qatar today june 2012

c o n t e n t sj u n e 2 0 1 2

published by oryx advertising co wll, all rights reserved. qatar today is published monthly by oac, po box no. 3272, doha, qatar. subscription rate qr 180 per year. address all subscription correspondence to qatar today, oryx advertising co wll, po box 3272, al hilal area, doha, state of qatar. for single copies call us on + 974 44672139 or mail to [email protected]. material in this publication must not be stored or reproduced in any form without permission. request for permission should be directed to [email protected]. reprint requests should be directed to the [email protected]. qatar today is a registered trademark of oryx advertising co wll

june 2012volume 38issue 6

www.omsqatar.com

34Riding high with shaRia investmentsQatar Today caught up with the Director of Islamic Market Indexes for Dow Jones, Tariq Al-Rifai, and gathered his thoughts on a range of issues regarding Sharia-compliant investments and how productive the DJIM World Index is against more ‘unrestricted indexes’.

30seven value-cReation impeRatives fRom pRivate equityCompanies strive to create value for their stakeholders, a pursuit that occupies count-less hours in boardrooms and executive suites around the world. Only a select number of companies, however, get it right.

24the poweR of qualityDr Hassan Al Fadala, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director at Qatar Project Manage-ment, quotes William A. Foster: “Quality is never an accident. It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skilful execution”as he explains the role of QPM in construction projects.

c o v e R s t o R y

37qataR inc. aims highqataR today top ten

Qatar Today once again looks at the top-performing companies on the Qatar Exchange in 2011 and tries to find out from the respective CEOs what keeps these companies on top, and if they wew to stumble, what game plans would they adopt?

24 34

75csR todayouR society matteRsThe goal of CSR is to take responsibility for the impact of our activities on society as a whole. Qatar Today analyses the importance of this responsibility in Qatar.

32constRuction sectoR pRopels qataRi economyThe better-than-expected performance of the Qatari economy points to the grow-ing strength of the non-hydrocarbons sector, chiefly driven by a rapidly expand-ing construction industry, which is show-ing itself to be a valuable contributor to economic growth, says Oliver Cornock of OBG.

70the stoRies as they aReIt is time for the Arab world to tell its own stories, says Ahmed Mahfouz, Managing Director of AJ Documentary Channel on the sidelines of the Eighth Al Jazeera International Documentary Film Festival.

68aRt foR the massesJean-Paul Engelen recently celebrated his first anniversary at the Qatar Museums Authority (QMA), where he has been Director of Public Art Programmes since March 2011.

64qataR’s high potential women, please stand upEfforts at accelerating women’s empowerment are still largely small-scale, disjointed efforts that concentrate on entrepreneurship or women working from home. Tataowar explores what can be done to maximise their potential.

c o n t e n t s

n e w s B i t e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 2o & g o v e R v i e w . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 6B a n k n o t e s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 8R e a l t y c h e c k . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 2w o R l d v i e w . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 8B R a k i n g n e w s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 2m a R k e t w a t c h . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 0 2d o h a d i a R y . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 6

RegulaRs

j u n e 2 0 1 2

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published by oryx advertising co wll, all rights reserved. qatar today is published monthly by oac, po box no. 3272, doha, qatar. subscription rate for qr. 180 per year. address for all subscription cor-respondence to qatar today, oryx advertising co wll, po box 3272, al hilal area, doha, state of qatar. for single copies call us on + 974 44672139 or mail to [email protected]. material in this publi-cation must not be stored or reproduced in any form without permission. request for permission should be directed to [email protected]. reprint requests should be directed to the [email protected]. qatar today is registered trademark of oryx advertising co wll reprint re-quests should be directed to the [email protected]. qatar today is registered trademark of oryx advertising co wll reprint requests should be directed to the [email protected].

qataR today invites ReadeRs’ feedBack

shaRe youR views on the magazine oR any issue connected to qataR. one lucky ReadeR will win an exquisite mont Blanc wRiting instRument.

qatar today reserves the right to edit and publish the correspondence. views and opinions expressed in the published letters may not necessarily be the publication’s views and opinions.

write to: the editor, qatar today, po box 3272, doha.

fax: (+974) 44550982, email: [email protected]

puBlisheR & editoR-in-chief yousuf Jassem al daRwish

chief executive sandeep sehgal

executive vice pResident alpana Roy

vice pResident Ravi Raman

editoR sindhu naiR

editoRial cooRdinatoR cassey oliveiRa

coRRespondents RoRy coen

ezdhaR iBRahim

fashion &lifestyle coRRespondent oRna Ballout

aRt diRectoR venkat Reddy

assistant aRt diRectoR hanan aBu saiam

senioR gRaphic designeR ayush indRaJith

gRaphic designeR maheshwaR Reddy

photogRapheR RoBeRt f altamiRano

manageR –maRketing zulfikaR JiffRy

assistant manageRs-maRketing chatuRka kaRandana

thomas Jose

media consultant hassan RekkaB

maRketing ReseaRch and

suppoRt executive emily landRy

accountant pRatap chandRan

sR. distRiBution executive BikRam shRestha

distRiBution suppoRt aRJun timilsina

Bhimal Rai

v o l u m e 3 8 i s s u e 6 J u n e 2 0 1 2

i t s e e m s a paR a d ox t h at w h i l e w e f e lt faR R e m ov e d f R o m t h e h a p p e n i n g s i n h o u l a , s y R i a as t h e w h o l e wo R l d R e ac t e d s t R o n g -ly to t h e B R u ta l m assac R e t h at k i l l e d 3 9 c h i l dR e n , a n ot h e R

s e e m i n g ly h a R m l ess f i R e i n a s h o p p i n g m a l l i n d o h a w R e a k e d h avo c o n o u R sa f e a n d c o c o o n