE IMPROVEMENT IN COMMITMENT TO FIRE RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE REGION”.

n a statement QTA has said it will lease at least 6,000 rooms in cruise ships during the 2022 World Cup. Speaking to Qatar News Agency at an international cruise ship expo in Miami. “Over the past few years, we has established a number of strong relationships with international cruise operators as well as with other specialists involved in the industry. This has proved to be of great importance especially that Qatar will be extensively benefiting from cruise ships over the 2022 World Cup, as a means of providing additional accommodation supply for fans and visitors over the period,” the QTA said.

VINCI UNDER INVESTIGATION Following allegations by Sherpa in March about Vinci’s dubious labour practices in Qatar, French prosecutors have opened a preliminary probe into the construction giant’s building projects for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, citing that enough evidence has been gathered to warrant the probe. The announcement was made after the investigation was reportedly into its second week and is not expected to conclude for several months, followed by a formal inquiry should concrete proof surface to back Sherpa’s claims.

DOHA WEATHERS SEVERE SANDSTORM

The sandstorm blows over Kuwait City 14 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

The Qatar Tourism Authority is once again mulling over the possibility of floating hotels to cater to the demands of the World Cup in 2022.

A high-intensity sandstorm enveloped large parts of Qatar earlier last month, cutting visibility to nearly zero and bringing life in the city to a halt. The sudden onset of the storm surprised meteorologists who had predicted its coming but underestimated the severity. The high pressure built over large parts of the Arabian Peninsula caused high winds, moving in from the northwest at around 65-70 km/h, which was kicked up sand from the Arabian desert. The storm also affected Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Oman. In the aftermath of the storm, the government ordered all schools closed. Several lower-intensity sandstorms continued to hit Doha over the next few days.

affairs > local

Qatar Rail

Technological innovations revealed as work progresses Qatari media were in for a rare view of the Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) at the site of the rail construction at the Sudan crossing near Al Saad. Almost 20 metres below the existing ground level, two gigantic 7-metrediameter TBMs ploughed out earth as they cleanly cut through the ground under Doha's roads, making way for the trains which will eventually run through these tunnels.

16 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

atar Rail Managing Director Abdulla Abdulaziz Al Subaie also announced that Qatar Rail has received all the 21 TBMs needed to complete the Doha Metro project. Of the 21 TBMs, 17 are operational. The TBMs, which were imported from German manufacturer Herrenknecht AG, can drill right below city streets, “practically unknown to those above”. “They are ideal for long lengths of uninterrupted tunnelling, as required by the Doha Metro project. The machines have very little impact on the infamously high water levels that lie beneath Doha, limiting their environmental footprint,” he said. “Also, dust pollution associated with construction sites is virtually non-existent as all work takes place 20 metres below the surface.” He also added that the Doha Metro project uses 7m-diameter TBMs that can produce a tunnel with a diameter of 6.7m. Concrete linings would be used to reinforce the tunnel, which would fit the trains and side platforms. Discussing the progress of the work before the site visit, Al Subaie said: “We

are pleased to announce the completion of nearly 20 km of tunnels out of 113 km; a development that we at Qatar Rail are proud of.” He then thanked all workers and stakeholders contributing to the success of this “national project in alignment with Qatar’s National vision 2030”. Al Subaie noted that Qatar Rail was currently undertaking three major projects: Doha Metro, Lusail Light Rail Transit and the Long-Distance Network for Passengers and Freight. He expressed confidence that the project was on the right path and highlighted the launch of the TBMs on the Doha Metro lines. He added that: “Keeping our residents' and citizens' convenience in mind, Qatar Rail was keen to implement most of the metro project underground where TBMs, through advanced technology and eco-friendly mechanisms, would interfere very little with our vibrant city life.” The TBMs are a key component in implementing the innovative Doha Metro project; a high-tech mechanised alternative to conventional methods of design-andbuild mining, drilling and blasting tunnels through everything from soft ground to hard rocks. They form circular tunnels

through the rock, and can install concrete linings along the drilled sections to reinforce the bored tunnel and stabilise the ground. The TBM version that is being used in Doha is the Earth Pressure Balance TBM which is ideal for cohesive soft ground and rock conditions. According to Qatar Rail CEO, Eng Saad Ahmed Al Muhannadi, “The tunneling phase for the Doha Metro was successfully launched as records of 11880 metres of tunnel were dug at the Red Line, 6653 metres at the Green Line and 150 metres at the Gold line were complete.” The expected completion of the tunneling phase is by the second quarter of 2017. On-site challenges Describing the daily routine at the site, the Project Director – Gold Line, Samuel Adair Mcchesney, who has more than 10 years of experience working with TBMs in Singapore and the UK, says, “It is just like a factory down here once the safety checks and screenings are completed, the work is routine with tunnels bored at the rate of 17-19 metres per day.” He says, “We have very experienced experts working on site, who are specialised in tunneling; 10 on the TBM, 10 operating from the surface. This is the Earth Pressure Balance TBM, one of the safest TBMs in use, that takes care of the

ground and the ground water issues that we face in Qatar.” “Before the TBMs are fixed we sink boreholes at regular intervals to look at the stability of the ground and also to check the ground water levels. We also have a detailed structural study of the buildings that we are tunnelling underneath or close to,” explains Mcchesney. The ground is so hard here that the foundations are not so deep that the course of the TBM had to be changed, he added. Commenting on complications that may occur during the TBM operations underground, Al Muhannadi says, “Challenges are the rule of any innovative project similar to Qatar Rail’s current endeavour, and these encounters might be logistic - like finding the best way to manage excavations leftover at any site or between two different locations – or geo-technical, as no matter how good our surveys were, we will keep on discovering what the underground world is hiding, from groundwater conditions to voids and cavities,” he notes. “Technical hitches cannot be avoided while implementing such a huge and complex project, however they can be dealt with in an efficient, effective and timely manner. We were proud of the team who handled a flooding situation at Al Bidda station earlier this year, which had no delay or impact on the Doha Metro progress.”

DOHA METRO RED LINE HAS LAUNCHED NINE TBMS AT LEBRETHA, AL MAYEDA, AL KHOR, AL BIDDAA, LEHWAILA, AL WAKRA, MSHEIREB, DOHA AND AL ZUBARA. TUNNELLING COMPLETED:

II880m GREEN LINE HAS LAUNCHED SIX TBMS AT AL RAYYAN, AL GHARRAFA, AL MESSILA, AL SHEEHANIYA, LEATOORIYA AND LIJMAILIYA. TUNNELING COMPLETED:

6653m GOLD LINE HAS LAUNCHED SIX TBMS AT LUSAIL, SHARQ, AL SADD, AL WAAB, AL SAILIYA AND RAS BU ABBOUD (AIRPORT CITY NORTH). TUNNELLING COMPLETED:

I50m

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 17

business > bank notes “Banks could be more active in issuance this year as we expect some relative weakness in local deposit markets in the Gulf region and a slight increase in cost of deposits.” FEVZI TIMUCIN ENGIN Director of Financial Services Ratings Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services

RMB Clearing Centre is open

Number of unbanked people comes down IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA, MOBILE MONEY ACCOUNT OWNERSHIP IS DRIVING A HUGE EXPANSION OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region with countries where more than 10% of adults have a mobile money account.

Worldwide, only 2% of adults have a mobile money account. 12% of adults in Sub-Saharan Africa have a mobile money account - 45% of them have only a mobile money account.

MILLION

SOUTH ASIA

SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

UGANDA

SOMALIA

COTE D'IVOIRE

MILLION

TANZANIA EAST ASIA & PACIFIC

In 5 of these 13 countries, more adults have a mobile money account than an account at a financial institution.

ADULTS WITH A MOBILE MONEY ACCOUNT

ZIMBABWE

Between 2011 and 2014, 700 million people became account holders at banks, other financial institutions, or mobile money service providers, and the number of unbanked individuals dropped by 20% to 2 billion adults, according to a World Bank report. Between 2011 and 2014, the percentage of adults with an account increased from 51% to 62%, a trend driven by a 13 percentage point rise in account ownership in developing countries and the role of technology. In particular, mobile money accounts in Sub-Saharan Africa are helping to rapidly expand and scale up access to financial services. Along with these gains, data also show big opportunities for boosting financial inclusion among women and poor people. The findings come in the latest edition of the Global Findex, the world’s most comprehensive gauge of progress on financial inclusion.

EARNINGS OF QATARI BANKS IN Q1, 2015 BANK

NET PROFIT

GROWTH IN % (COMPARED WITH Q1, 2014)

TOTAL ASSETS

QNB

QR2.7 BILLION

10.1%

QR502 BILLION

QIB

QR400 MILLION

19%

QR99 BILLION

CBQ

QR462.5 MILLION

- 15.7%

QR116.1 BILLION

DOHA BANK

QR420 MILLION

5.2%

QR74.2 BILLION

AL KHALIJI

QR144.4 MILLION

32%

QR53 BILLION

QIIB

QR212.3 MILLION

----

QR37 BILLION

MASRAF AL RAYAN

QR511 MILLION

18.1%

QR83,160 MILLION

AL AHLI

QR169.7 MILLION

12.5%

QR28,574 MILLION

18 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

HE SHEIKH ABDULLAH BIN SAOUD AL THANI Governor Qatar Central Bank

On April 14 HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani, Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, inaugurated the first Renminbi (RMB) clearing centre in the Middle East region in Doha.

he centre will offer RMB clearing and settlement and increase financial connectivity between China, Southwest Asia and the MENA region, and increase opportunities to expand trade and investment between China, Qatar and the region. The launch of the RMB Centre follows the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the People’s Bank of China by HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Saoud Al Thani, Governor of the Qatar Central Bank, in November 2014. The centre provides access to China’s onshore RMB and foreign exchange markets to local financial institutions fostering cross-border use of the RMB in the region.

business > realty check “The two big challenges facing the Qatar's construction industry are insufficient logistics facilities needed to support the delivery of projects and finding the right resources including labour and engineering skills.” AHMED AL JOLO Chairman Qatar Society of Engineers

Another “green building” opened

Ghanem Al Thani Holdings (GATH) opened the country’s “greenest office block” on Salwa Road last month.

he QR120 million ($32.95 million) GATH building was completed after two years of construction and property agency DTZ has been appointed to let the building to a range of commercial tenants. The environmentally-friendly building contains distinctive fan-shaped mesh shades that run horizontally along the exterior of each floor and are expected to reduce the building’s air-conditioning requirements by 10%. Total office space available to lease is 7,000 sq m, with 500 sq m offices being marketed at QR180 per sq m per month.

LONDON REALTY FIRM WOOS QATARIS Property investors in Qatar can expand their investment portfolios and own part of one of London’s most iconic buildings, Centre Point Tower, which is being revived by the London-based realty firm Almacantar. Some 82 residential apartments, including 16 one-bedroom, 37 two-bedroom, 26 three-bedroom, two four-bedroom and one five-bedroom and a penthouse, are being developed as part of the development of the Tower, which offers a grand view of London, the Houses of Parliament, Hyde Park and the River Thames. Centre Point was originally developed in 1966 and has been an iconic London building ever since. The landmark, designed by prolific architect Richard Seifert, can be seen from all corners of London and will book-end Oxford Street with areas such as Mayfair and Knightsbridge. Redevelopment of Centre Point is due to be completed in 2017, shortly before the opening of Crossrail, a new highfrequency railway line, with direct, fast access to Heathrow Airport and Canary Wharf. Development Director at Almacantar, Kathrin Hersel, says: “The revival of Centre Point will make it one of the most luxurious residential addresses, providing Qataris with a home away from home in the heart of London. With Qatar’s prolific and extensive investment portfolio in London with acquisitions such as Harrods and Canary Wharf, we are certain that these apartments will be of high interest to Qatari investors.” 20 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

ARTIC completes Boscolo Aleph Hotel deal

Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company (ARTIC), a unit of the Al Faisal Holding Company, has completed the purchase of the five-star Aleph Hotel in Rome from Italy’s Boscolo group for €40 million (QR156.92 million) extending its build-up of a presence in Italian luxury hospitality. The Boscolo Aleph Hotel in Rome is ARTIC’s latest luxury hotel acquisition, growing its portfolio to 24 premium properties across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and North America, in line with the firm’s expansion strategy focused on high-quality assets in prime city centre and resort locations. Located in the centre of Rome, 100 meters from Via Veneto, the 6,500 square meter hotel comprises 96 rooms and suites over six floors, a roof garden, Spa and a range of hospitality and dining facilities. The deal was announced in December 2014.

business > oil&gas “It could take three to five years for a new wave of Iranian oil to significantly increase world petroleum supplies and have a lasting impact on prices.” FATIH BIROL Chief Economist International Energy Agency

Qatari firms to build LNG project in China

Middle East LNG exports fall

Two private Qatari firms will invest $5 billion (QR18.2 billion) in China’s largest independent refiner Shandong Dongming Petrochemical Group to develop multiple projects. The two firms – Suhaim Bin Hamad Enterprises and Qatra for Investment and Development (QID) – will acquire a 49% stake in Shandong Dongming Petrochemical. The deal is expected to be finalised by the end of this year. The developers will construct a 3-million tonne LNG storage facility in the Qinzhou region and 1,000 petrol stations across six provinces of China within a 300-km radius of Dongming’s Heze refinery in Shandong province in Eastern China.

LNG EXPORTS (MILLION METRIC TONNES) 90 80

Yemen shuts down LNG facility

70 60 50 40 30 20

Egypt

Angola

Papua New Guinea

Norway

Equitorial Guinea

Peru

Brunei

Abu Dhabi

Oman

Yeman

Russia

Algeria

Indonesia

Trinidad and Tobago

Nigeria

2014 Australia

2013

0 Qatar

10 Malaysia

Source: International Group of Liquefied Natural Gas Importers, Emirates NBD Research

he Middle East’s total share of LNG exports fell slightly in 2014 to 40.3% from 41.5% a year earlier. While Qatar remains the world’s largest supplier, its output fell by 2% to 76.4 million tonnes. Exports from Oman and Yemen fell by 7.4% and 8.1% y-o-y respectively, more than offsetting a near 20% rise in exports from Abu Dhabi, Emirates NBD says in a report. LNG trading remains dominated by long-term contracts (more than four years) but spot and short-term deals have been on the rise. Spot market transactions took nearly 29% of total global trade in 2014 compared with 27% in 2013. Qatar was the largest supplier of spot supplies with Algeria and Yemen also providing significant volumes, the report adds.

Yemen’s $4.5 billion (QR16.38 billion) LNG export facility in Balhaf has reportedly closed one of its two liquefaction trains due to fighting in the country, according to a Reuters report. The report says due to the war in Yemen, not many ships were coming to take on LNG and the facility is running only one train. The 6.7-MTPA Yemen LNG project, operated by France’s Total, has three longterm contracts to supply the chilled gas to GDF Suez, Kogas and Total Gas & Power.

Qatargas reaches another milestone

The 5000th LNG cargo from the Common LNG Storage and Loading Asset in Ras Laffan Industrial City was loaded on board the Q-Flex vessel Al Karaana at Ras Laffan port.

Operated by Qatargas, the facilities were built to store and load LNG produced from Qatargas’ seven LNG production trains and RasGas Trains 6 and 7. The LNG is loaded from berths 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 at Ras Laffan port and delivered to Qatargas’ and RasGas’ customers across the globe. The twin facilities include 12 LNG tanks, eight of which have a storage capacity of 140,000 cubic metres each and four with a capacity of 85,000 cubic meters each. The facility also recovers Boil-Off gas (BOG) from the LNG tanks. The recovered gas is supplied to the LNG trains as fuel gas. Five LNG loading berths are also part of the facility.

22 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

oil & gas > listening post

24 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

“OPEC’S STRATEGY IS TO MAINTAIN PRODUCTION LEVELS”

HE ABDULLAH BIN HAMAD AL ATTIYAH SPEAKS EXCLUSIVELY TO QATAR TODAY ABOUT OPEC, OIL PRODUCTION AND QATAR’S ENERGY POLICY. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 25

oil & gas > listening post

"The media hasn’t always fully grasped that OPEC policies and decisions have to be seen within the context of member states’ national interests and sovereignty."

few weeks before the Abdullah Bin Hamad Al Attiyah Awards, HE Abdullah bin Hamad Al Attiyah, President of the Qatar Administrative Control and Transparency Authority, speaks exclusively to Qatar Today on the role of OPEC and Iran sanctions and whether the lifting of sanctions will affect relations between OPEC countries and Iran. The Awards were conceived to celebrate the legacy of HE Al Attiyah by rewarding individuals for their achievements in advancing fields of work and policy that emulate Al Attiyah’s 40 years of distinguished contribution to the global energy industry. Having played a critical role in the international oil market for more than 50 years, OPEC today is faced with new competition and an imbalanced

market – is OPEC beginning to lose its relevance? OPEC remains a force for stability in world oil markets and intends to play an effective and positive role serving its member countries as well as producing countries, the oil industry and the global economy at large. In the new energy era of greater competition and new sources of oil being made available, OPEC’s relevance will be different, however. OPEC will continue to seek to balance world oil markets and to lead a fruitful dialogue between producers and consumers. But, at the same time, OPEC has learned from history, in particular in the 1980s, when it sought to provide price support by cutting production but instead lost market share and still faced low prices. OPEC’s strategy therefore is to maintain production levels and market share. With sanctions on Iran likely to be lifted later this year, are there any concerns that rising Iranian output may lead to rising internal dissent within OPEC? Since the beginning of OPEC, there have always been some differences in opinion, but that is understandable, natural and, more importantly, healthy. When Iraq came back online and production reached 3.6 million barrels per day, which was said to be its historical level, everyone claimed that the oil price would go down and there would be discontent in OPEC. That did not happen, Iraq consumed its own oil, and the market remained stable for everybody. As for Iran, first of all, it won’t be able to boost production immediately and when it does, growing energy demand in Asia and other developing nations is expected to absorb the additional barrels. What future policies should Qatar’s energy industry pursue to remain competitive in the current changing market environment? Qatar is committed to its National Vision 2030, which aims at creating a balance between an oil-based and a knowledgebased economy, and therefore seeks to build a sustainable economy for future generations. Qatar’s energy sector will play a critical role in supporting the National Vision by ensuring the responsible and sustainable exploitation of our hydrocarbon resources, and diversifying into other forms of energy such as renewables. As

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a responsible citizen of the world, this is something we are fully committed to. At the same time, we need to see the oil and gas sector step up its contributions in advanced technological innovations and the development of human resources in Qatar. Will Asia remain Qatar’s main gas export market going forward or should the country look at other markets as global competition intensifies? Asia and Qatar have long enjoyed a progressive and mutually beneficial relationship, and this isn’t going to change. With long-term energy demand in Asia set to rise, Qatar is well positioned to supply existing and new customers in the region going forward. That said, Qatar is always on the lookout for new opportunities, which it will evaluate if and when they come up. Qatar certainly has the scope and flexibility to expand its footprint to other parts of the world if it makes economic sense. Qatar will continue to employ a flexible marketing position for its customers, but as a supplier will also keep in mind its limited gas reserves and the sale price will be set accordingly. Would you say that Western media have accurately interpreted and portrayed OPEC’s oil policies now and in the past? By and large, Western media have been very capable of reporting on OPEC policies. However, the one thing I would say is that the media hasn’t always fully grasped that OPEC policies and decisions have to be seen within the context of member states’ national interests and sovereignty. This sits at the core of OPEC. OPEC’s current decision not to cut production, for example, isn’t because OPEC countries have an ulterior motive, but because it is unwilling to act as the world’s sole swing producer. Is there a gap between media and OPEC interaction and, if so, what’s the best way of overcoming it? The gap between OPEC and the media can be overcome firstly by training the media present in the OPEC countries. HE Ali Naimi suggested special training workshops to help educate industry journalists to portray a straightforward picture of the oil market. Initiatives like this are very important. Secondly, media should try and understand that there is no grand design

behind OPEC; the organization looks to interact with the journalists like all other energy producers. A more open dialogue should be encouraged from both sides, and more transparent reporting will help get the correct oil picture across. Energy producers need to know what demand forecasts will be in order to be confident to invest, while consumers need to know that adequate supply is coming. With this in mind, what is the importance of the producer-consumer dialogue? The dialogue is very important – producers need to know what demand forecasts will be in order to confidently invest, and consumers need to know if there is adequate supply and this balance is hard to achieve when dialogue is ineffective. At the moment, the market is out of balance, and as prices are falling and eroding investment, this means prices can spike again in the near future. Current market conditions have impressed the importance of dialogue even further. Market imbalance is largely due to a speculative market that has relied on emotions rather than facts. Investment will come through only if the investors are aware – hence the importance of training media and creating an open dialogue.

A LIFETIME OF ACHIEVEMENT In 1992, Al Attiyah was appointed Minister of Energy & Industry and Chairman and Managing Director of Qatar Petroleum, before being entrusted with the additional responsibility of Second Deputy Prime Minister in 2003. Four years later, he was elevated to Deputy Prime Minister, and in 2011 was appointed Chief of the Amiri Diwan. Al Attiyah has also served as Chairman of Qatar’s Planning Commission, and was elected as Chairman of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development in 2006. He has been recognised for his role in the Advancement of the Qatar Energy Industry Advancement of Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Advancement of Education for Future Energy Leaders Advancement of Producer-Consumer Dialogue Advancement of International Energy Journalism

How can cooperation among countries along the South-South Corridor help create a successful platform for knowledge exchange among new talent in the energy industry? Countries located along today’s New Silk Road share many common goals and values. They all seek to build diversified, sustainable economies and to ensure the well-being and the creation of opportunities for their mostly young and growing populations. Today’s young generation has a vital role to play in ensuring the sustainability of the energy industry in the future, even more so as a global talent shortage in the sector is increasing in the face of nearly half the world’s experienced engineers set to retire in the coming years. This provides a significant opportunity for countries along the New Silk Road to deepen collaboration and knowledge exchange in the energy sector, including in areas such as renewable energies and energy efficiency, in order to develop a new generation of energy experts. Gulf countries, as major energy producers, have an important role to play in this QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 27

oil & gas > viewpoint

Understanding Oil and Gas Economics

Energy expert Dr Mamdouh G Salameh says that, with the exception of Qatar and possibly Kuwait, most OPEC countries need oil prices above $100 a barrel to break even in their budgets. Here he puts the focus on Iranâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s inflated oil reserves, saying that Iran may actually need nuclear power to fuel its economy and also to remain an oil exporter in the coming years. By Sindhu Nair 28 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

t a recent discourse organised by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies on the proposed Iranian nuclear agreement and its repercussions, one statement by Dr Mamdouh G Salameh, an international oil economist and consultant for the World Bank in Washington DC on oil and energy, drew everyone’s attention. He says that the lifting of sanctions on Iran as a consequence of the nuclear agreement will hardly affect the global oil prices or the oil market, particularly against a projected growth in global demand. Dr Salameh answers some of the most pertinent questions that the global energy industry is examining and he also predicts the oil price range. He says, “A range of $100-$110/barrel is a suitable price for producers as it provides them with acceptable revenues enabling them to continue to invest in oil exploration and production and this is also good for the global economy, the oil industry and global investments.” He projects that the current low oil prices will start to rebound soon, reaching $65-$70/barrel by the second half of 2015 and “possibly recouping all their loses by 2016/2017.” Is it really true that Iran’s oil status has been overstated? What would be the reason for this? Iran claims to have proven reserves of 157 billion barrels (bb). While the Oil & Gas Journal (O&GJ) and the BP Statistical Review of World Energy seem to concur with Iran’s declared reserve figure, a number of international experts have disputed it. Whereas O&G and BP mainly rely on published “official” figures (which are usually bloated and highly political), two former National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) experts, the late Dr Ali Samsa Bakhtiari and Dr Ali Muhammed Saidi, had estimated Iran’s proven reserves between 36 bb and 37 bb, respectively. Dr Bakhtiari once went on record that Iran was running out of oil and its proven oil reserves were closer to 36 bb.

However, starting with a reserve base of 59 bb in 1985 (as reported by OPEC’s Annual Statistical Bulletin 1989) and taking into account Iran’s production of 36 bb during the period 1985-2014, and also allowing for the addition of 7 bb of recoverable reserves from the Azadegan oilfield, I have calculated Iran’s actual proven reserves at no more than 30 bb. Moreover, Iran is one of the top nine oil producers in the world whose oil production peaked. USA peaked in 1971, Canada in 1973, Iran in 1974, Indonesia in 1977, Russia in 1987, UK in 1999, Norway in 2001, Mexico in 2002 and Saudi Arabia in 2005. If Iran’s oil production would really cease by 2030 the need for the generation of nuclear energy is almost too vital for the country. How will it impact the Iranian energy scenario? Oil is at the heart of Iran’s nuclear programme. Iran needs nuclear energy to replace the crude oil and natural gas currently being used to generate electricity, thus allowing more oil and gas to be exported. Without nuclear power, Iran could be relegated to the ranks of small exporters by 2020 with catastrophic implications for its economy and also the price of oil. In the furore about Iran’s nuclear programme, one important fact is being overlooked. Iran’s proven oil reserves have been greatly overstated to the extent that it may actually need nuclear power to fuel its economy and also to remain an oil exporter in the coming years. From a peak production of 6 million barrels a day (mbd) and crude oil exports of 5.7 mbd in 1974, Iran in 2014 was struggling even to produce 3.15 mbd with net exports down to 1.00 mbd. And if the current trend continues, Iran could cease to remain an oil exporter by 2030. The decline in Iran’s oil exports over the last few years was not solely due to tighter sanctions but mainly due to fastdepleting old oilfields whose reservoirs were damaged in the 1970s when Iran was producing 6 mbd under the Shah. Since then Iran has never had the chance to repair

its damaged oil industry, because of the war with Iraq from 1980 to 1988 followed by stringent sanctions because of its nuclear programme. Given the problems in its oilfields, nuclear power may have an important role in restricting the consumption of hydrocarbons in Iran and allowing more oil and gas to be exported. In 2012, Iran used the equivalent of 610,000 barrels a day (b/d) of oil and natural gas to generate electricity. By 2015, Iran will need to use some 770,000 b/d of oil and gas for electricity generation. Generating nuclear electricity will enable Iran to replace at least 93% of the oil and gas used in electricity generation in 2020, thus adding some 1.00 mbd to its oil and gas exports and earning an extra $36 billion. Based on these figures, Iran’s quest for nuclear energy seems justifiable. The nuclear deal with the 5+1 powers will not affect Iran’s legitimate right to use nuclear power for peaceful purposes such as electricity generation. Therefore, it will not affect Iran’s nuclear energy scenario. It will only try to stop Iran’s nuclear weapons programme. Will the lifting of the sanctions have any effect on Qatar’s gas market if Iranian gas will then be used to supply most of the gas-deficient countries? If a nuclear deal with Iran is struck, then all or a major part of sanctions against Iran would be expected to be lifted. This means that Iran could be able to import advanced American oil and gas technology, such as enhanced oil recovery (EOR), and to attract foreign investment. While lifting the sanctions will hardly affect the global oil prices or the global oil market, it could enhance Iran’s natural gas production since Iran sits on the second biggest proven gas reserves in the world. With technology and investments Iran could substantially raise its natural gas production and export a sizeable amount of it to Europe in the form of natural gas and LNG, thus competing directly with Russian gas supplies to Europe and with Qatar’s LNG exports. Why do you think the oil price has to go QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 29

oil & gas > viewpoint OPEC MEDIAN BUDGETARY BREAK-EVEN PRICE $ per barrel 20 40

100

120

140

QATAR KUWAIT ANGOLA UAE SAUDI ARABIA

At what price do you think that the oil will balance the fiscal budget in the OPEC countries? Which are the countries that will be most affected by the decrease in prices? Most OPEC countries, with the exception of Qatar and possibly Kuwait, need oil prices above $100 a barrel to break even in their budgets and pay for all the government spending they have racked up in recent years. Iran, for instance, needs an oil price of $130 a barrel to balance its budget while Saudi Arabia needs an oil price of $106/ barrel in 2015 to fiscally break even, up from $98/barrel in 2014, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The countries most affected by low oil prices are Saudi Arabia, Iran, Venezuela and Algeria.

VENEZUELA LIBYA IRAQ ALGERIA NIGERIA ECUADOR IRAN

higher than what it is now? Some experts have even mentioned that we are at a non-inflated price for oil, which will be good for the country. Are we not increasing the cost of living by increasing oil prices? The global economy can’t reconcile itself with low oil prices for a long while because the main ingredients that make up the global economy, such as global investments, the world oil industry and the economies of the oil-producing countries, would be undermined. That is why the oil price has to go up. The challenges facing the global economy in 2015 are manifold. One important challenge is a curtailment of global investments in many sectors of the global economy, particularly the oil and energy

30 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

Middle East. A break-even price for US shale oil production was estimated at $70$85 per barrel. While some efficient shale oil drillers could live with an oil price of $50-60 a barrel, many of them are fracking themselves to bankruptcy. The Arab oil producers have already lost $122 billion in reduced oil export revenues in 2014 and they are projected to lose $234 billion in 2015 if the price does not rise above $60/barrel. While it is true that low oil prices could reduce the cost of manufacturing, thus helping the global economy to grow, it is a short-term benefit as this is offset by a curtailment of global investment which forces companies around the world to cut spending, sell assets and make thousands if not millions of people redundant.

sector. The oil industry has already slashed $35 billion from its 2015 investments. Another is sustained damage to the global oil industry. The seven major oil companies in the world – Royal Dutch Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Total, ENI and Statoil – need a price of $125-$135/ barrel to balance their books. Spending by oil companies on oil exploration and production has already dropped by 25%-30% in North America compared with 10-15% in the rest of the world. Also the number of rigs employed in US shale oil production has dropped by 687 rigs, or 43%, since October 2014. The faster downturn in the North American industry is in part explained by the higher costs of US and Canadian production compared with oil from the

While none of the shale gas exporting countries can continue if the oil prices are reducing as the cost of shale production is much higher, why do you still feel that OPEC should reduce its output? OPEC’s ability to push prices lower to disrupt US shale oil production is constrained by members’ higher fiscal break-evens. While OPEC members need oil prices higher than $100/barrel to balance their budgets, US shale producers need prices of $70-$85/barrel to break even. OPEC accounts for 42% of global oil production. It is the biggest single producer of oil in the world. OPEC has a moral responsibility to stabilise the oil prices in the global oil market and to defend oil prices in order to protect the oil revenues of its members and enable them to invest in

oil production and exploration. What are the chances that Qatar has to take in the scenarios? Does the country have to worry about oil price supremacy? Will this affect its gas exports too? Qatar can withstand low oil prices better than all other OPEC members. Thanks to its great reserves of natural gas, it can balance its budget at an oil price even less than $60/barrel. Moreover, Qatar is the largest exporter of LNG in the world. However, Qatar, like other Arab Gulf producers, is dependent on oil and gas export revenues to the tune of 90%. And like other Arab Gulf producers, it has not diversified its economy since the discovery of oil and gas in its territory. That is why Qatar, like its fellow oil and gas producers, is vulnerable to a decline in oil and gas prices. Moreover, Qatar could face stiff competition in the coming years to its LNG exports from Iran once the sanctions are lifted. Still, Qatar is in a far better position to withstand declines in the oil and gas prices than other Arab Gulf producers. Angola, Saudi Arabia and Iraq are potentially a lot more vulnerable to protracted low oil prices than Ecuador, Russia and Kuwait. Will this be detrimental to Saudi Arabia? While Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Russia and Kuwait are affected by low oil prices to varying degrees, Saudi Arabia and Iraq are more vulnerable than Kuwait and Russia, which need an oil price of $75/barrel and $85/barrel, respectively, to balance their budgets. Weakened oil prices have resulted in the US rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) downgrading its outlook for Saudi Arabia. “We view Saudi Arabia’s economy as undiversified and vulnerable to a sharp and sustained decline in oil price,” the S&P report says. A recent report indicated that the Saudi budget deficit will be far bigger than the $38 billion or 6% of GDP projected earlier. What lessons does the volatility in oil prices show the Middle East countries and what, according to you, should be the perfect way forward? With proven oil reserves of 645 bb, or 39% of the world’s proven reserves, and a combined GDP exceeding $1.9 trillion at current prices, the Arab Gulf countries could be a formidable economic bloc. However, their Achilles heel is their continued dependence on oil export revenues to the tune of 85%90%. They will always be very vulnerable to

“While it is true that low oil prices could reduce the cost of manufacturing, thus helping the global economy to grow, it is a short-term benefit as this is offset by a curtailment of global investment which forces companies around the world to cut spending, sell assets and make thousands, if not millions, of people redundant.”

the volatility of the oil prices because they have not diversified their economies since the discovery of oil in their territories at the start of the 20th century. However, the greatest threat to their oildependent economies actually comes from the steeply rising domestic oil consumption for power generation and water desalination and a lack of diversification. To forestall such an eventuality, the Gulf countries not only have to accelerate

the diversification of their economies and the transition to renewable and nuclear energy but also become smarter in their investment. The diversification I am talking about is not industrialisation because the Gulf countries could never be able to compete with the top industrial nations in the world. Nor does it mean investing in hotels, casinos and real estate. It means investing in food production projects in the Sudan, for instance, and also in thriving and futuristic industries around the world. The world is already heading towards a future food shortage on a global scale. Food prices could in the future rival, if not, exceed the prices of crude oil. Why not then invest in Sudan which has the land and the water resources not only to become the food basket of the GCC countries but also a great source of food export revenues for them. Another aspect of diversification is intensive investment in renewable energy, particularly solar power, nuclear energy and water desalination technology. Solar power, along with nuclear energy, could provide all the electricity needs of the Gulf countries. Solar energy could also power an extensive network of water desalination plants along the Arab Gulf countries’ coasts extending from the Arabian Gulf to the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea, not only for drinking but also for irrigation. Moreover, solar electricity could in the future be exported to Europe, earning a very sizeable income for the Gulf countries QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 31

affairs > arab snippets

T H E L AST VOYAG E

A boat transporting migrants arrives in the port of Messina, Sicily, after a rescue operation at sea on April 18. A surge of migrants pouring into Europe from across the Mediterranean won't end before chaos in Libya is controlled, Italy's Prime Minister said yesterday, as the Vatican condemned a deadly clash between Muslim and Christian refugees on one boat. Italian authorities have rescued more than 11,000 migrants making the often deadly voyage from North Africa in the past six days, with hundreds more expected, the coastguard said. AFP PHOTO / GIOVANNI ISOLINO

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QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 33

oil & gas > viewpoint

Energy industry and gender equality I

The global energy industry is still far from achieving equal opportunity for women and needs to consider steps to accelerate real gender balance by reaching out to young female students and enlightening them on the longterm career prospects on offer with a commitment to flexibility in the work place. 34 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

n a recent Gulf Intelligence survey conducted in association with the Qatari Businesswomen Association in March, over half of the 150 female energy industry executives polled expressed the view that under current policies it could take another 30 to 40 years for the global energy industry to achieve gender equality. Only 7% of the survey respondents expressed a view that equal opportunities exist in the energy sector today. The survey identified that introducing flexible work options was by far the biggest single accelerator for achieving greater gender equality in the energy sector. Flexi-work practices already exist casually at most organisations. Employees leave work early to attend childrenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s activities, or take time in the morning for a doctorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s appointment. Staffers work from home when they are expecting the plumber, and anyone with a smartphone or tablet seems to check work email at night and on the weekends. Casual work flexibility empowers employees to better balance their work and personal lives. But could a formalised flexible work programme reap benefits for a company, in addition to benefitting employees, especially female employees? The answer is yes. The GI survey found that 55% of respondents believed that offering more flexibility in the workplace was the most important strategy to adopt in order to accelerate gender equality in the energy sector. In second place, 18% thought the industry needed to spend more time on educating young females about career prospects, while only 6% considered the

industry’s traditional macho image and other stereotypes to be obstacles to females pursuing careers in oil and gas. Male domain The energy industry has traditionally been a male domain and attracted limited numbers of females into its fold, despite slowly opening up to greater female participation since the 1970s. According to the Hays Oil and Gas Global Salary Guide, in 2012 only 7.8% of the global oil and gas workforce was female, a slight increase on the 7.1% figure a year earlier, but still a dismal performance. To be sure, there have been some encouraging developments. In the U.S., for example, the shale boom helped drive up the number of women working in oil and gas fields by about 60% to 78,400 between 2004 and 2011, according to research by energy publication Rigzone. A recent report from IHS Global found that by 2030 the industry could add 185,000 more women to its ranks, with females also sharing in the growth of more skilled white-collar jobs in the industry. Still, for now women continue to represent a small share of the oil industry’s workforce and even fewer hold engineering or other technical roles. The same is true for board-level positions. A study conducted by PwC found that women occupy only 11% of seats on the boards of directors of the world’s 100 largest listed oil and gas companies. “The only sector with a poorer record is the mining industry,” PwC said in an industry gender report. Against this backdrop, it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that a mere 8% of the Gulf Intelligence survey respondents expressed confidence that it would only take the global oil and gas industry ten years before gender balance would be achieved . Concerns remain At the same time, concerns remain over companies putting in place sufficient rules and regulations to deal with gender diversification.

According to the survey, 58% of respondents acknowledged that some progress had been made but further action was needed to address the issue. Another 21% of survey participants voted that companies had failed to create environments free of harassment and discrimination, while the same number expressed the view that firms had done everything in their power to address these issues. With this survey result in mind, it will be seminal for companies to continue implementing rules against harassment and discrimination in the workplace if and where needed, and to create an environment that accommodates female requirements. Progress on this front will go some way toward promoting the attractiveness of the oil and gas sector for females. The oil and gas companies could improve their effectiveness in communicating to young females that, despite the stillexisting stereotypes and perceptions, the industry has come a long way over the past 10 years in particular, making it an attractive career choice for women, whether on the technical or business side. The Gulf Intelligence survey found that nearly two thirds of respondents thought that oil companies had done a poor job in educating young women about the various career prospects on offer in the industry. It’s clear that sustained efforts will have to be made to bolster and retain the sector’s female component in order to create a more inclusive and diverse workforce. It won’t be easy. The gender imbalance in the energy industry has been present for decades, and with a whole generation of experienced engineers set to retire over the next 10 years and the number of new entrants limited, building a diverse workforce that includes more women isn’t simply a choice; it’s essential if the energy industry is to meet future challenges such as tapping into ever-more complex and remote hydrocarbon reservoirs – whether on a global level or in the oil and gas-rich Gulf region

BY SEAN EVERS Managing Partner Gulf Intelligence

“The oil and gas companies could improve their effectiveness in communicating to young females that, despite the stillexisting stereotypes and perceptions, the industry has come a long way over the past 10 years, making it an attractive career choice for women, whether on the technical or business side.”

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 35

affairs > viewpoint

Diversification gives impetus to investors

ESTIMATED GDP GROWTH 2015, ACCORDING TO QATAR NATIONAL BANK

36 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

hile many of the region’s larger oil-producing countries will see GDP growth rates ease this year, Qatar’s relatively lesser degree of reliance on hydrocarbons is giving impetus to investor confidence. A recent report by Masraf Al Rayan bank forecasts real GDP growth of 7.1% in 2015, in line with similar estimates for corporate earnings. Although oil and gas prices are likely to remain muted in the short term, high levels of public

spending on infrastructure and investment projects, underpinned by significant cash reserves built up over recent years, should help sustain growth and feed into private sector expansion, the report noted. This figure tallies with estimates of 7% GDP growth this year, from Qatar National Bank (QNB), with the economy gaining further momentum in 2016 and 2017, where growth is forecast to rise by 7.5% and 7.9%, respectively. “Qatar is well positioned to withstand the temporary decline in oil prices due to its strong

“Despite growth being fuelled by the non-hydrocarbon sector, more needs to be done to expand export diversification in the GCC countries, including Qatar, according to a recent report by the IMF.” macroeconomic fundamentals,” QNB said in its latest “Economic Insight” report, published in March. “With substantial financial resources, Qatar has ample external and fiscal buffers to continue implementing its ambitious investment programme.” Earnings increase Qatar’s corporate earnings are also expected to outperform the regional average this year, according to investment management firm Kuwait Financial Centre (Markaz). This builds on strong momentum from Qatari listed companies in 2014, which was marked by several significant events including a move in August to change the rules on foreign ownership whereby international investors are able to acquire up to 49% of shares in traded Qatari corporations. Previously this had been capped at 25%. According to Markaz, corporate earnings are likely to rise by 7.8% this year, building on the double-digit earnings growth recorded in the second half of 2014. This also represents a solid improvement on the overall 6% year-on-year growth rate for Qatar’s companies in 2014. In contrast, regional growth will fall short of the 10% growth recorded in 2014, reaching a forecast average of 5%, the report noted. In capital markets last year, the successful Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding Company IPO raised around QR3.2 billion ($881 million) for a 26% stake previously held by Qatar Petroleum - making this the country’s biggest IPO in five years. In 2015, many investors will be watching to see if further offerings are made, with Barwa Bank and Qatar First Bank widely reported to be keen to list. In addition, Qatari banks are expected to have the highest return on equity (ROE)

in the GCC this year according to Kuwaitbased investment firm, Global Investment House. The ROE of the banks is estimated to reach about 18% in 2015, in comparison to a GCC average of 14%. FDI support Despite growth being fuelled by the nonhydrocarbon sector, more needs to be done to expand export diversification in the GCC countries, including Qatar, according to a recent report by the IMF. The fund noted that despite improvements in the environment for exporters in the GCC, intraregional trade remains limited. Based on available foreign sector direct investment (FDI) data, only 4% (in 2011) of FDI inflows to Qatar went to trade-related activity. According to the latest official data, FDI in several major sectors accounted for 90% of all total inward investment at the end of December 2012. The Ministry of Development Planning and Statistics noted in a recent report that the mining and quarrying sector attracted the largest proportion of inward investment in 2012, followed by manufacturing and construction. A report released by the UN Conference on Trade and Development at the end of March said that there had been a 4% year-on-year drop in FDI across the Middle East in 2014, in part as a result of increased regional instability, along with weaker oil prices. Qatar is no exception, with inflows muted since the start of the decade, entering into negative territory in both 2011 and 2013, according to the UN’s “World Investment Report 2014”. Similar trends are seen in other GCC countries where persistent tensions in the region are cited for the reason behind a downward trend experienced since 2009

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

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 37

affairs > world view

W H E N M O U N TA I N S S H O O K

Nepalese soldiers stand next to wrecked buildings at Durbar square, a UNESCO world heritage site that was badly damaged by the earthquake, in the historical centre of Kathmandu on April 29, following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake which struck the Himalayan nation on April 25. Rescuers are facing a race against time to find survivors of a mammoth earthquake that killed more than 5,000 people when it through Nepal five days ago and devastated large parts of one of Asia's poorest nations. AFP PHOTO / Philippe Lopez 38 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

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development > listening post

THANK YOU FOR NOT SMOKING

Dr Judith Mackay can talk about tobacco control for hours on end without exhaustion. She brutally tears through the actions of Big Tobacco albeit with characteristic British politeness; takes down every pro-smoking argument in a soft yet firm manner that brooks no dissent. She has been campaigning against smoking for more than 30 years, convincing presidents and kings alike to get tough on tobacco. And she reckons sheâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll still be doing it when she is 100. By Ayswarya Murthy

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DEATHS

% caused by tobacco in Qatar, 2010

9.I% OF MEN

2.2% OF WOMEN

Even though fewer men and women, on average, die from tobacco use in Qatar compared with other high-income countries, still 3 men and 0.2 women are being killed by tobacco every week, necessitating action from policymakers.

or those born after the 80s, it’s difficult to comprehend what Dr Judith Mackay (identified by the tobacco industry as “one of the three most dangerous people in the world”) and her ilk have done to denormalise smoking when compared to its Mad Men-glory days. For a generation that was taught the dangers of tobacco in tandem with the benefits of brushing your teeth twice a day, it is almost jarring to see advertising executive Don Draper light up during meetings, in movie theatres, on public transport...on a plane!!! You half expect someone to fake-cough in an accusatory fashion, point to a NoSmoking sign and ask him to stub it out. But that was 40 years ago. Today, Don Draper would be relegated to desolate smoking zones and his most profitable client, Lucky Strike cigarettes, would be close to worthless because of the near-blanket ban on advertising tobacco products. For Dr Mackay too, it’s a vastly different world. In the several years she practiced medicine in Hong Kong, it had become obvious to her that her wards were “absolutely full of smokers” and curative medicine was only going to be of limited help. When she started working full-time on tobacco control in 1984, she was a lone David in Asia against the Goliath of Big Tobacco, who thought they could “ride into the continent like the Marlboro cowboy and it would be theirs for the taking”. For 25 years she worked pro bono (as the Founder and Director of the Asian Consultancy on Tobacco Control) with the governments and NGOs in Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, China, Magnolia and North Korea as they crafted their early-stage tobacco control policies. “And I had a terrible time of it,” she recalls. “The tobacco companies threatened to take me to court, embarked on a campaign of character assassination, and the death threats I received from tobacco support groups prompted the Hong Kong QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 43

development > listening post British government to offer me roundthe-clock police protection. Now that smoking has become a mainstream public health issue, this doesn’t happen anymore.” Today she holds several positions including Senior Policy Advisor at the World Health Organisation, Senior Advisor at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Honorary Professor of Public Health at two Hong Kong universities. For the purposes of this article, we’ll refer to her as the Senior Advisor at the World Lung Foundation where she works on the Bloomberg Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use; she joined the organisation in 2006 and it was her first paying job since she started her fight against tobacco. And we are completely awestruck when she tells us that there is so much work yet to be done and leagues to go before she considers the war won. Smoke and mirrors Fresh from attending the World Conference on Tobacco or Health in Abu Dhabi, Dr Mackay is in Qatar for another round of talks with the Supreme Council of Health, lending her expertise to a new tobacco control law in the works. The existing law, ratified in 2002, is pretty boilerplate; however, adequate implementation is lacking. Some facts released in the Tobacco Atlas are shocking, notably that no national anti-tobacco campaign was run in 2011 and 2012, 25.3% more boys, on average, smoke in Qatar compared with other highincome countries, and there is zero excise tax on cigarettes. However, Dr Mackay hints at big changes in the offing in the form of a newly finalised Tobacco Control Action Plan. “This plan, which will likely be made public on World No Tobacco Day (May 31), is an important next step that

enhances cessation on youth smoking and firms up regulation on smoke-free areas, among other things,” she says. New measures like a Quitline (in Arabic and English), youth groups in schools and a comprehensive awareness campaign are expected to strengthen existing tobacco laws. “There is a lot of 44 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

potential for Qatar to emerge as a leader among the Gulf States in tobacco control,” she says encouragingly. Qatar’s particular challenges include the high prevalence of smoking among children and the use of sheesha. Dr Mackay acknowledges that combating sheesha use might be more difficult considering its special significance in the cultural and social life here. One has only to remember the feeble attempt to restrict sheesha use in Souq Waqif in 2013 which was withdrawn in less than a month. We mention this to her and Dr Mackay says, “While the government is obligated to protect its citizens from harm, they can’t introduce new laws and measures without public understanding. Most people don’t have any idea of how harmful sheesha is; a big publicity campaign is needed to explain this and policy changes linked to its ban.” She says Qatar isn’t the only country that is finding it difficult to enforce tough tobacco laws. Currently, Iran and Turkey are the only two countries in the Middle East to have achieved the gold standard in all aspects of tobacco control – complete ad bans, smoke-free areas, help for people who want to quit, excise tax of up to 75% of the retail price, and pictorial warnings. “All governments are struggling to come to grips with the need to enact legislation,” she says, listing the myriad of reasons why many countries are dragging their feet on anti-tobacco action. “Big Tobacco has big sway with officials, businesses and journalists; they can buy anything they want and regularly interfere with tobacco legislation through subtle means, like getting powerful former government ministers on their boards. We almost never find out what they are doing behind closed doors.” “Health ministry resources and funds are often channeled more towards curative than preventive medicine. So they are more used to dealing with infectious diseases and epidemics rather than health education. But there is now a notable shift and a return to the preventive mode of the pre-surgery and preantibiotic era.” “The tobacco industry has a long history of discrediting research and lying about the dangerous and addictive effects of nicotine. They, with their huge army of economists, continue to misrepresent economic

data and spread fear that tougher tobacco legislation will result in farmers losing their livelihood, manufacturing jobs being lost and an increase in smuggling.” “Many leading businesses and families have huge tobacco interests (an example is the clove industry in Indonesia). In many cases, there is a national monopoly. The biggest tobacco company in the world today, bigger than Philip Morris International or British American Tobacco, is in fact the Chinese government (China Tobacco).” “And increasingly the tobacco industry has started challenging legislation in various countries, notable examples being Australia, Uruguay and South Africa. These cases have generally been unsuccessful, but they delay legislation, divert the attention and resources of health ministries and are intimidatory. Australia has had to fight three different lawsuits before it succeeded in implementing plain packaging laws.” Incidentally, Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced a $4 million fund at the Abu Dhabi conference to support countries facing legal action from Big Tobacco. The doctor dons many hats Dr Mackay’s primary battleground is the low- and middle-income countries which are the hardest hit by the effects of tobacco. That smoking has dire consequences for poverty alleviation, the economy and environment is accepted wisdom these days, she says. “Tobacco-related diseases are a huge financial burden on the health system and although prevalence of smoking is coming down everywhere (except in Africa where people are getting wealthier and can afford to buy cigarettes), the sheer number of smokers is increasing. We will have two billion more people by 2040; this is a crisis, though we tend not to think of it in those terms,” she says emphatically. She also mentions how in many of the low-income countries, up to half of the family income is spent on tobacco; money that could potentially go towards food and education. “The United Nations Development Program has come out with strong indicators linking smoking to development and many other institutions like the World Bank and Asian Development Bank have said that if countries want to

meet their development goals, they will have to discourage smoking. In fact, tackling non-communicable diseases (NCD) is most certainly going to be part of the next UN Millennium Development Goals and tobacco-related diseases are among the most important NCDs like cardiovascular diseases, cancer and diabetes,” says Dr Mackay. Enacting fiscal measures to impact public health policy is a relatively new concept that few are used to. “Many of the hard decisions to be made are in the domains of finance, tax... all of us have had to become amateur economists; it’s unusual in medicine. But it has become clear that this epidemic will not be solved in the corridors of hospitals and clinics but in the corridors of power.” The lessons learnt from this changing paradigm of public health have implications in fighting other NCDs, Dr Mackay says. “All these parameters will be used in the regulation of the alcohol or sugar industries because the health effects are so intertwined.” Consequently the profile of the kind of people who you would find working in this space has changed considerably since when Dr Mackay first started out. “While schools of public health are still the greatest recruiting ground, we have economists,

THE MARKET IN QATAR

ADULT SMOKING

% using tobacco daily, 2013

I9.4% OF MEN

I.4%

Even though fewer men and women, on average, smoke in Qatar compared with other high-income countries, 292,100 men and 5,100 women still smoke cigarettes each day, the sign of an ongoing and dire public health threat.

OF WOMEN

CHILDREN SMOKING

% using tobacco daily, 2013

25.3% OF BOYS

I0.8%

More boys and girls, on average, smoke in Qatar compared with other high-income countries.

OF GIRLS

WATER PIPE

% currently using water pipes, 2013

3.4% OF ADULTS

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 45

development > listening post WARNING ABOUT THE DANGERS TO TOBACCO USER ON PRODUCT PACKAGING Australia (Best Practice)

Qatar

Type of Warning Labels Graphic

Graphic

Percent of Pack Covered 83%

50%

Graphic Warning Rounds 2

Has Plain / Standardized Packaging Yes

N/A

WARNING ABOUT THE DANGERS TO WHOLE POPULATION IN A MEDIA CAMPAIGN WHO Best Practice

Qatar

Ran A National Anti-Tobacco Campaign During 2011 And 2012 Yes

Part Of A Comprehensive Tobacco Control Program Yes

N/A

Pre-Tested With The Target Audience Yes

N/A

Target Audience Research Was Conducted Yes

N/A

Aired On Television And / or Radio Yes

N/A

Utilized Media Planning Yes

N/A

Earned Media/Public Relations Were Used To Promote The Campaign Yes

N/A

Process Evalution Was Used To Assess Implementation Yes

N/A

Outcome Evalution Was Used To Assess Effectiveness Yes

N/A environmentalists, women’s groups, lawyers and people from so many other fields helping us address this multifactorial issue. And so many young and energetic people from the low- and middle-income countries are attracted to this multidimensional approach and are getting

46 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

into tobacco control. The principal legacy of the Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (“who fund 50% of tobacco control activities in such countries”) is giving these people a voice and a career path. One of the key messages from Asia is that tobacco control is not the prerogative of western countries. There are so many cases where laws have been implemented well and many first, Dr Mackay says proudly. “Singapore was the first to ban duty-free cigarettes; Hong Kong banned smokeless tobacco when nobody had even thought to; Thailand was one of the first countries to impose a 2% tax on cigarettes which was used to fund health and tobacco control; Mongolia implemented some of the toughest tobacco laws way back in 1994; China helped tobacco farmers in the Yunnan province diversify into other crops, resulting in a 20-100% increase in their revenues; India has taken tobacco companies to court, calling them to account. On the other hand we have countries like Indonesia where you can still smoke in the parliament. So it’s not a simple divide; the rich are not doing better at tobacco control than the poor,” she says. The end goal Unthinkable even 15 years ago, the progress made in tobacco control worldwide has given activists and policy makers a target to work towards. “The WHO has called for a 30% reduction in relative use of tobacco by 2025, which many countries have agreed and signed on to (though very few are actually on track to achieving it). Beyond that, there is an end-game target of a 5% rate of prevalence called the Lancet Target. Some countries like New Zealand, Scotland and Finland with prevalence rates below 15% have announced their commitment to reaching this number. New Zealand has mapped out an orderly progression of policies and actions that will help them reach this goal by 2025. In my home, Hong Kong, the current prevalence rate is 11.8%. The tobacco companies have gone on record saying prevalence will never drop below 10% so we are trying to get there first,” she says gleefully. Dr Mackay is confident. More so now that she is no longer a lone voice in the wilderness. Hong Kong’s seven million citizens have 120 control offices, 30 government officials and many more in NGOs fighting to keep their environment smoke-free. She has an entire army on her side now

COVER STORY

ISLAMIC FINANCE GOING GLOBAL

Islamic Finance:

Going Global

48 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

A COUPLE OF DECADES AGO, ISLAMIC FINANCE WAS A RELATIVELY UNKNOWN TERM BUT HAS BECOME THE BUZZWORD IN TODAY’S FINANCIAL WORLD. QATAR TODAY TAKES A PEEK INTO THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS – ITS GROWTH, CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES IN QATAR AND ELSEWHERE.

By V L Srinivasan QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 49

COVER STORY

ISLAMIC FINANCE GOING GLOBAL

“The growth has largely been driven by the increase in deposits, with retail and institutional customers becoming more familiar with Islamic finance. I also expect to see increasing appetite for Shariahcompliant funds from investors from within and outside the GCC region.” Hani Ibrahim Head of Debt Capital Markets QInvest

50 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

slamic finance, which includes Islamic banking, sukuk, Islamic funds and takaful, was popular only in the Muslim countries but became an integral part of the global financial architecture in the last few years after gaining credence in other countries where Muslims are in the minority. The UK issued its first sovereign Islamic bond for $298.08 million (QR1.08 billion) in June last year which was subscribed more than 10 times. Other countries like Morocco, Japan, Senegal, China and South Africa too have evinced keen interest in Islamic finance products and Germany launched its first Islamic bank two months ago. China is a potential market for the development of Islamic finance as its Muslim population is around 20 million. At present, the industry has a nominal presence and, realising this, two Qatari banks – Qatar National Bank and Qatar International Islamic Bank – have signed a memorandum of understanding with Chinese brokerage Southwest Securities to set up a company for Islamic deals in that country. Through this agreement, Southwest Securities will be able to access the markets in the region. Central Asia’s largest economy, Kazakhstan, became the latest country on the Islamic finance radar with the lower House in its Parliament approving the new Islamic finance laws on April 8th. The oil-rich nation plans to launch its first sovereign sukuk early in January 2016. However, the state-owned Development Bank of Kazakhstan already issued the first Islamic bond, a five-year sukuk, for $73 million (QR265.72 million) in 2012. Russia, which is in the throes of a financial crisis due to the low oil prices and also Western sanctions for its role in Ukraine’s unrest, introduced a draft bill in Parliament in March this year to develop the Islamic finance industry in the country and also bring in much-needed capital inflows to boost Russia’s market liquidity. With Islamic finance popularity growing each year, its assets were estimated to be around $2.1 trillion (QR7.64 trillion) at the end of 2014 (see graph), growing at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17.3% between 2009 and 2014. While Islamic banking formed 80% of the total assets, sukuk came next with 15%. It is expected to be around $3.4 trillion (QR12.37 trillion) in the next five years. The reason for this stupendous growth

is that the Islamic finance products are more attractive and also an alternative to those being offered by conventional banks. Besides, people are becomingly interested in Socially Responsible Investments (SRI) among people. The Islamic finance industry recorded double-digit growth in all Muslim countries last year except Pakistan, Indonesia and Turkey, which are yet to capture a majority of the available clientele like retail consumers. At present, the Islamic financial assets account for 4.5% of the total banking assets and are expected to be 10% by 2018. While Saudi Arabia tops the list as far as Islamic banking assets are concerned (18%) in the world, Malaysia, with 16 Islamic banks, is ranked second (13%) followed by the UAE (7%), Kuwait (6%) and Qatar (4%). According to the Kuala Lumpur-based Islamic Financial Services Board, a growing interest and awareness of Islamic finance supported by supply-side dynamics by private financial institutions, aggressive postures adopted by governments in spending on infrastructure and an increasingly active role played by government, regulatory agencies and multilateral bodies are the main drivers for the growth of the industry. Deputy Director in the Department of Monetary and Capital Markets at the International Monetary Fund, Christopher Towe, feels that Islamic finance offers considerable promise as it has the potential to foster more inclusive growth by increasing access to banking services to Muslim populations that may not be willing or able to use conventional banks. “Islamic finance has the potential to foster growth-enhancing investments by enabling easier access to financing for SMEs in public infrastructure. It has the potential to improve financial stability because, as it is asset-backed, it reduces leverage and requires risk sharing between borrowers and lenders,” Towe says. Head of Debt Capital Markets at QInvest, Hani Ibrahim, says that Islamic finance has became increasingly mainstream as investors have been looking to diversify for secure returns. “Across the industry, we have seen a marked increase in investors who are not Sharia-sensitive across a range of financial products and investments, attracted to Islamic finance due to its ethical and social characteristics as well as a means of diversifying portfolios away from certain assets,” he says. This was evidenced by the fact that

TOP Countries in the

Islamic Finance Indicator BAHRAIN

94.7

80.9

55.6

48.7

KUWAIT

44.6

QATAR

41.6

PAKISTAN

37.7

JORDAN

36.1

INDONESIA

BANGLADESH

SUDAN

BRUNEI

IRAN

LEBANON

162.2

in 2014, there were several non-Muslim sovereign nations that issued their maiden sukuk. This included Hong Kong and Luxembourg (both of whom were advised by QInvest on their maiden issues) as well as the UK and South Africa. “We are also seeing more international issuers issuing sukuk, for example the recent issuance by Goldman Sachs and the companies and projects in the UK and Europe, that have raised Islamic finance from Qatari and GCC investors and used this as an alternative to bank funding that would be available to them locally,” Ibrahim says. GCC and Islamic finance In the GCC region, all six countries have been at the forefront in supporting the Islamic finance industry and all of them are listed in the top 10 countries in the world’s Islamic Economy ecosystem, according to the latest Global Islamic Economy report released recently by Thomson Reuters along with Dinar Standard. Qatar barred the conventional banks from offering Sharia-compliant products to customers nearly four years ago to reaffirm its commitment to promote Islamic financial institutions and markets and included them among the critical goals under the Strategic Plan for Financial Regulation.

UAE

OMAN

SAUDI ARABIA

MALAYSIA

At present, the assets of Qatar’s Islamic banks are around 25% of the total assets of the banking system. Dubai is making all efforts to emerge as the world capital of Islamic finance by implementing new regulations and plans to set up a Federal Sharia Board, comprising scholars who pass religious decrees on whether a financial product conforms with the Islamic tenets such as a ban on interest payments. The Board is expected to meet the huge need to unify standards and contracts in the industry. The demand for Islamic products is on the rise in Bahrain while Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Oman have the potential to emerge as the main Islamic financial centres in the Middle East region. While opportunities are aplenty for the industry’s growth, what is tempering the growth of Islamic finance is the fluctuating oil price in the last eight months which can slow down spending on infrastructure projects; social and political unrest in the Middle East which may impact Islamic banks’ expansion plans in the region; increasing competition between the GCC and Malaysia for supremacy resulting in stress on profit margins; shortage of trained staff engaged in the Islamic finance industry; lack of Sharia-compliant insurance schemes which can undermine confidence in the industry; poor public

36.1

Source: Thomson Reuters and Dinar Standard

awareness and market education about the principles and products of Islamic finance; low financial literacy in these markets and the lack of standardisation of structures, contracts and Sharia interpretations. The opportunities for the industry’s growth include the growing halal economy, corporates which are looking to fund their operations through Sharia-compliant means, and Islamic pensions which could add around $200 billion (QR728 billion) to the sector. Director of Islamic Banking Centre at Ernst & Young, Muzammil Kasbati, says that the GCC currently holds high business prospects with growth charts in Saudi Arabia and Qatar expected to move up in the next five years. “Given our experience with previous GCC markets, the common challenge faced by Islamic financial institutions is the lack of awareness of Islamic products amongst entrepreneurs who would otherwise be inclined towards Islamic finance,” he says. Once such a challenge is taken care of and the right people in the industry are given business–specific insights on how Islamic finance can help them do business in a Sharia-compliant way without compromising on profitability, it does lead to a shift in financing strategy. Currently, the market that is displaying profusely is Oman. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 51

COVER STORY

ISLAMIC FINANCE GOING GLOBAL

“There is a significant undersupply of Shariacompliant products services and Islamic finance should outgrow conventional finance not only in Qatar, but all over the world in the coming decades. Islamic finance is approximately 2% of global finance as of today whereas Muslims constitute 20% of the world population.” Akber Khan Director of Asset Management Al Rayan Investment

52 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

“One fourth of the banking system in Qatar has transitioned to be Shariacompliant and it is anticipated that there will be a 15-20% sustainable growth for the banking industry. This has been made possible due to immense sovereign support,” he says. Similar growth trends are a highlight of the Saudi Arabian market as demand for Sharia-compliant banking has emerged from the retail and corporate markets and the size of its structure has almost doubled in the last five years with total assets touching $258 billion (QR939.12 billion), Kasbati says. With respect to Qatar, Kasbati feels that the government should think boldly and put in place two to three flagship initiatives that have a game-changer impact. Currently, industry has a “more of the same” syndrome, so jurisdictions that are able to put a bold vision into action will be a decisive winner over the next decade. He says that the Islamic finance industry’s infrastructure in Qatar may not be able to support the expected growth for the next ten years. It requires a comprehensive overhaul in terms of aligning with new product and business model innovations we have seen over recent years, as well as agreeing a more effective working protocol with the mainstream conventional global financial system. This is across regulatory, brand and communication, capital markets, supervisory, and talent initiatives. “Akin to the $100 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (Qatar is one of the founding members) launched a few months ago, there is clearly a need to create large, thematic, impact-driven financial institutions in the Islamic finance space,” Kasbati says. Hani Ibrahim says that the outlook for the Islamic finance sector in the region is positive and he expects it to grow further as a result of the wider growth of the economy and from taking market share from the conventional banks. “The growth has largely been driven by the increase in deposits, with retail and institutional customers becoming more familiar with Islamic finance. I also expect to see increasing appetite for the Shariacompliant funds from investors from within and outside the GCC region,” he says, adding that Qatar’s Islamic finance sector will continue to mature and the initiatives from the authorities and Qatar Stock Exchange to promote a domestic fixed income market are a positive first step. “I believe that the sector would receive

a significant boost from the development of an active sukuk market by allowing banks and other institutional investors to participate in the development of the country by investing in the financing of projects. In addition to opening up the investor base, an active local currency market would enable the stakeholders to price credit transparently and efficiently and give investors an opportunity to trade the paper on a regulated exchange,” Ibrahim says. Undersupply “There is a significant undersupply of Sharia-compliant products services and Islamic finance should outgrow conventional finance not only in Qatar, but all over the world in the coming decades. Islamic finance is approximately 2% of global finance as of today whereas Muslims constitute 20% of the world population,” says Akber Khan, Director of Asset Management at Al Rayan Investment. He says that Qatar has implemented a distinct separation between Islamic and conventional banks, meaning that Islamic windows were no longer possible by the latter. A key benefit of this is that Islamic deposits cannot be used for conventional loans and vice versa. He says that Islamic finance has great potential in India, South Africa, North America and Western Europe where significant Muslim populations have very few Sharia-compliant products and services to choose from. “Turning to sukuk for their funding needs will certainly be on the cards for Qatari banks, particularly given the fall in the oil price which has put pressure on government deposits. Demand for bank borrowings will be considerable in the coming years as spending on infrastructure and new projects continue,” Khan adds. Funding SMEs Like the conventional banks, the space for SME funding is limited and underserved in the scheme of things as far as Islamic finance is concerned. Ibrahim says that this is a challenge not just for Qatar but has been a theme of the recent global financial crisis. SMEs in Europe, for example, have also struggled to raise finance. Within Qatar, the relatively small size of SME businesses and the SME sector as a whole has meant that there has been less focus on it from banks. In addition, the pace of growth in the rest of the economy has meant that banks have

GLOBAL ISLAMIC FINANCE ASSETS (2009-2014)

$2.1trillion

2,500

$ billion

2,000 1,500 1,000 500 0

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

Source: Various, KFH research

preferred to extend financing to the larger businesses that the SMEs are competing with for financing. “There are some initiatives that have looked to address this challenge, particularly with the Qatar Development Bank (QDB). Qatar Islamic Bank in particular has been working on extending financing to SMEs with the support of the QDB. Similar initiatives will be key for the SME sector to access financing from banks in general and Islamic financing in particular,” Ibrahim says. Kasbati too says that the funding ecosystem for small finance, unfortunately, is severely restricted though the SME segment is the backbone of the Middle East countries’ economies. The skills sets required are very different and need a more comprehensive understanding of business risks, and hence different skill-sets, which is more than just collateralised-lending or credit risk assessment performed by banks today. “This demands a shift in mindset on how banks operate today. The game changer would be setting up specialised SME funds with a combination of sector-focused and banking skills, and a bottom-up approach to building geographic or sector-specific portfolios. Anything short will fail to actualise the full potential,” he says. However, Khan feels that as far as access to Sharia-compliant funding to small and medium-sized companies is concerned, Islamic banks seek to lend to sustainable businesses, whether large or small. “Islamic banks are well suited to lending to the SME sector and are very keen to do so,” he adds. Global Head of Islamic Finance at Standard & Poor’s, Mohamed Damak, says that funding for SMEs depends on the credit quality of the SME. “Islamic banks

are profit-seeking entities and will probably not finance SMEs if they come to the conclusion that the project or the business model is not viable,” Damak points out. Sukuk Sukuk, which is part of the Islamic finance sector around the world, is making inroads in all five continents and the global Islamic bond issuance is expected to be around $175 billion (QR637 billion) in 2015, up from $110 billion (QR400 billion) in 2014 in 19 countries. Sukuk issuance is projected to be around $250 billion (QR910 billion) by 2020, according to the Thomson Reuters report entitled “Sukuk Perceptions and Forecast,” which was released at the 21st annual World Islamic Banking Conference last year. The report also predicts that the total global outstanding sukuk, which is currently at $241 billion (QR877.24 billion), is also expected to grow to $907 billion (QR3.3 trillion) by 2020. Sukuk is the most popular Islamic finance product going by its success and the GCC governments can look at this to fund the ongoing infrastructure projects if need be. “Every contract and product has its own merits and it is difficult to pinpoint the success story of only one type of contract. However, recently sukuk has been very popular from both the issuer and investor perspective as it provides a secured means of investment to the investor and at the same time is preferred by issuers as they are able to securitize their assets and raise liquidity at reasonable rates," Kasbati says. “Sukuk has been a fantastic innovation of the decade. The missing link is the absence of quality assets and Qatar, with its infrastructure spending, is ideally

“Akin to the $100 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (Qatar is one of the founding members) launched a few months ago, there is clearly a need to create large, thematic, impact-driven financial institutions in the Islamic finance space.” Muzammil Kasbati Director Islamic Banking Centre Ernst & Young

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 53

COVER STORY

ISLAMIC FINANCE GOING GLOBAL

“The global regulatory framework might not be applicable due to the specifics of each country. However, core principles of Islamic finance regulation such as those adopted by the Islamic Financial Service Board (IFSB) in April 2015 could help further integration of Islamic finance with the international architecture for financial stability.” Mohamed Damak Global Head of Islamic Finance Standard & Poor’s

54 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

positioned to help bridge this gap. A pre requisite is to facilitate through regulatory reforms and plugg in the missing pieces of the debt capital market ecosystem like diversifying sukuk by currency, tenor, risk and structures,” he says. Hani Ibrahim says that the quantum of financing is large and though the local and international bank markets are expected to provide the largest share of this financing requirement, they are unlikely to provide all of the financing. “Sukuk financing is a viable alternative source and will be key in meeting Qatar’s financing needs. The ability of companies and project sponsors to access sukuk financing will be enhanced significantly by the promotion of an active QR sukuk market, allowing companies that typically cannot access the international sukuk markets to raise sukuk funding,” Ibrahim says. Sharing the same views, Mohamed Damak feels that sukuk could contribute to the financing of project finance in Qatar and globally due to the asset backing principle of Islamic finance that makes it a natural partner for infrastructure and project financing. Global regulatory mechanism Though multiple interpretations of the law by sharia scholars can leave the industry as well as investors unclear about certain aspects of Islamic banking, most of the experts feel that a global regulatory framework cannot be put in place as each country has a different set of rules and regulations for conducting financial operations. “The global regulatory framework might not be applicable due to the specifics of each country. However, core principles of Islamic finance regulation such as those adopted by the Islamic Financial Service Board (IFSB) in April 2015 could help further integration of Islamic finance with the international architecture for financial stability,” Damak says. Kasbati says that this may sound simple but has to be researched well as Islamic finance will always be prone to varying interpretations with respect to different fiqh and schools of thought. A practical approach would be for Organisation of Islamic Conference jurisdictions to agree on a minimum set of standards to be made consistently applicable across markets. Christopher Towe says that though Islamic finance could prove safer than

conventional finance, the Islamic bankers must tighten rules and follow them more consistently. “Our analysis suggests that these standards are not being applied consistently, and this could either stifle the development of Islamic finance or encourage its growth in a manner that creates systemic vulnerabilities,” he says. Towe also warns that some issues, such as the need to tailor regulations to specifics of Islamic banks and for greater consistency of regulation and supervision, fill the gaps in the instruments that central banks have to manage liquidity for Islamic banks, improve the poor design of financial safety nets to meet the specificities of Islamic finance and ensure an enabling environment for sukuk markets which still remain relatively shallow and illiquid. There is also the need for consumer and investor protection frameworks that take into account the specifics of the Islamic finance industry to be addressed so as not to unduly handicap its growth but also to ensure that the potential risks they pose are avoided. Hani Ibrahim says that the organised Islamic finance industry is relatively young when compared to conventional finance and the regulations are therefore still growing and evolving. However, there are already efforts within the industry to standardise some aspects of Islamic finance with organisations such as AAOIFI, IFSB and IIFM setting standards, guidelines and best practices. As with any industry, it is very challenging to prescribe regulations and standards on a global basis that would be relevant and applicable to the industry as a whole. This applies more so to Islamic finance given the differing legal and regulatory requirements in each of the local markets where Islamic finance is and will be present, combined with the differing Sharia interpretations of scholars. “Whilst the differing interpretations of scholars may be seen as a challenge, it is also the factor that helps Islamic finance evolve and come up with new solutions as it stimulates debate within the industry. Having said that, the industry would benefit from an element of standardisation and regulation that would prescribe certain products or areas where there is wide consensus amongst scholars and practitioners,” Ibrahim says. Human capital While the growth of the Islamic finance industry is phenomenal, the demand to

Shortage of Islamic Finance Professionals by Sector 50%

Banking Legal

63%

Takaful

63% 88%

Capital Market 0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

source: Report of the Islamic Finance Task Force of the COMCEC Capital Market Regulator 2013

develop human capital is also on the rise. It is estimated that Malaysia, which is leading the industry, needs as many as 200,000 professionals by 2020 and the situation is no different in other Islamic countries. Kasbati says that the industry should re- think its strategy to attract the best brains though there is a glut of young professionals with great conceptual knowledge and certifications in Islamic finance principles. However, that falls short of what the industry needs today. He says that the demand is for specialised talent that can put concepts into practice and the missing links are the innovation labs that provide the linkage between industry and academia. “For example, exploring how Islamic trade finance could be made to work across new trade corridors being formed between high-growth emerging markets or how to connect the dots between financial and real economic sectors of the halal economy. Or how to embed impact financing in the way Islamic banks build their investment portfolio. So industry and academia need to come closer to fund and incubate these talent innovation labs and transform their focus to the broader Islamic economy,” Kasbati says. “We need to ensure that the industry continues to be promoted so that top-tier financial services professionals are attracted to work in the country. Organisations like QInvest have a responsibility to inspire the next generation of Qatar’s business leaders. We are committed to developing the talent needed to support the growth of Islamic finance in Qatar and the region

and have in place a number of internal programmes and collaborations with academic institutions to support this. There are a number of academic and training institutions that are operating in Qatar who provide Islamic finance training and qualifications which I believe is a good way to introduce professionals to the industry,” Ibrahim says. Outlook In its outlook for the Islamic finance industry till 2018, Bank Negara Malaysia predicts that the industry will reach new heights amid global uncertainties. The growth of Islamic finance will be supported by the on-going recovery in the global economy, with firmer global growth forecasted at 3.8% next year, an uptrend compared to 3.3% growth in the 2013 and 2014 estimates. “Underpinning this growth is the robust domestic demand in emerging economies, including in Asia Pacific and the Middle East, amid stronger global trade activity (2014 estimate 3.7%; 2015 forecast 5%). Nevertheless, financial market sentiment remains vulnerable to exogenous events such as geopolitical crises, especially in the Middle East and Russia; as well as shocks to oil prices,” the report says. Another key concern for investors will be the timing of the unwinding of easy monetary policies in the advanced economies, especially the Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing programme. In the past, announcements on the Fed taper had led to volatility in financial market yields, especially in emerging economies, the report adds

“Islamic finance has the potential to foster growthenhancing investments by enabling easier access to financing for SMEs in public infrastructure. It has the potential to improve financial stability because it is asset-backed, reduces leverage and requires risk sharing between borrowers and lenders.” Christopher Towe Deputy Director Department of Monetary and Capital Markets International Monetary Fund

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 55

business > bottomline

Qatarisation - are you investing wisely? In the competition to attract and retain Qatari talent, it has become clear that generous pay and allowances are only a starting point.

56 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

any organisations make costly and unfruitful investments in a bid to increase their Qatari workforce, engaging in a war for talent without a strategic and systematic approach. Some of the main pitfalls that we observe are: Adopting a 20% or higher Qatarisation target without reference to the labour market and without a good definition of the organisation's workforce requirements Offering very high pay to local national candidates in order to attract them, but then failing to follow up with development and support when they join Recruiting without giving due consideration to attitude and aptitude

Failing to prepare managers to deal effectively with a more diverse workforce Understandably, the disappointment of waving goodbye to their local national employees in spite of their efforts has left many organisations wondering whether it is an investment worth making. So what can they do to invest effectively in this special market for talent? At Aon Hewitt, we have been working with organisations around the region to tailor effective strategies for increasing their local workforce. Throughout the last five years, we also solicited the views of over 20,000 employees in the GCC, via our Qudurat study, with an objective to understand the regionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s human capital development. Here is what we have learned so far:

Before starting recruitment, set the right targets Qatarisation targets need to be fine-tuned to reflect the availability of candidates with the necessary skills, both in the external labour market and within the organisation. In the course of setting such targets, employers should align organisational roles to the pool of potential candidates. There are two key actions to take before plunging into recruitment campaigns: first is to think carefully about the skills that the organisation needs and the key positions to be held by local nationals. Second is to conduct a labour market review to determine the availability of these skills, both internally and externally, and to decide which roles will be filled through external recruitment and those to be filled through internal promotions. Thus, a realistic Qatarisation target can be set, supported by a roadmap that specifies progress over time. Assess and develop the employer brand With so many organisations seeking capable local nationals, employers are at a huge disadvantage in even getting a candidate to consider joining if their brand does not offer a unique proposition to the discerning jobseeker. The first step involved in building the employer brand is to understand their organisation’s current reputation in the talent market. Current employees can provide a reasonable reflection of the brand; however, outsiders from the target group (i.e. local market) are likely to be the best informants and we recommend investing time and effort to get their robust feedback. Be aware that for those who want to stay ahead of the game, crafting a credible and attractive employer brand is not a oneoff activity. The needs of the employees and the organisation's reputation in the market shift and develop, and so need to be monitored and refined to remain relevant and attractive. Use the right channels to attract local nationals There is a dizzying array of channels to use for recruitment campaigns, but many organisations have never stopped

to evaluate their effectiveness. Failing to optimise the available recruitment channels means that the organisation may never reach the right potential candidates, let alone attract them to join. Once an organisation has a clear understanding of its target candidates, the channels to use to reach them can be determined. Preventing unnecessary attrition also starts at the recruitment stage. In their eagerness to get local nationals onboard, organisations may be overlooking the importance of the fit between the candidate and the organisation. They may focus too much on the candidates’ qualifications and experience, and miss out on those who have the right attitude and aptitude and can be trained to perform a good job. Create a welcoming environment that supports achievement Once the employment contract is signed, the focus shifts to ensuring that a new employee performs well and is satisfied enough in the organisation to stay for a good while. This is the most difficult aspect for employers to get right, as it depends on creating an environment, not just managing a process, for engaging all the organisation’s employees. One area of concern is the extent of support that managers provide to their employees. Providing support to employees goes beyond conventional learning and development programs. Effective organisations put in place more extensive coaching and mentoring schemes to drive performance, provide career growth and increase retention. Decision-making and communication processes are geared to nurturing confidence in leadership. They are also proactive in building a work environment that supports workforce diversity. There are no quick solutions to the challenge of Qatarisation. If the organisation is serious about wise investments to attract and retain Qatari nationals, it should be prepared for a longterm commitment. Leadership needs to be fully committed to the journey, and the organisation needs a systematic and targeted approach to address all aspects of the employment lifecycle to make it work for all employees

BY DR. MARKUS WIESNER CEO, Aon Hewitt Middle East and Africa

INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE IN QUDURAT WAVE 3 The Qudurat research starts in May this year and is a great opportunity for organisations to obtain high-quality data to benchmark their current Qatarisation practices and employment offerings. Through Qudurat Wave 3 you will get insights into: How organisations in Qatar are attracting, retaining, developing and engaging nationals Factors that influence candidates’ job choices, perceptions of their work environment and attitudes to diversity Students’ perceptions of job opportunities and factors influencing career decision-making Participation is easy and free. All participating organisations get a complimentary detailed report. For further information or to sign up, please contact qudurat@aonhewitt.com

ABOUT AON HEWITT Aon Hewitt is a global leader in human resource solutions. For more information, please visit www.aonhewitt.com.

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 57

bottomline > viewpoint

Strategic Workforce Planning

To cope with the rapid growth in Qatarâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s business environment, most organisations have had to be more reactive than proactive when building their workforce.

The Need of the Hour M any organisations have therefore found it difficult to assess whether they have hired too few or too many people, or hired too early or too late, leading to a workforce structure that might not be aligned well with business needs and cost expectations. But itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s never too late to get it right. Every business can take action to leverage talent through strategic workforce planning.

Harnessing the power of data As for most strategic initiatives, the starting point is to gather the right information. There are broadly three types of data to be analysed: The demand drivers for talent: Organisation strategy, business plans and

business activity volumes. It is important to understand the businessâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; key growth areas, changes required in its structure and roles, business volume projections by function and the mode and strategic focus of growth (e.g. organic vs. inorganic, profit growth vs. revenue growth, etc.). However, the future vision often resides in the minds of the executive management and sometimes business plans are not broken down into projections of business volumes. In such cases, take a step back and understand what forecasts can be reasonably obtained. The profile of the current workforce: To prepare for the future, it is important to understand the present. Businesses must analyse the current workforce profile; skill-sets, rate of turnover by function, high performers by function, etc. This task is relatively easier for organisations that have invested in the right technology and HR analytics solutions, or for organisations that are just starting up. The talent supply: Around 94% of the working population in Qatar are expatriates. This number will only increase as the demand for labour continues to outstrip the availability of local talent. The situation is further complicated by the restrictions of the Kafala system that already limit the mobility of expats across organisations, and the impact of the proposed changes to the system is yet to be seen. It is important that data is collected and analysed to understand skills availability, sources of talent, recruitment lead times (for various categories of employees) and the macro-economic projections for other markets competing for the same talent. One aspect of this analysis can be with respect to

the national workforce (at the experienced hire and the fresh graduate level), and this can help organizations run a much more focused Qatarisation programme. Apply the right techniques for the right roles As they say, one size does not fit all and this certainly applies to the process of creating workforce models. Developing a workforce model will depend on your business needs, but broadly, there are two parts – capacity and capability. Capacity projections This is the process of determining how many people are required at what time. Certain roles will have a fixed demand for workforce (like heads of departments); for other roles, demand will vary based on business volumes and other activity drivers. Focus on one role at a time and identify the best mechanism to project future requirements. Ways to do this include: Activities and Specifications: Workload analysis, equipment specifications, legal or safety requirements, etc. combined with business volume projections for the planned period.

role, split between those that will be filled from within the organisation and those that must be hired. The workforce model must also identify the skills required, lead times for developing skills, recruitment lead times for each role, roles that can be Qatarised by hiring or developing internal staff and the indicative workforce budget. Following this approach, organisations can gain a greater understanding of staffing patterns to understand steady state requirements and temporary peaks and troughs that may not require permanent hiring.

BY SAURABH MATHUR

Implement the model with your feet on the ground Implementation requires time, resources and commitment. The hard work spent on analysis will be of no use without the right resources for timely execution. It is important to create a realistic action plan, identify a capable implementation team, and support them fully. Once these fundamentals are in place, businesses should ensure they leverage the available resources e.g. the recruitment process, learning and development systems, etc.

Key business drivers: Business drivers and their relationship to workforce numbers – for example, number of patients per day may be a driver for a general physician position at a clinic, provided other factors are accounted for (time per patient, shift requirements, etc).

“Around 94% of the working population in Qatar are expatriates. This number will only increase as the demand for labour continues to outstrip the availability of local talent. The situation is further complicated by the restrictions of the Kafala system that already limit the mobility of expats across organisations, and the impact of the proposed changes to the system is yet to be seen.”

Workforce ratios: Standard workforce ratios for the industry and region. Support functions are relatively easier to estimate with this technique than core operations roles.

During the implementation phase, the model assumptions should be tested/ validated to ensure they still hold good.

Capability projections Once it is known how many people are required by the business at what time, an analysis of the skill gap can be conducted. This involves analysing current and future skills and competencies to determine whether skills are available internally, can be developed or need to be acquired from the market. If there is sufficient time to develop certain skills, organisations can decide to align their Qatari development plans to meet such requirements. What does success look like? The final workforce model must comprise the number of employees required for each

Top things to watch out for Don’t fall prey to an analysis paralysis; focus on actions. Don’t worry too much about the gaps in the data – make reasonable, conservative assumptions around gaps but be consistent. Get people with the right skills onto the project team. Strategic thinking, business analysis, data modelling and talent management are some of the important skills required. Validate findings and assumptions with management at the right times. Be flexible. Business is dynamic – if plans change, adjust your assumptions and projections accordingly

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Saurabh Mathur is the Senior Manager, People & Change Advisory, at KPMG Management Consulting in Qatar. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 59

development > tag this

“Government should push for more IPOs” 60 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

The government has a role to play in supporting more Initial Public Offerings (IPOs) in Qatar, according to Salah Shamma, Head of Investment – MENA Equity at Franklin Templeton Investments.

atar is consistently viewed as a major destination in which to do business. However, the associated growth that accompanies such demand is not reflected in the country’s stock exchange, as evidenced by the fact that there’s only been one new listing reported in the past five years. The government has taken note of this and has been proactively trying to encourage private companies to list. That being said, not many IPOs have come in the market, which is still dominated by the government selling down equity stakes in state assets. Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding Company Limited (MPHCL), part of Qatar Petroleum, is the only listed company which has come out with an IPO in January 2014 and despite a significant positive response, interest remains lacking from others. “Though some positive steps were taken by the regulators the big challenge is for the government to motivate companies to go public. Even the MPHCL issue was open only to Qatari nationals and included a free shares option if individuals held onto the stock over a period of time,” Salah Shamma, Head of Investment – MENA Equities at Franklin Templeton Investments ME points out. Such preferential treatment has the potential to create differing views on a stock depending on whether the investor is from Qatar or the international market place. “The regulator should ensure that everyone who participates is doing so within the same framework and this should play a positive role in ensuring that the market is as open as possible for international investors. As the market continues to develop, there will be a requirement for more liquidity and the regulator shouldn’t rely on local capital to bridge that gap,” he says. According to Shamma, equity markets provide a vital forum for corporations to access long-term capital. This is particularly important in the aftermath of the financial crisis when overall liquidity became less available. The IPO market in Qatar has, so far, typically been used as a platform for wealth transfer rather than a primary source of financing. As such, the regulator has a role to promote the equity markets as an additional avenue for corporations to diversify their sources of funding. International investors will not shy away as Qatar has an appealing economy and is a destination for many. The country is

projected to grow by more than 6% over the next five years, bracketing it in the ranks of the fastest-growing economies worldwide. “This is a resource-rich country with large sovereign reserves driving substantial non-oil sector growth and supported by a strong population growth. Additionally the currency is dollar-pegged, so who would not like to invest in the country?” he asks. Shamma also suggests that there is a real opportunity for large Qatari family-owned businesses to look into listing on the equity market. It is estimated that family-owned businesses control close to 80% of the country’s non-oil wealth. That said, one of the challenges remains the minimum listing amounts required for companies going public. Current guidelines suggest that this should be at least 40%, but for many this may represent a loss of too much control over proceedings. “In an ideal world, such companies are more comfortable with 20% to 25% and the government should perhaps recognise this to promote a more active IPO market.” Shamma points out that the UAE has also been facing similar issues with regards to family-owned businesses and large companies who were also reluctant to cede 55% of their companies in an IPO. However, in an effort to address the issue, the UAE government has issued a new company law which reduces the minimum free float to go public to 30%. The new law, issued last month, is expected to encourage financial markets and new IPO activity on the UAE markets. With contributions from the nonoil sector to the GDP growing fast the government should amend existing laws so that there will be more participation from the family-owned businesses and the investors will have access to retail, hospitality and healthcare and other sectors, all of which show promise in the market given ongoing development plans. Qatar has already taken steps to increase Foreign Ownership Limits (FOLs), which in turn are expected to increase its weighting in the Morgan Stanley Capital International (MSCI) Emerging Markets index. Since this Index covers over 800 securities in 23 markets worth more than $500 billion (QR182 billion), it will attract significant liquidity which, in turn, reduces volatility in the market. FTSE Index Qatar, which is on the watch list of the Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 Group, the indexing unit of the London QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 61

development > tag this

“With contributions from the non-oil sector to the GDP growing fast, the government should amend existing laws so that there will be more participation from the familyowned businesses and the investors will have access to retail, hospitality and healthcare and other sectors, all of which show promise in the market, given ongoing development plans.” SALAH SHAMMA

Head of Investment – MENA Equities Franklin Templeton Investment ME

62 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

Stock Exchange, will be reviewed along with other countries such as Greece, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Palestine, Poland and Taiwan for reclassifying them from frontier into secondary emerging markets in September 2015. “This could bring in another wave of investment as witnessed after the Qatari bourse was reclassified by MSCI, along with the UAE, as an emerging market in June 2014,” Shamma recalls. The Saudi market Qatar along with Saudi Arabia will attract investments after the latter opens its market to foreign investors. At present, Saudi Arabia has opened only 1% of its market – $5 billion (QR18.2 billion) – to international investors. “Once this limit is enhanced to 10% it will be a $50 billion (QR182 billion) opportunity for investors,” he says, adding that Saudi Arabia can command a 2% to 3% share of the MSCI Emerging Markets index when its status is upgraded as an emerging market in 2017. “Qatar and the UAE are important markets, but the scale of Saudi Arabia is something quite different - it is by far the largest market in the region. Its market capital, even within the context of emerging markets, is bigger than South Africa, Russia and Turkey. Even in liquidity terms, the average daily volumes are also almost double these countries,” he says.

Falling oil prices Despite low oil prices, there is still reason for optimism in the region, with Gulf countries learning from previous years when oil prices have been low. These countries have amassed huge wealth from the surplus revenues generated from oil sales, launched Sovereign Wealth Funds as well as built foreign exchange reserves of around $3 trillion (QR10.92 trillion). These savings accounted for more than 150% of their combined GDP and the average debtto-GDP in the GCC markets is less than 10%. “This means the GCC nations can continue spending without being overly concerned about low oil prices, even as OPEC has allowed the prices to fall in order to eliminate high-cost producers,” he says. Shamma points out that Oman, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Qatar (which has extended last year’s budget by nine months till December 2015) have announced “record budgets”, thus affirming their commitment to continue with infrastructure development programmes. “This indicates that there is very good growth visibility in the next three to five years,” he says. While the oil sector has been driving growth of the oil exporting countries in the Middle East during the last decade, the contribution from the non-oil sector to their GDPs has also been on the rise. It is worth noting that family businesses make up some 80% of non-oil GDP in the GCC. According to International Monetary Fund (IMF) projections for the next five years, the growth of the oil sector component to these GDPs is expected to be flat – between 0.5% and 0.7% – with the bulk of the growth coming from the non-oil sector. “The reason why smart investors are looking at the non-oil sector is the spending on segments like hospitality, retail, banking and infrastructure which has gone up considerably while they have no access to the oil sector which is owned and managed by the government,” he says. The other reason for investors to park their funds in the region’s non-oil sector is the increasing interest rates in the US, which is countered by the Quantitative Easing policy initiated by countries in Europe and Japan, whereas the GCC markets, with high-yielding assets, are paying the highest dividends in the world with an average growth of 4%

development > tag this

Beyond the banners

ports is in Amy Johnson’s blood; or rather, the business of sports. Even before the Toronto-based family business was reinvented around the turn of the millennium to become what is now The Look Company, she would travel with her father and grandfather to sporting events across North America that they were working on and soak it all up. “Before I knew it, I was breaking down the bill of quantities on a product,” she laughs. It was

64 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

only natural that she join the company right out of university and help develop it in its new avatar. “Our focus, the ‘Look of the Game’, wasn’t a widely used term in the late 90s and 2000s. People were still talking in terms of banners and flags and branding but we wanted to define this concept at the company, develop and expand on it,” she says. They must have done it right because 15 years later the two-person company has grown to employ over 300 people across two continents.

What is remarkable about the young company is not just its journey to Qatar but what led it to put down its roots here. Starting with the 2001 Edmonton Track and Field Games, which was the first event she got to properly sink her teeth into, Johnson handled several high-profile events during her first few years in the company that took her to Manchester (Commonwealth Games, 2002 ), Dublin (Special Olympics, 2003) and finally to Qatar in 2005 for the West Asian Games. “This business is about peaks and valleys,” Johnson says. “You go

to a city, set up shop, finish the event and come back home. Which is what we did for five years.” However, Doha, the future site of their first international long-term office, was obviously different. But why? In 2005, Qatar was still a few years away from winning the hosting rights for the FIFA World Cup 2022 and its sporting ambitions were still a bit of a secret. “When we were in Doha we gathered from the higher powers that sports was set to become an important platform for the country. Most of our competitions opted for Dubai because it seemed like the natural thing to do but we had a real interest in building something in Qatar. People outside think that Qatar won the FIFA World Cup out of nowhere, but few people in the international community remember just how many world-class sporting events were already happening here before that. That’s what attracted us to Qatar; we stayed and government has kept its promise to bring more and better sporting events to the country. For us it has been a great experience to work on so many great venues in the city and experiment with a lot of interesting ideas,” she says. Most recently the company was involved in the Men’s Handball Championship. “It was a very large event for us primarily because of the brand-new stadiums which no one had worked on before. There was no pre-existing database and we had to hire extra staff and start from scratch,” Johnson recalls.

and corporates to abandon plastic in favour of fabric. “It required a total change in the mentality of how people print,” she says. But it all paid off when the Qatar Olympic Committee decided to pick up and expand on it. “Now they are taking it international for us, with us. Whenever a delegation from the committee goes abroad, they take these products to show other federations the benefit of this programme and how they can be involved,” Johnson says.

Giving back to the country Over the decade The Look Company’s biggest investment in Qatar, Johnson feels, is intellectual property. “We have helped set the standard for sporting events held in Qatar,” she says. Memories Of Games (MOG) is an initiative that the company is particularly proud of. “We were keen on taking care of the environmental aspect of our work; we were considering repurposing the branding materials into accessories like bags so that they all don’t end up in the landfill.” Qatar was the first place where MOG was implemented in a serious way. Looking back she remembers just how much work it was to convince the sporting market

Outdoing the last event While The Look Company provides turnkey solutions from consultancy and design to installation, and finding and activating corporate sponsorship, their strength lies in tailoring their solutions as per the client’s needs and working with local advertising and PR companies to help take the spirit of the games across to fans. Their USP is the nuanced understanding of the little details that only years of sporting experience can provide, Johnson feels. But they can also be big-picture people when needed. “My dream event would be to work for any federation that has a grand ambition and is open to thinking outside

A sample of The Look Company's work in the region over the years

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 65

development > tag this the box. Like the upcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup in Canada who we are working with. The mission of the games is to unite the country (not easy, given its size) and bring people together by engaging them all. That’s what we like – an ambitious task and a carte blanche on ideas,” she says. Johnson knows that in this business you are only as good as your last event. “Once you win a major event, you start to create a track record that absolutely has to keep evolving and outdoing the last event. It’s quite a challenge to continually raise the bar so that you are on the top of people’s minds in the sporting events community,” she says. And there are now definitive signs of a paradigm shift in the industry with the emergence of smart stadiums and their emphasis on digital signage. “Which is why we started a Smart Stadium division where we work to find a balance between digital and non-digital displays. Because if a space is too charged with digital messages it can be exhausting for anyone who remains there for long. The industry is evolving and we are embracing that change using different tools to help people engage with static branding.” This division

A sample of The Look Company's work in the region over the years

66 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

of The Look Company is also working with stadiums to build legacy hardware that are a permanent architectural fixture. “We advise architectural firms during conceptual stages on where and how best we can install equipment that can help raise and lower branding in a cost effective way while complementing the architecture of the stadium,” she says. Johnson hopes to be able to play a consulting role in the

construction of Qatar’s new stadiums. This is just the beginning of the company’s plans to expand their offerings in the country. “There continues to be a ton of sporting events happening in Qatar and we continue to deliver topquality experiences and make sure that we never take for granted our last event. Our aspiration is, of course, to be in a strong position by the time the work for 2022 begins. We also want to keep working with the government and federations in Qatar to help strengthen their event portfolio and eventually bid and win the Summer Olympics, an ambition that keeps getting discussed. We want to capitalise on all new infrastructure that is coming up like hotels and the rail and expand our Interiors and Brand Implementation divisions. And finally we want to be able to bring to life events like the upcoming IPC athletics in October through sponsorship engagement (with the help of our new division Synergy Sports),” Johnson says, listing out a packed agenda that promises a very busy next few years. While the company has a large focus on sports, which will always be their “tradition and claim to fame”, Johnson says they intend to diversify into the lucrative and relatively permanent retail market. She says the scale of the work is comparable and their expertise in project management will hold them in good stead for their next step. Because when they work on sporting events, they don’t just focus on the stadiums but also on peripheral venues like airports and hotels. “So if a corporate brand wants us to roll out their promotions across their thousands of stores in the continent, we are better prepared for it than any momand-pop store who think all they need is a printer,” Johnson says, adding that the scale of the work is the same, only the execution is different. While the sporting events market is a relatively small arena when compared to retail, Johnson is confident that their sports experience has groomed them for any challenge. But that’s only one of the fews reasons why sport has retained a special place in her heart. “I have been with The Look Company for so long (despite it being a family business, she chuckles) because of the power of sports to bring people together, kick-start communications, and ease conflict. There are so many facets to sports that the average person doesn’t realise. It has the potential to do good in the world and bring people together in a functional and active way.”

investment > tag this

RAIL TRANSPORT IS CRITICAL TO THE ECONOMY Rodney Slater, United States Secretary of Transportation under President Bill Clinton and a partner at the law firm Squire Patton Boggs, gave two speeches during the first annual Discover USA Week. He tells Qatar Today why rail is crucial to the future of Qatar’s transportation. By Margaret Kadifa Former Secretary of Transportation RODNEY SLATER at his Doing Business in the USA Forum during Doha’s inaugural USA Week Qatar.

What is Qatar doing right in transportation? Transportation investment should not just be viewed as the development of the rail line, the highway, airport or shipping port solely, but rather in connection with the land, mixed use and real estate development that it can inspire. During the visit I learned about the [Qatar’s] $40 billion rail initiative. I applaud this. They invested in what little system exists. They’re looking to have a region-wide system. You look at Doha as a mega city, and you add Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, if they were connected that would be quite big, especially if you had freight and passengers. We’re not just travelling in our own borders, but people want to access places that are outside of the borders of their country. Why is rail critical economically? If you can cut down on the cost of transportation, you can really cut down on the bottom line. It could also bring the rural areas into the economy as well. 68 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

That’s really the purpose of the US system. Over time this nationwide connection has developed. Why is investment in transit important in terms of sustainability? In the next ten years we’re going to sell more automobiles than we have sold in the last 100. What it means is that you’ve got a lot of places now where you’ve got this opportunity to purchase vehicles that you didn’t in the past: the Middle East, Asia. If we’re not careful we can choke ourselves. That’s why this investment in [rail] transit is so important. Where do you see the United States playing a role in Qatar? US companies could be a partner in the building and the management of the rails [in Qatar]. US is the leader in freight traffic. We can bring the best of US talent and technology to Qatar. I know there are a number of US railroads that operate internationally, especially from the US into Canada and Mexico. The one that

comes to mind is Kansas City Southern. You’ve also got Burlington Northern Santa Fe and CSX Transportation and Union Pacific Railroad. Many of them have fairly significant international exports. I know that there is something to be gleaned from these companies, and I know that there would be some interest there in having an international discussion as Qatar looks not just across the country but across the region. What sectors of the transportation industry in the US are good to invest in right now? The South and West regions that are experiencing population growth are good places to invest. [Highway projects such as] the US Interstate 70 Project in Colorado, the Interstate 66 Project in Northern Virginia, the Interstate 40 Biomedical Corridor Project between Memphis, Tennessee and Little Rock, Arkansas. It is also good to invest in high-speed rail projects in California, in Texas and the Maglev project in the Northeast of the US

education > tag this

A meeting of minds

Professor Laoucine Kerbache is a busy man. We meet a few days before his office, HEC Paris, hosted an international conference on "Building dynamic networks and partnerships for the region" for top management in educational institutions. By Abigail Mathias

rofessor Kerbache is Dean and CEO for HEC Paris in Qatar. He explains how it all began. “Upon the invitation of Qatar Foundation, HEC Paris brought world-class Executive Education programmes and research activity to Doha and the region in 2010. By February 2011, HEC Paris launched Qatar’s first international EMBA – a part-time programme which provides executives with a set of fundamental skills to expand their knowledge and leadership capabilities.” This is the first time that the annual EFMD – MENA will be held in Qatar. EFMD is a global membershipdriven organisation based in Brussels, Belgium with offices in Geneva, Hong Kong and Miami. As the largest international network association in the field of management development, the EFMD network includes over 800 institutional members and reaches over 25,000

management development professionals from academia, business, public service and consultancy across 82 countries worldwide. “It is also an international platform to bring together leaders in the management education profession as well as for many opportunities for partnerships, student and faculty exchanges and the sharing of knowledge and ideas,” says Professor Kerbache. The conference is particularly poignant given the political scene. Professor Kerbache says, “Countries in the Middle East and North Africa share the same key challenges of creating wealth, jobs and transforming their management education in a fast, competitive and changing global world. With a region that is experiencing strong growth and an exponentially increasing population that is creating a large base of students and professionals, including women, this conference aimed at assisting in building world-class education systems that will develop the skills needed for the growth of countries in the region.” It also ties in with the National Vision of Qatar. The list of prominent speakers and workshop moderators included Professor Everette E. Dennis, Dean of Northwestern University in Qatar; Professor Karim Seghir, Dean of the School of Business, American University in Cairo; Professor Robert Grosse, Dean of the School of Business Administration, American University of Sharjah and many others. It also included business leaders from the region and HEC Paris alumni like Ahmed Al Balushi, CEO, of Bank Muscat, Maryam Al Mansouri from Sidra and Aiman Kalalla of CBQ, who actively participated in the discussions. Al Balushi says, “The role of education in

Professor Laoucine Kerbache 70 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

CEO and Dean for HEC Paris in Qatar

Ahmed Al Balushi CEO Bank Muscat

Aimen Kallala

Assistant Vice President – Strategy Planning and Performance Management Commercial Bank of Qatar

promoting entrepreneurial attitudes and behaviours is widely recognised today. The EFMD conference provided a wonderful platform to meet with peers from all over the world. The delightful integration of energies of these people from different corners of the world was an enchanting experience.” The significance of networking is undoubtedly a key to success. Al Balushi adds, “The academic sector presents a fulfilling and rewarding career towards the creation and development of knowledge and skills of tomorrow’s leaders. It also enables one to be fully immersed in an environment of continuous learning. For anyone who wishes to pursue a profession and career in the academe, one must never cease to study and learn. In addition, one must also ensure constant interaction between classroom theories and actual practices in the real world.” Professor Kerbache has been teaching for more than 25 years. He says, “I learn every day from my interactions with undergraduate, MBA, and executive programme students as well as from researching and consulting in the field of operations and supply chain management, logistics, and applied quantitative methods for more than 30 years.” He adds, “We have campus programmes that are designed to assist students in defining their personal and professional growth objectives. HEC Paris signed the contract with Qatar Foundation in June 2010 for five years. This period was devoted to well understand the market needs and to develop, and deliver a portfolio of programmes in line with these needs. Some research initiatives, such as case-

study writing and QNRF projects, were also achieved.” Aimen Kallala, Assistant Vice President – Strategy Planning and Performance Management at Commercial Bank of Qatar and a prominent alumnus of HEC Paris in Qatar, says, “Building dynamic networks and partnerships for the MENA region is more than ever a priority for all those involved in education and businesses in the region.” He adds, “Transforming the extraordinary potential of the young population around the Middle East and North Africa into a substantial creative force for these nations should start at the very beginning of professional life which does not kick off with the first job but definitely starts with university life. The key for success here is to go beyond the widespread perception of the university as a purely theoretical exercise and transform the higher education cycle into a major pillar of a successful professional career.” In a short span of five years, HEC Paris has managed to enable a number of Qatari entrepreneurs with the tools of further propelling their business interests. “When HEC Paris opened its campus in Qatar, we didn’t just take our programmes from Paris and apply them here. We came and had custom-designed programmes that specifically cater to the needs and requirements of the market. We also know what needs to be done in the next few years. My personal goals for the coming years are to continue increasing the profile of HEC Paris as the preferred institution for executive education and higher learning in Qatar and the region,” says Professor Kerbache QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 71

green scene > tag this

“Catch ‘em young”

Good habits need to be inculcated in children at an early stage of their lives in order to make them “agents of change.”

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Students of Al Jazeera Academy (left) and Rajagiri Public School help with putting up environment-conscious messages around their schools.

ware of the need to teach energy, saving practices among students, Rajagiri Public School Doha, which was established in September 2014, started advocating the benefits of saving water and electricity as part of the Green Programme for Schools (GPS), a unique initiative launched by Qatar Today three years ago. The school, which has only a primary section (up to class V) with around 800 students, has displayed stickers and posters at water taps and electric switches frequented by the students to explain how to conserve water and electricity. In their individual capacity, a small contribution from the students will lead to more inspiring changes in the coming years. Peter Kubicki, Head of the secondary school at Al Jazeera Academy, is filled with optimism about the GPS programme. “Our impact on the environment is of enormous importance both from a moral and spiritual point of a view. I’m a father and these matters concern me as a parent and teacher. The children in this school are our responsibility. We have a duty toward educating them about their future,” he says. “But I don’t think it stops there. We have a long way to go.” Many of the students in Al Jazeera Academy are of Qatari origin. With

the world’s focus on Qatar as it makes huge strides internationally, Kubicki feels it is pertinent to impart the right values. “If we have a school that is littered and unclean, the students are not going to learn much. We need to start with little things,” he says. Suggestion boxes have been placed around the Rajagiri campus to receive innovative ideas from the students. “We have to do something at the school level to make them aware of their responsibilities, especially in saving water and electricity for the benefit of the community in which they live and also the world at large,” says Isaac Tharayil, Principal of Rajagiri Public School Doha. The school has already set up a committee and started involving the students in implementing GPS a few weeks ago. Being part of GPS, the younger generation will know about the impending dangers to Mother Nature and hence school managements, along with teachers and students, could work together in spreading the message. The passion ignited and the attitudes acquired towards energy conservation by taking part in GPS will make them become responsible citizens as well as leaders in championing green efforts, which are in line with the objectives of Qatar National Development Strategy 2016 and Qatar

PETER KUBICKI

Head of the secondary school Al Jazeera Academy

“The passion ignited and the attitudes acquired towards energy conservation among the students by taking part in GPS will make them responsible citizens as well as leaders in championing green efforts, which are in line with the objectives of Qatar National Development Strategy 2016 and Qatar National Vision 2030.”

National Vision 2030. Tharayil, who worked in Canada for two years before taking up the present assignment in Qatar, says that though Canada has abundant water, the government and people are aware of water and electricity conservation and the used water is recycled several times. Kubicki is aware that this is a subject that needs to be delivered in an interesting manner. “With social media and the vast internet there are so many interests for young people which demand their attention. It isn’t easy to engage the youth for the long haul. I don’t believe that lecturing them is the answer,” he says. With any student learning, it’s important to get students to articulate their thoughts. “They must actively participate and debate and take practical action. That’s far better than lecturing them on the benefits of safeguarding the environment.” As for sustainability, the secondary teacher believes we can all do our part. “If you go to the supermarket to buy a few items and you get 25 carry bags. Surely we can reduce consumption. These are things

that haven’t yet been embedded in the mindset here. We need to develop these ideas further.” He adds, “Young people are genuinely concerned about recycling, sustainability and conservation and wildlife. There is certainly a lot more happening now than when I was a boy.” The school has already begun discussing green issues. “There are many subjects that lend themselves to the subject of the environment. Science has a strong focus on this and students can debate issues in English. We have a strong student council which gives students a voice. The students are very aware about the polar ice caps and all the other issues that are being discussed on a global level,” says Kubicki. He previously taught at a school in England for 13 years and says “I’ve seen how students get involved in rain water harvesting and other pertinent issues. We had students measuring energy efficiency to discover how much we are using electricity. I’d like to see people get involved in these activities here as well. Its very important learning for the future.”

ISAAC THARAYIL

Principal Rajagiri Public School Doha

ABOUT GPS This second edition of Green Programme for Schools is a nationwide initiative spearheaded by Qatar Today and supported by ExxonMobil, which aims at inculcating 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 > MAY 2015 > 73

CSR

SPOTLIGHT

A TIME FOR GIVING CSR IS CONSTANTLY EVOLVING; IT MIGHT HAVE STARTED OUT AS SOMETHING THAT CAN BOLSTER PUBLIC RELATIONS BUT HAS BECOME AN IMPORTANT TOOL FOR CORPORATES TO TACKLE CONTEMPORARY SOCIAL ISSUES HEAD ON AND, MOREOVER, DO IT SINCERELY AND SUSTAINABLY.

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“SOCIAL ISSUES LIKE CLIMATE CHANGE, CONSERVATION, UNEMPLOYMENT, ROAD SAFETY, WOMEN’S EMPOWERMENT AND EDUCATION HAVE MOVED UP IN THE BUSINESS AGENDAS OF THE NATION’S CORPORATE SECTOR IN THE LAST FEW YEARS.”

n the beginning it was a simple equation – companies trying to make the world a better place in return for the benefits they accrued from society; the brand recognition and changing consumer sentiments help justify the price tag (or is the key driver, depending on your business persuasion). Today the equation has a lot of complex variables, but Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has rapidly become mainstream business practice globally. Though the concept is relatively new in the region, local companies in Qatar have hit the ground running with a mature approach to CSR that goes beyond throwing money at a problem. In fact, many of the large companies have adopted issues that closely align with the scope of their work and have developed long-term strategies that bring tangible change among communities while contributing to the overall progress of the nation. And the bigger the company (and hence the commitment of resources), the deeper they can delve into a problem and start working on its causes. In fact, the scale of CSR activities has grown so much that governments and NGOs have started to work on complementing these to their own national, big-picture efforts. Proof of this are announcements like the United National Human Rights Council looking to explore the possibility of having a legally-binding treaty for corporate human rights and responsibilities, and US President Barack Obama announcing a National Action Plan on business and human rights that would be developed by his government in the coming months. As Qatar’s private sector grows and diversifies, so does the spectrum of CSR activities – both in scope and sector. Social issues like climate change, conservation, unemployment, road safety, women’s empowerment and education have moved up in the business agendas of the nation’s corporate sector in the last few years. Notable here is the CSR aimed at tackling unemployment through encouraging entrepreneurship and helping SMEs scale up. This serves as a perfect example of how CSR can be sustainable if it plays to the core strengths of the company. When the programmes are tailored to suit the corporation’s areas of interest and operation, the involvement is organic and long-term. An example of this Qatar Today’s Green Programme for Schools (GPS), an initiative that increases awareness among school students (25,000 young people are being targeted in 2014-15) about the importance of conservation of electricity and water. The programme not only leverages our prowess in message delivery and assimilation, our core business, but also that of our large network of partners, ranging from youth organisations and NGOs to corporations and government departments. Finding such a niche for yourself to fit into neatly is often not easy but is immensely rewarding. This is why CSR has grown to become one of the most challenging management roles in organisations these days. Also, the CSR landscape of today offers a neutral and mutually beneficial platform for companies of all types and sizes to work together towards a common goal. While this was less common in the world and corporates are only now starting to embrace nonaggressive ways of growing and conducting business, the trend is the strongest in the CSR arena where a single noble and worthy cause is capable of bringing out the best in everyone involved. Corporations are no longer the soulless, profit-driven machines of yesteryear and no one is more keen to change this image than the companies themselves. And not because a company that seems to care, sells more. It’s a genuine paradigm shift in how organisations are starting to view their place in society. Summarising the role of the corporate sector, consultant and author of “A Better World, Inc” Alice Korngold says: “Most successful companies in the 21st century will be led by boards of directors comprised of people with diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and areas of experience and expertise, who can envision the company’s greatest potential in solving the world’s most compelling social, environmental, and economic challenges.”

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 77

CSR

SPOTLIGHT

MUST BUILD STAFF PRIDE AND

ENGAGEMENT In recent years, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has gained prominence and support from companies and the wider society. Organisations no longer see themselves solely as profit-making machines, but as contributing and conscientious members of the community as a whole.

ong story short, CSR means working for a greater cause. Adoption of CSR practices in the Middle East has improved significantly over the past years and is currently at an all-time high. One clear sign that CSR in the region is gaining momentum is the fact that the majority (66.9%) of respondents in the Bayt.com "Corporate Social Responsibility: Is Your Company Making an Impact?" poll, August 2013, claim that their companies do engage in CSR activities. Another 74.7% also claim that their companies actively motivate employees to participate in the

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CSR activities. With stakeholders across the spectrum (governments, corporations, employees, and not-for-profits) realising the importance of CSR, adoption can only go forward from here. According to the Bayt.com "Corporate Social Responsibility: Is Your Company Making an Impact?" poll, 95% of polled professionals in the region feel itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important that their company is socially responsible. This is just one more reason why businesses are expanding their CSR strategies to include the long-term impact of business decisions on their communities.

Benefits For professionals in the Middle East, the three main benefits of adopting a CSR strategy are considered to be an enhanced corporate reputation (28.5%), improved relationships with the community and stakeholders (10.4%), and strengthened employee commitment (9.9%). Some 64.7% of them say that companies that engage in CSR do make an impact. In fact, an overwhelming 94.3% of respondents feel that corporate CSR strategies can directly contribute to business success. In light of the above, corporations can no longer afford to take CSR lightly, since their reputation as an employer and as a product/service provider is being cultivated as much through their social actions as through their business decisions. The main trigger for this would be that seven in 10 professionals in the Middle East wouldn’t work for a company they aren’t proud of, as revealed in the Bayt.com ‘What Makes a Company an Attractive Place to Work?’ poll held in February 2014. Similarly, 98% of respondents in the Bayt.com ‘Values, Ethics and Integrity in the MENA Workplace’ poll, June 2014, believe that it is important for their company to have sound ethics and integrity. If some companies in the Middle East still think that business is solely about profit maximisation and the survival of the fittest, then they are wrong. Business is about solving problems, and doing so in a way that drives sustainability. And perhaps the most profound area of intellectual change going on at the moment is in the expansion of the concept of sustainability to include the sustainability of a business itself.

Better coordination For CSR initiatives to result in a truly engaged workforce and sustainable future there needs to be more coordination between governments and corporations, where governments would put together the necessary regulatory framework and engage all stakeholders, while corporations would move from purely philanthropic activities to sustainable programmes addressing development challenges. In other words, national

“If some companies in the Middle East still think that business is solely about profit maximisation and the survival of the fittest, then they are wrong. Business is about solving problems, and doing so in a way that drives sustainability.” governments need to legalise and formalise CSR through regulations while simultaneously engaging corporations to ensure a quick and smooth adoption of such regulations. Both local and multinational companies need to adopt a localised CSR approach by proactively identifying issues and working with local communities and governments to solve them. The importance of sustainable development for the region’s longterm prosperity and stability cannot be overstated. Governments, private companies and civil society organisations will need to coordinate and commit themselves to sustainable development if the MENA region is to achieve its environmental, economic and social potential. Transparency and a just and ethical approach to doing business are critical. Creating an environment that encourages ethical practices and upholds strong values is imperative in attracting – and engaging – top talent. In fact, the majority of respondents (76.8%) in the Bayt.com "Corporate Social Responsibility in the Middle and North Africa" poll, say that working for a socially responsible company is very important to them, with 89.8% stating that they believe the corporate sector has a moral responsibility to design and implement sound CSR programmes. With this in mind, companies across the Middle East should increasingly work towards adopting more policies that actively nurture an ethical, integrity-driven workplace; one in which sustainability, transparency, and respect for values are vital

Bayt.com is the #1 job site in the Middle East with more than 40,000 employers and over 20,000,000 registered job seekers from across the Middle East, North Africa and the globe, representing all industries, nationalities and career levels. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 79

CSR

SPOTLIGHT

TARSHEED RECOGNISES ITS PARTNERS At a recent event, the National Programme for Conservation and Energy Efficiency (Tarsheed) facilitated many of its partners from various sectors and those who supported it in its initiatives and projects. 80 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

he programme, launched on April 22nd 2012 by Qatar General Electricity and Water (KAHRAMAA) under the patronage of the Emir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, aims at reducing the rate of water consumption per capita by 35% and electricity by 20% by 2017, in addition to savings in carbon emissions estimated at 15%-18% and financial savings estimated at nearly QR1.2 billion. Under the slogan “Tarsheed: Time is Now”, the ceremony coincided with the Earth Day. HE Eng Essa bin Hilal Al Kuwari, President of KAHRAMAA, said, “KAHRAMAA coordinated, cooperated and benefited from the expertise of local and international organisations, an important component of managing Tarsheed. We signed more than 46 agreements and memoranda of understanding with different organisations so as to ensure the proper implementation of the programme as planned, which had resulted in achieving the targets set.” Many of the organisations that

collaborated with Tarsheed in 20142015 were recognised during the event. Eng Ali Mohamed Al Ali, Manager of the Conservation and Energy Efficiency Department, said, “I am pleased to express our deep appreciation and gratitude to our partners in various sectors in Qatar for their support of Tarsheed since its inception, through the signing of memoranda of understanding with us and the permanent support for our activities, both through community awareness participation and technical and research participation, to make our initiatives and projects a success.” The ceremony started with recognising Ezdan Holding Group for supporting Tarsheed's awareness activities in general, and cooperating with the Tarsheed in a number of initiatives. Commenting on Ezdan Holding Group’s support of Tarsheed, HE Sheikh Dr Khalid bin Thani bin Abullah Al Thani, Group Chairman, said:“Tarsheed’s noble goals of providing a better future and environment to our children motivated us to provide our support to this programme until it changed from a nascent idea to a huge programme, whose third

HE MOHAMMED SALEH AL SADA Minister of Energy and Industry

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CSR

SPOTLIGHT

ENG ALI MOHAMED AL ALI

Manager, Conservation and Energy Efficiency Department KAHRAMAA

HE ENG ESSA BIN HILAL AL KUWARI President KAHRAMAA

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anniversary we are celebrating today. The programme slogan, 'Keep Qatar pulsing. Consume wisely' is the goal for all of us as we all want to protect our environment and energy sources and conserve our consumption to give Qatar’s citizens and residents a future full of hope.” “Our support for Tarsheed is part of the efforts we exert in various initiatives to help build an environment-aware society that conserves the energy sources, reflects Qatar’s cultural and environmental sophistication and guarantees a bright future for our children,” he maintained. He expressed his appreciation and gratitude to the wise leadership of HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and his effective support of Qatar’s excellence in the protection of the environment, conserving resources, backing the development plans of 2030 and enhancing cooperation and collaboration among Qatar’s organisations to achieve progress in this regard. The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy (SC) was also recognised for its support of Tarsheed's activities in schools and for the Tarsheed22 (T22), a

Tarsheed programme project aiming at raising awareness of the conservation culture and energy efficiency in 22 primary schools located in the perimeter of the World Cup stadiums through using the power of football, the most popular game in the world. The project is currently providing training on how to raise awareness of the importance of energy conservation, in addition to reviewing and measuring energy consumption and making the necessary upgrades and meter readings to monitor schools’ conservation efforts. The SC offered a grant for supplying the necessary technology to monitor energy use and providing the schools with awards to recognise their savings based on KAHRAMAA meter readings. On this occasion, Hassan Al Thawadi, Secretary General of the SC, said: “I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to those in charge of the National Programme for Conservation and Energy Efficiency in the General Electricity & Water Corporation for this recognition. I am proud of their efforts to conserve Qatar’s resources through spreading the culture of sustainability and conservation of water and energy. Sustainability has

always been one of the foundations of SC work in all fields from stadium projects to community programmes and initiatives. Through the T22 initiative, which we are proud to launch, we aim at cooperating with the Tarsheed programme in using football’s positive energy to educate school students about the importance of preserving our country's resources. So Qatar can remain pulsing with life and fortunes for the generations to come.” The Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) was also recognised for its cooperation with Tarsheed by promoting green buildings for hotels, in addition to its distinguished Earth Hour campaign. HE Eng Issa bin Mohammed Al Mohannadi, Chairman of QTA, received the award. He said on this occasion, “We are honoured to receive this award, which encourages us to go on with our plans of building and developing a sustainable tourism sector. Through its participation in the Earth Hour, QTA sought to raise awareness among the public and our partners in the public and private sectors about how important it is for the hotels and touristic projects to be committed to the environmental sustainability directions stipulated by the National Tourism Sector Strategy 2030.”

“We and Tarsheed have mutual goals for the benefit of our partners in the tourism and the economic sectors in Qatar in general. In that regard, I would like to remind you that the QTA is currently reviewing the hotel rating system to make all tourism projects, products and services bound to the regulations of environmental sustainability.” The Public Parks Department in the Ministry of Municipal and Urban Planning was also recognised for aligning with Tarsheed's objectives, especially regarding the implementation of a centralised wireless system to control irrigation and reduce water consumption. Eng. Mohamed Al Khouri, Director of the Public Parks Department, received the award. Unilever was also recognised for its support of Tarsheed’s activities by conserving water in malls and houses. Daniel Said, General Manager of Unilever Qatar, received the award. In addition to that, ConocoPhillips was recognised for its cooperation on Tarsheed’s school activities for the World Water Day. Gary Sykes, President of ConocoPhillips Qatar, received the award.

Various industry leaders being recognised at Tarsheed's 3rd anniversary celebrations

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 83

CSR

SPOTLIGHT

Various industry leaders being recognised at Tarsheed's 3rd anniversary celebrations

In the cultural sector, the Doha Film Institute (DFI) was recognised for its cooperation with Tarsheed in organising the Tarsheed Filmmaking Competition for universities. Fatima Al Rumaihi, DFI CEO, received the award. QatarDebate was also recognised for its cooperation in selecting subjects on conservation of electricity and water for debates among university students. Dr Hayat Abdullah Maarafi, Executive Director, QatarDebate, received the award. Finally, for its research participation, the international Spanish company Iberdrola was recognised for its smart grid applications. The award was handed over to Dr Agustin Delgado Martin, the company’s Director of Innovation. One of the highlights of the ceremony was the honouring of the winners of the various Tarsheed competitions. 84 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

Under the slogan “Make a difference. Walk the green carpet”, Tarsheed launched the “Conserving Buildings” competition for the third year in a row. The competition aims at encouraging effective participation in energy efficiency and resource conservation by increasing awareness of the potential of implementing the concept of conserving buildings in all Qatar’s government facilities and its effective impact on the environmental development within the sustainable development system in Qatar. The awareness programme in universities and schools is also considered one of the most important Tarsheed programmes as dissemination of culture of conservation among the future leaders in all education stages is a priority. In that regard, Tarsheed launched three competitions for schools and universities and the winners were facilitated at the third anniversary of Tarsheed

affairs > tech talk DINE IN WITH COOK Apple CEO Tim Cook is auctioning an opportunity to lunch with him in his Cupertino headquarters, with the proceeds going towards supporting RFK Human Rights. He has been doing this for the last three years but as a new addition this year, the highest bidder will also have the opportunity to be Cook’s personal guest at an Apple Keynote event. This is by no means cheap; bidding started at $10,000 and is now at $165,000. Bidding closes on May 6.

White House approves sanctions against hackers

Mobile e-commerce on the rise in Qatar

MasterCard released the results of its Online Shopping Behaviour study that measures consumers’ propensity to shop online through interviews with 4000 respondents across eight markets in MENA, including Qatar.

55% of respondents in Qatar made an online purchase during the three months prior to the study.

90% of them were satisfied with their online shopping experience.

Men are more likely to make an online purchase than women in Qatar. Men also have a higher average number of purchase occasions.

76% mentioned convenient payment methods, value of items and security of the payment facility as the key criteria when choosing where to shop online.

ONLINE SPEND IN ABSOLUTE TERMS IS HIGHEST FOR

AIRLINES

DIGITAL CONTENT FOR ENTERTAINMENT PURPOSES

GROCERIES

Amazon is the most commonly visited website for online shopping in Qatar, followed by eBay. 86 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES, HOME APPLIANCES AND ELECTRONIC PRODUCTS

Several months after the White House imposed sanctions on North Korea for its alleged involvement in the hacking of Sony Pictures, the administration is promising to do the same to anyone else that tries to hack American targets. President Barack Obama signed an executive order that authorises the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Attorney General and the Secretary of State, to impose sanctions on individuals or entities believed to be involved in “malicious cyber-enabled activities” that could pose “a significant threat to the national security, foreign policy, economic health, or financial stability of the United States.” Activities that might trigger these sanctions include compromising services by government entities, running a distributed denial-of-service attack, pilfering data for commercial or financial gain, using cyber-stolen trade secrets, and providing material support for any of these actions.

Missing in Nepal?

After the devastating earthquake in Nepal, Google officially opened up Person Finder, a web-based tool that can help loved ones of missing persons looking for information.

Getting ready for connected cars

The Qatar Mobility Innovations Center (QMIC) successfully participated in this year’s Cooperative Mobility Services Interoperability Testing event in the Netherlands.

he tool enables crowd-sourced information about the status of people you are searching for – if it exists. You can either create a page with information about the missing person – photos, identification, last seen location, messages to be conveyed and contact information – while others on the ground have the option of creating a profile of those they found at the affected area, whether they spoke to them after the disasters, pictures, etc. Google will let you know if there’s a match with anyone in its database. A senior Google executive, Dan Fredinburg, tragically lost his life during an avalanche that swept through the Everest Base Camp. Head of privacy for Google X, Fredinburg was involved in several Google projects on Everest, including taking a Street View camera to the summit.

articipating for the fourth consecutive time at this event organised by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute, delegates from QMIC joined nearly one hundred experts from over forty organisations from all over the world to test the interoperability of the Vehicle-to-Vehicle and Vehicle-toInfrastructure systems known also as Connected Vehicles. Connected Vehicles will change intelligent transportation as we know it by enabling wireless communication among vehicles and infrastructure in a seamless manner and using a common standard or language and is considered a key enabler for future autonomous and self-driving vehicles. To demonstrate its progress in developing connected vehicles platforms and applications, in April 2014, QMIC held the first Connected Vehicle field demo in the Middle East and North Africa region at the campus of the Qatar Science and Technology Park. The event was attended by VIPs from government, industry, research and academic sectors in Qatar, showing them first-hand how this technology works. Since then, the QMIC R&D team has added more features and capabilities to its platform.

Snapchat gets tough on third-party apps

he service provider is cracking down on external apps that have managed to find ways to work in tandem with Snapchat and let you save the messages that are sent to you, defeating the whole purpose of the service. This comes on the heels of the photo leak the company suffered last October, when one of those apps was breached and photos from Snapchat users were exposed. Snapchat not only works with Apple and Google to try to block apps in their stores that violate Snapchat’s terms of service, it also started cracking down on users who install such apps. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 87

business > auto news Rolls-Royce Wraith special edition in Qatar soon Rolls-Royce Motor Cars has unveiled the new Wraith Inspired by Film edition, which debuted at the 2015 New York Auto Show, and is now available to order for Rolls-Royce customers in Qatar for a limited time, ahead of arriving in the country later this month.

raith Inspired by Film celebrates Rolls-Royce’s long heritage in film, with the pinnacle of automotive luxury taking leading roles in movies since the dawn of film-making, featuring in hits such as Goldfinger (1964), The Yellow RollsRoyce (1964), The Thomas Crowne Affair (1968) and The Great Gatsby (both the 1974 original and its remake in 2013), to name a few. This limited edition also celebrates the acceptance of the ground-breaking RollsRoyce Motor Cars Wraith launch film, And the World Stood Still, into the BFI (British Film Institute) National Archive, the world’s most significant collection of film and TV.

2015 SUBARU LEGACY ARRIVES IN QATAR Mannai Auto Group announced the arrival of the award-winning Subaru Legacy in Qatar. Subaru, touted for its engineering prowess and for creating some of the best passenger vehicles today, brings out the 2015 Legacy to compete in a highly competitive midsize sedan segment.

he Subaru Legacy, rated the Best Mid-sized Sedan by Consumer Reports in its latest review of the best vehicles in North America, is confident it can fill a niche. Ivor D’ Cunha, General Manager of Operations, Mannai Auto, says: “The all-new 2015 Legacy exceeds expectations in a price-competitive package providing a quiet, comfortable, and roomy ride with great driving characteristics. The Legacy is also at home in terms of visual appeal and performance when placed alongside the segment’s best sellers.”

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New X6 XDrive 35i makes Doha debut Continually catering for discerning customers in Qatar, Alfardan Automobiles, the official BMW Group importer in Qatar, has announced the arrival of the X6 XDrive 35i variant to join the all-new BMW X6 50i that was launched in Qatar late last year.

Emozioni in Pista at Losail

Alfardan Sports Motors recently organised the 6th Emozioni in Pista for Ferrari owners and enthusiasts at Losail International Circuit in the presence of President and CEO of Alfardan Group Omar Alfardan and other dignitaries.

T The extrovert design of the new BMW X6 blends the robustness and versatility of a BMW X model with the sporting elegance typical of the brand’s coupés. The interior combines generous space with modelspecific sports features and a luxurious ambience, while attractive design and equipment packages further highlight the exclusive style of the all-new BMW X6 xDrive 35i. Alfardan Automobiles General Manager Ihab Allam says: “Alfardan Automobiles have gone from strength to strength in the Qatari market, with exceptional customer service and continually offering the latest models from the BMW Group. With the X6 35i we offer yet another variant to a long list of models, engine variants and packages that give our buyers the choice that enables them to tailor their car to suit their tastes and needs.”

he event started with a safety brief by Pilota Ferrari, the world-famous Ferrari team of Italian driving trainers from Maranello. The team demonstrated sport driving techniques and helped Ferrari owners and prospective clients unlock the full potential of the cars. For the first time in Qatar, the 6th Emozioni in Pista witnessed the world’s fastest, most exciting hybrid car, LaFerrari, racing on the track. The LaFerrari is Ferrari’s first ever production car to be equipped with the F1-derived hybrid solution. General Manager Alfardan Sports Motors, Charly Dagher, says: “It’s all about an unforgettable driving experience, and creating moments which provoke the emotions and passion associated with being part of the Ferrari Family, whilst showcasing the exclusive world of the Prancing Horse.” “The Emozioni in Pista has become an iconic event in Qatar with increased participation year after year. As both the 5th and 6th Emizioni in Pista involve our clients racing their own cars, safety is our top priority,” he adds.

ALFARDAN PREMIER MOTORS HOLDS FAMILY DAY Alfardan Premier Motors organised its annual “Land Rover Ride & Drive Desert Event” with a fun-filled day of intrepid drives, advanced desert driving tips from experts, and family campsite entertainment for customers, prospects, friends and families at Khor Al Udaid – the Inland sea. The guests received expert training on how to drive safely in Qatar’s deserts before trying out the full range of Land Rover’s high-performance 4x4 vehicles on an adrenaline-filled drive by off-road experts across the spectacular sand dunes, one of Qatar’s most famous natural beauty sites. Alfardan Premier Motors Marketing and CRM Manager Hussein Adra says: “This event gave our most valued clients and fans the chance to enjoy some intense driving in a dramatic desert landscape and to experience at first-hand how Land Rover 4x4s can effortlessly tackle the sand dunes.” QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 89

business > auto news

Car horn turns 100

The car horn is celebrating its 100th anniversary. It’s one of the few car parts that have stayed virtually unchanged over the decades. Originally invented in Germany, it reveals a lot about how people communicate in countries around the world.

Mercedes-Benz SUV car show held Nasser bin Khaled (NBK) Automobiles, the exclusive dealer of Mercedes-Benz in Qatar, has organised a unique show for Mercedes-Benz SUV cars to demonstrate their performance capabilities and agility, positioning them ahead of the pack, from April 17 to 24 at a custom-built simulation track in front of NBK Automobiles on Salwa Road.

hat does a BMW, MINI, RollsRoyce or any car sound like when it's horn is being honked? In any vehicle type it is indeed the same kind of sound because the signaling devices that make it are industrial modular systems. That means every vehicle producer essentially uses the same one. “Vehicle horns consist of a high tone and a low tone. Together they put out between 93 and 95 decibels at a distance of seven metres,” explains Peter Heinrich, test

engineer at BMW for car horns. “That’s what the law specifies.” These components make a fair amount of noise (the pain threshold for the human ear is about 130 decibels), and it’s a legal requirement for them to do so. Without an acoustic warning system, a vehicle is not allowed to take to the roads. “For us as a carmaker, the horn is not really the focus of what we do, but in legal terms, it’s an important warning signal for road users,” says Heinrich.

NBK Automobiles General Manager Khalid Shaaban said: “NBK Automobiles over the years has presented various pioneering and innovative ideas to connect with the local community. Our new campaign carries forward our commitment to provide fans of the Mercedes-Benz SUV range with an enthralling opportunity to experience the car of their dreams in an adventurous and exciting set-up.”

Audi TT makes Qatar debut

Q-Auto, the official dealer for Audi in Qatar, unveiled the brand new Audi TT model at a special launch event.

la Makey, Audi Qatar Sales Manager says: “The Audi TT is one of the most eagerly anticipated model reveals of 2015 in the Audi range. Updated with a distinctive design, a powerful engine and a highly advanced infotainment system, the TT definitely sets a benchmark in road performance. We are excited to offer Audi enthusiasts in Qatar a chance to experience its seamless functionality.” The Audi TT is enriched with numerous dynamic facets while still retaining the brand’s legendary features of being powerful, lightweight, efficient and consistent. Visibly taut and athletic, the coupe is 4.18 meters long with a wheelbase of 2.51 meters and correspondingly short overhangs. Awards Audi has once again received great feedback for its models from the Middle East region’s most respected automotive judging panels. For 2014 and 2015 the brand with the four rings has now achieved a total of 9 awards by several of the leading regional motoring publications, as well as the Middle East Car Of The Year Awards. Furthermore Audi Middle East was shortlisted to win a further two trophies at the prestigious Sports Industry Awards.

90 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

business > marketwatch Seasonal collection

French retailer heads to Doha

The leading French retail store FNAC will soon open doors to its first outlet in the Middle East at Qatar’s Lagoona Mall. Home Centre recently launched its new collection in store with a range featuring a vibrant Bohemian theme. The new collection offers trendy bold and edgy patterns to give one’s home the now factor, among timeless classic pieces and modern concepts.

Founded in 1954, FNAC is a globally recognised retailer with stores worldwide including Europe, South America and North Africa. Doha will be the region’s first destination for the concept store that has entertained audiences globally and will boost the retail brand’s expansion strategy in the Middle East in partnership with Darwish Holding.

Commenting on the new retail destination, Bader Darwish, Chairman and Managing Director of Darwish Holding, said, “With a wide range of products, services and activities, the enchanting world of FNAC promises to further enhance Qatar’s cultural fabric and provide a one-stop destination for the community to access the latest gadgets, discover an amazing book or participate in an inspiring event all under the comfort of one roof.”

he latest campaign launched by Home Centre showcases a stylish boho look featuring lush fabrics with laid-back yet energetic patterns. The Ripoli and Irish sofas take centre stage accessorised to inspire a cozy yet eclectic bohemian appeal. Michelle Dinsmore, Head of visual merchandising said, “This season, we have used bright colours, a variety of fabrics and textures in bold patterns to emphasise the shift in seasons. You will see a lot of cushions, lanterns, rugs and drapes in this style to beautify your home and to add a hint of drama perfectly in time for Spring.’

Avenue launched

The latest addition to Qatar’s premium shopping and retail destination, Avenue in Lagoona Mall recently opened to customers.

ocated on the first level of the mall, and spread over 4000sqft, this promises to offers customers a unique retail experience with a wide choice of high end fashion brands, some of which make their Middle East debut at the new location. Dedicated to fashion and accessories outlets it includes Michael Kors, Karl Lagerfeld, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Juicy Couture, Tory Burch, Versace Collection, Mulberry, the Kooples amongst many others. The Avenue will also host the first ever Chanel Fine Jewelry outlet in Qatar. Hatty Pedder, a renowned artist from the UK has been commissioned to create unique illustrations that will effectively position the Avenue with its target audiences.

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Etihad launches new flight to Madrid

Expanding its flight network in Europe, the UAE national carrier, Etihad Airways, has launched a new service between Abu Dhabi and Madrid a few days ago.

Etihad Aitrways President and CEO JAMES HOGAN and the UAE Ambassador to Spain, HE DR HISSA ABDULLA AHMED AL OTAIBA, along with other officials.

he airline will operate four non-stop flights per week and offers 2,096 seats. Madrid is its first destination in Spain and 20th in Europe. The new service is expected to connect passengers traveling to and from Spain to various destinations in Europe, the GCC region, Indian sub continent, ASEAN, Australia and Africa through Etihad and partner airlines. “This is the beginning of a long journey and Etihad’s global network brings major benefits to Spain besides delivering enhanced flight connections to and from the country,” James Hogan, President and CEO of Etihad Airways told a media conference in Madrid last week. The capital-to-capital link will connect travelers to Madrid and eight cities in Spain including Barcelona, Bilbao, Gran Canaria, La Coruna, Lanzarote, Palma de Mallorca, Tenerife and Vigo, besides Santo Domingo the capital of the Dominican Republic. In addition to providing access for business travellers and holiday-makers, Hogan said that the new service between Abu Dhabi and Madrid will also drive and support the trade and cultural ties between the UAE and Spain. The response to the new route was very good and Etihad will increase the frequency to seven flights per week in the coming months, Hogan said. “Currently around 1,000 Spanish

companies operate and more than 12,000 Spanish nationals live and work in the UAE and these numbers are growing. The UAE is Spain’s largest trade partner across the Gulf region, with trade volumes almost doubling in the last five years - from EUR 1 billion in 2009 to EUR 1.9 billion in 2014,” said Hogan. Allegations baseless Referring to the charges leveled against Qatar Airways, Etihad and Emirates by the U.S. and European airlines that the GCC airlines received funds to the tune of $40 billion in the last decade in the form of state aid by their respective governments, Hogan said the European airlines too were government-owned for 70 years and received funds and assets which they could not build in later years before their privatisation. “When we launched Etihad Airways 11 years ago, we started from scratch and through sheer hard work emerged as the top airline in the world by building a reputation. The GCC airlines are well run and others wish they could emulate us and receive the same support that we do,” he said. He said that GCC region was at the cross roads of the world and the airlines took advantage of its geographical position

to become top operators in the world. If Etihad has invested 49% in Alitalia, it was meant to generate employment, expand its network and benefit the passengers. “We have a clear commercial mandate and started doing business on a clean page. One should not challenge what they don’t understand. I respect what others have done and they should also respect our business model,” Hogan said. On the rivalry with other GCC airlines, he said though the operators respected each other, there was a “fierce” competition among them. However, the GCC airlines were aligned as far as security and political issues were concerned. Admitting that the airspace available to the airlines in the GCC region was constrained due to security reasons, Hogan said that the six GCC nations have formed a committee to look into the problem so that the operators can expand their services. To another question, Hogan replied that China was an important market for the GCC airlines and Etihad will be launching more flights to the country as it was in the process of consolidating its position in the countries where it has launched services. The UAE Ambassador to Spain, Her Excellency Dr Hissa Abdulla Ahmed Al Otaiba, and senior officials from Etihad Airways were among those present QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 93

business > marketwatch

CBQ turns 40 Commercial Bank of Qatar (CBQ) will commemorate its 40th anniversary by hosting a series of special celebratory events and activities, in addition to unveiling a unique anniversary logo and corporate anthem. CBQ officials spoke to Qatar Today of its plans to share its anniversary celebrations with the public.

Commercial Bank CEO ABDULLA SALEH AL RAISI with other officials.

BQ CEO Abdulla Saleh Al Raisi said: “2015 is a special year for Commercial Bank as it marks our 40th year. From entrepreneurial beginnings, the bank has gone from strength to strength driven by the spirit of ambition, entrepreneurship and innovation that our founders believed in and which are still at the core of our business. We are proud to be a home-grown Qatari bank with strong roots in Qatar for four decades and we remain wholly committed to Qatar as our source of inspiration. We are optimistic about the future, and look forward to continuing to serve our loyal customers over the next 40 years and beyond under the visionary leadership of The Emir, His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.” Al Raisi explained the concept behind the CBQ's 40th anniversary logo, which reflects the 40 years of prosperity and innovation since CBQ began operations. Profitable every year since its inception, the bank has brought many “firsts” to Qatar such as ATMs, credit cards, point of sale machines, Internet banking, and was the first Qatari bank to list on the London Stock Exchange. CBQ was incorporated in 1974 as Qatar’s first private bank and opened its doors for business on April 10th 1975. The bank was established by the visionary leadership

94 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

“Profitable every year since its inception, the bank has brought many 'firsts' to Qatar such as ATMs, credit cards, point of sale machines, Internet banking, and was the first Qatari bank to list on the London Stock Exchange.”

of eight founders from prominent Qatari families who laid the foundations for ongoing success. Three of the original directors are still connected with the Board, including Vice-Chairman and Managing Director Hussain Alfardan, Board Member Jassim Mohammed Jabor Al Mosallam and Chairman Sheikh Abdullah bin Ali bin Jabor Al Thani, who is continuing the legacy of his father, Sheikh Ali bin Jabor Al Thani, who was the bank’s first Chairman. Al Raisi said that the bank will host a public concert under the theme “From Doha to the World,” from 7.30 pm to 9.30 pm on May 2nd at the Museum of Islamic

Art Park with the Qatar Philharmonic Orchestra. CBQ’s EGM, Chief Risk Officer, Ms Rana Salatt played a recording of CBQ’s corporate anthem specially commissioned for its 40th anniversary. CBQ's EGM, Strategic Clients, Abduljalil Borhani, said that the bank has commissioned a commemorative book for its 40th anniversary entitled: “Commercial Bank and the Rise of Qatar.” Printed in two parts, the book is a photographic celebration of Qatar at present, with a mixture of both written and visual historical records of the bank’s achievements since 1975, as well as images and profiles of prominent members in Qatari culture. CBQ's EGM, Government Relations, Khalifa Al Rayes announced that an exclusive VIP dinner will be hosted for the bank’s founders, directors, key customers and around 300 high-profile dignitaries in a specially constructed area next to Commercial Bank Plaza at its headquarters. CBQ’s EGM, Chief Human Capital Officer, Sharoq Al Malki said that the staff has played an important role in the bank’s success over the past 40 years. As a reward for their outstanding contributions, the bank will host a fun day for staff and their families at a specially constructed area in the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) Park

Doha Bank launches India operations Doha Bank, one of the largest commercial banks in Qatar, held the inauguration ceremony of its Indian operations in Mumbai on April 29th. Doha Bank is the first Qatari bank to establish full-scale banking operations in India.

he event was attended by dignitaries including HE Ali Sharif Al Emadi, Minister of Finance; HE Sheikh Abdullah bin Saoud Al Thani, Governor of Qatar Central Bank; Indian Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu; Indian Ambassador to Qatar HE Sanjiv Arora; Qatar’s Ambassador to India, HE Ahmed Ibrahim Al Abdullah; Ambassadors to India from other GCC countries; Maharashtra Ministers Subhash Desai and Deepak V Kesarkar; Consular Generals from the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, and leaders from key corporates along with senior members from the banking community in India. Doha Bank was represented by its Chairman, HE Sheikh Fahad bin Mohammad bin Jabor Al Thani; Managing Director, HE Sheikh Abdul Rehman bin Mohammad bin Jabor Al Thani; Board member Ahmed Al Khal; Group CEO Dr. R Seetharaman, and other senior officials. Historic day “This is a historic day for Doha Bank’s expansion in the Indian subcontinent as we consider India as an important market, being one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, which is expected to overtake China in the years to come,” said HE Sheikh Fahad bin Mohammad bin Jabor AlThani.

Minister of Finance, HE ALI SHARIF AL EMADI, QCB Governor SHEIKH ABDULLAH BIN SAOUD AL THANI, Doha Bank Chairman, HE SHEIKH FAHAD BIN MOHAMMAD BIN JABOR AL THANI, Group CEO DR SEETHARAMAN, Indian Raikways Minister SURESH PRABHU, and other officials.

He further added: “Doha Bank has been pursuing a well thought out international expansion strategy as envisioned by the Board of Directors of the Bank, by extending our global footprint across 15 nations worldwide. In this pursuit, Doha Bank is the first Qatari Bank to establish its full-scale banking operations in India. With its presence in the GCC countries, it would further enhance the niche role Doha Bank is playing to facilitate the trade between GCC and India, benefitting its customers in both the locations.” HE Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Mohammad bin Jabor AlThani said: “Launching our Indian operations is yet another milestone and stands testimony to Doha Bank’s constant endeavour to be recognised as a dynamic, modern and international bank. It gives us great pride in commencing a full-fledged banking operation in one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing economy, as we embark on our journey towards becoming a truly global banking powerhouse and a one-stop financial services provider, recognised beyond the shores of the Arabian Gulf.” Big market Dr Seetharaman said: “The huge size of the Indian market, along with its rising per capita income levels and business-friendly policies, render India an essential and

strategic location for Doha Bank. We are keen to expand our operational presence in India in the years to come and have already set in motion our plans to service the customers through innovative and technology-driven products and services. Some of the key products and services include comprehensive NRI 4 in 1 account packages, privileged status for HNIs, credit passportability, project finance/ advisory services to link GCC markets, ECBs and unique deposit/investment products for non-resident Indians. These products would be supplemented by technology-driven solutions such as digital account opening, tablet banking, best-in-class mobile as well as phone banking solutions with SMS alerts, robust Internet banking solutions, instantaneous e-remittances from GCC to India, online payment integration with utility services and a dedicated ‘India Desk’ across all Doha Bank overseas locations to service its customers.” He said that the bank will play a significant role in bridging the GCC investors with various business houses seeking investments in India, in line with the vision set out by the Indian government and thus fulfilling the needs of the investors and the entrepreneurs through the bank’s dedicated project finance team QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 95

culture > doha diary

Reaching for new heights The next segment in the Pioneeering Women series features a candid chat with HE Sheikha Alanoud Al Thani about how, with passion, you will see abilities in yourself thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll leave you surprised. By Alexandra Langston

t only twenty-five years old, HE Sheikha Alanoud bint Hamad Al Thaniâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s list of academic and business achievements is already remarkable. She is currently working as Qatar Country Operations Manager at Silatech, a Qatar-based initiative that develops jobs and economic opportunities for young people. Alanoud also works with multiple institutions for social development on a local, regional and global scale. She is the recipient of several honours and awards, including the Young Arab Achiever in 2011, and is a board member of various entities like Bedaya Centre for Entrepreneurship

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and Career Development and Future Foreign Policy, a university think-tank focusing on international affairs, and is also the director at Tomouh, a regional network for GCC achievers. Alanoud is also a founding member of the Global Shapers Community in Doha, a multistakeholder of the World Economic Forum, led by exceptional young people who develop projects to positively impact their communities. She sits on the Advisory Council on Collaborations at the Global Shapers Community and the Qatar Track 2015 for the World Innovation Summit for Education. To top the list, she is also enrolled in the Qatar Leadership Centre,

an initiative of HH the Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, that serves as a national platform for leadership excellence in support of the country’s development goals. Yet she is as humble as she is prodigious and says, “I don’t think I achieved anything unusual. There is still a universe of concepts I personally do not understand and much of life I cannot make sense of. But there is a different part of me that finds joy in learning and in every opportunity of self-development.” The youngest of six sisters, Alanoud was the first of them to study abroad after gaining a full scholarship to the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). She graduated with a First Class honours degree. She graduated in the top five of her department and was given a partial scholarship to continue her studies at the University of Oxford in Economics for Development. After graduating with distinction from her Master’s course, Alanoud knew she wanted to focus on development work. “It was my passion and commitment to affect positive change in the MENA region that drew me to Silatech in Doha in the first place. I constantly feel the need to be shaken by the shoulders, to be moved by the world. And shaken I have been with my past and current work experiences!” It was this entrepreneurial spirit that got Alanoud to London in the first place and it is something that she proudly inherited from her parents. “My parents are very supportive. I am who I am because of them. They raised me to be conscious of the world beyond our own bubble.” This appreciation extended well beyond Qatar and was furthered by her time abroad, even influencing subsequent career choices. “I always had an international mindset,” she remembers. “Most of my work outside of Silatech is regional or global.” While living in the UK, she worked for Amnesty International, volunteered with several non-profit institutions, and worked in affiliation with UN agencies, international NGOs and community-based groups to serve humanitarian causes in the field of education in conflict zones. She also authored various reports on education and development focusing on the MENA region. When asked about the key challenges for Qatari women in pursuing a career she answers, “Throughout the world

women have their own unique challenges. That’s especially the case in our region and in Qatar, where cultural objections have sometimes served to isolate women and prevent us from playing a full role in society. The challenges to empower Qatari women lie in our social and cultural inheritance, deeply rooted in Khaleeji traditions. There may be some reluctance on the part of women themselves to change their roles so rapidly and dramatically. This hesitation in women engaging in employment and political activity may slow the progress of Qatari women in exercising their rights effectively. The solutions lie in women’s and men’s education about political processes, religious leaders, and men in general, re-thinking the traditional roles of women, and changes in the laws of Qatar that would promote equal rights for women to the full social, economic, and political spheres of the country.” “I believe How Women Work is strengthening the foundation of Qatar’s future through the growth of its knowledge economy and empowering women. That’s why I decided to support the event. This platform allows women to think outside their box. When you mingle with other women you realise that you can make a change.” On change, Alanoud is clear in her intentions. “I don’t just want to be the change; I want to make the change. I draw so much strength from the individuals whose paths were linked with mine on this journey. Their stories keep me going.” Despite her already illustrious list of achievements, Alanoud continues to set her sights on the future. “I see myself in international development or Foreign Service; whether it is as a spokesperson, policymaker or decision maker. I want to make sure the things I am passionate about are really being implemented.” And passion really is what matters when it comes to making a difference. “Make a change and achieve your goals because you are passionate about it, not just to be seen as someone who did something different. Follow your passion and you can do great things, because it will ignite a spark in you and you will surprise yourself. My advice to all women and men out there is to do what makes you feel like you’re the happiest, most alive and most energized versions of yourselves. Ask the questions about what drives you and you will be surprised by how much you can achieve.”

How Women Work - Empowering women to grow and succeed The sixth annual HWW conference is scheduled for 20 & 21 May 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. Tickets are available online at Eventbrite.com and at The One stores at Villagio, Landmark and Lagoona malls. For more inspiration, please go to hwwqatar.com. QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 97

culture > qt take affairs > local

Breabach members from left JAMES LINDSAY, MEGAN HENDERSON, JAMES MACKENZIE, EWAN ROBERTSON and CALUM MACCRIMMON.

Sounds of Scotland By Abigail Mathias

Doha’s residents were transported to the Scottish mountains by the soothing sounds of the award-winning folk band, Breabach. The band has played together as a group for the past 10 years. On their first visit to Qatar, they performed at Souq Waqif’s Al Rayyan Theatre as part of the recently concluded British Festival. 98 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

“W

e are a fivepiece acoustic contemporary folk group,” says James Lindsay, who is the double bass player and vocalist. The band plays a range of instruments unheard of in this region. Popularly considered as the new face of traditional Scottish music, Breabach won Live Act of the Year in 2012 and Folk Band of the Year in 2013 at the MG Alba Scots Traditional Music Awards. They have also been nominated twice for Best Group at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in 2014. Before arriving in Qatar they performed in Australia and New Zealand. They have also played at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and other venues around Europe. Calum MacCrimmon plays the bagpipes,

whistle and bouzouki and handles vocals for Breabach. The bouzouki “is a Greek instrument that’s been adopted by Irish and Scottish tradition. It resonates and buzzes and lends a great sound,” he says. The group looks back on when it all started. “Glasgow is a hub for traditional music which has grown steadily over the past 20 years. We came there to study music and met more than a decade ago,” says MacCrimmon. Since then the band has released four albums with a fifth on the way. With time, their music has also evolved. “One of the biggest influences on traditional music is using modern instruments. Using the violin is relatively new to Scottish music,” explains guitarist Ewan Robertson. Their one-time performance in Doha included a collaborative set with Qatari artist Mohamed Al Saegh who is not only

one of Qatar’s leading musicians but also a television actor, playwright, artist and researcher in folk art. “I play the tanbura, a long-necked string instrument, and an African pipe. There are only a handful of musicians who play these instruments today,” says Al Saegh. “Performances like these are a way of extending our understanding of different cultures,” says MacCrimmon. “Individually we have been involved with musicians in the Middle East in the past, but playing with a Qatari artist is a first for us,” he adds. With Breabach singing in Gaelic and Al Saegh in Arabic, music is the language that brings the two cultures together. Breabach gets its name from a piping term. “The Gaelic term literally means kicking,” says Lindsay. “Much like classical music, piping has variations. Breabach is all about energy and rhythm,” he adds. From stomping tunes to soulful ballads, the music has a distinctive sound, says James Mackenzie who plays the pipes, flute and assists with vocals. “It’s energetic and the tunes are upbeat and have a dance aspect to them,” he adds. The slower ballad, Scotland’s Winter, evokes a call to the snowcapped mountains, while Greenfields, takes you back to a nostalgic time over a long-lost love. “One of the defining sounds of the band is the twin sets of bagpipes which is rare in folk bands,” says MacCrimmon who asks if bagpipes have been played live in Doha before. “The harmony created between the pipes is our defining sound,” he says. Their current album, Urlar, is a Gaelic term which means foundation. “It's related

to the first movement in a type of pipe music and helped us tie in to what our roots are. It shows a connection to the different parts of Scotland that we come from,” says Lindsay. Many of the band members contribute to the traditional music education programme in Scotland and some have solo albums. “The oldest surviving pipe music from Scotland is about 300 years old. One particular piece called Proud to Play a Pipe, was written at a time when playing the pipes was discouraged, explains MacCrimmon. Keen to discover Middle Eastern music on their short visit, they explore Doha’s Souq area. Lindsay is hoping to buy one of the oldest Arabian instruments, the Oud. Megan Henderson step dances to most of the songs and provides vocals in Gaelic and English. She and her group are keen that their Doha audience dance at the show. “We will have everyone singing in Gaelic before the night is finished,” says MacCrimmon

Band members of Breabach with Qatari musician MOHAMED AL SAEGH shortly after their performance at Doha’s Al Rayyan Theatre at Souq Waqif.

QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 99

culture > doha diary ASPIRE SEEKS TO INSPIRE

The sports and recreation hub had a busy month, organising a number of events for children of all ages and their families.

n April, Aspire Zone held the first edition of the Aspire Beach Volleyball Tournament and the Aquathon Series, in an effort to motivate kids into taking up an active lifestyle. The volleyball tournament was over two days and featured 18 teams while the Aquathon required participants to swim 500m at the Hamad Aquatic Centre and then run for 5km around Aspire Zone. In a bid to further engage children and to encourage them to bond with their peers, Aspire Zone also organised an initiative for after-school activities - My School in Aspire - for children aged between 4 and 13 years old as they visit Aspire Zone and take part in a combination of entertainment, exercise and activities like theatre, sports, drawing and health awareness.

Angry Birds Doha has a new home

Plans for the entire entertainment complex in the Mall of Qatar that was to include the Middle’s East first ever Angry Birds theme park have been moved to Doha Festival City. The family entertainment complex, by Talal Bin Mohammed Trading (who partnered with Adabisc and Rovio), will feature four unique attractions, namely the Snow Park; Juniverse, a space-themed family edutainment park; Virtuocity, offering a cutting-edge virtual simulation and gaming experience, incorporating a world-first 200-seat e-Sport gaming arena, console lounges, and bespoke motorsport and aviation simulators, and the Angry Birds Activity Park. The reasons for this change in location haven’t been made clear. 100 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

A QATARI LAUNCHPAD

The inaugural edition of the Launch conference, which seeks to “launch the careers of Qatar’s future leaders”, featured workshops and talks by prominent Qatari business leaders. The annual professional development conference, which included a series of associated learning events, “facilitates the development of Qatari nationals who are commencing their professional career”. The two-day conference featured keynote speakers, interactive learning experiences, goal setting, and reflecting and learning sessions, all focused on developing the future leaders of Qatar. Speakers included Khalifa Saleh Al Haroon, CEO of H.U.G and ILQ Network; Mohammed Al Hayder, Founder at Takallam; Elizabeth Fleming, Founder of Launch and Managing Director at the Qatar Development and Consultancy Center; Isra Al Jefairi, Co-Founder of Launch; Lauren Fryer, Founder of Qanect, and more.

THE WORLD’S LARGEST NOBU OPENS IN DOHA The famous restaurant serving fusion Japanese cuisine, owned by celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa and actor Robert De Niro among others, opened at the Four Seasons Doha last month.

HIA’S LONG-TERM PARKING NO LONGER FREE Hamad International Airport’s long-term car park, which hitherto allowed passengers to park their vehicles free of charge and take a shuttle bus to the terminal, will become a paid enclosure from the end of April, the authorities have announced. You can now leave your car in the space, which has close to 2,500 covered parking spots, for QR2/ hour and QR45/day. Customers will be able to pay by cash or credit card upon exit at one of the payment kiosks at the car park. The airport management has advised its customers to refrain from parking for more than 60 days, which will lead to legal action in accordance with airport procedure.

HONOURING THE MASTERS A new exhibition from Iraqi artist Ismail Azzam, celebrating the memory of 15 late Arab artists, was inaugurated at the Qatar Museums Gallery in Katara. The exhibition, entitled For Them, showcases Ismail Azzam’s distinctive "reverse charcoal" portraits of painters and sculptors who have made a significant contribution to the Arab Art world, with the entire body of work created exclusively for this show. The exhibition features portraits of artists drawn from across the entire Middle East including Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, Kuwait and Iraq, including one of late Qatari artist Jassim Zaini. “With this exhibition, I hope both to raise awareness of these great Arab artists and their stories, and to continue to educate Qatar’s growing artistic community to understand the meaning behind the art,” Azzam says. The exhibition is on till August 31.

GOING ONCE, GOING TWICE With participation from 22 countries and 12 artists being sold for the first time in the Middle East, Sotheby’s contemporary art auction in Doha last month drew bids close to $7.5 million (QR27.3 million).

he top lot of the night’s sale was one of Christopher Wool’s earliest, most desirable and sought-after pattern paintings which fetched $1,330,000 (QR) – setting a new benchmark for a work by the artist in the Middle East. In addition there were strong prices for other major international contemporary artists such as Anish Kapoor and Rudolf Stingel, while topcalibre works by leading Arab artists, particularly those from Egypt, Iran and Lebanon, also performed well. Lina Lazaar, Sotheby’s Director, International Contemporary Art, said, “Following hot on the heels of our October sale of Contemporary art in Doha, we were delighted that our 2015 sale was again greeted with such enthusiasm by local, regional and international participants, spanning the US, right across Europe and the Middle East, as well as Asia.” QATAR TODAY > MAY 2015 > 101

culture > doha diary

SUPREME COMMITTEE FOR DELIVERY / AFP

Of soccer and sand dunes

The Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy revealed the design for the Al Rayyan Stadium, the fifth proposed host venue for the FIFA 2022 tournament.

102 > QATAR TODAY >MAY 2015

he new stadium will be built on the site of Al Rayyan Sports Club’s former stadium, Ahmed bin Ali Stadium, which was recently deconstructed. Materials from the old stadium reportedly will be repurposed for the new 40,000-seater. “The façade of Al Rayyan Stadium is formed from seven patterns, representing different aspects of Qatari culture. The patterns blend together seamlessly to tell the story of the nation. They are based on highly abstracted shapes, which echo decorative motifs found in Islamic architecture,” the committee said in a statement. “Al Rayyan’s desert ambience will be honoured further in structures that will dot the stadium grounds. Resembling sand dunes, these structures will house hospitality areas, concessions and other services.” After the tournament the stadium’s capacity will be reduced to 21,000 in legacy mode with the upper tier of seats being removed and sent to developing nations in need of sports infrastructure.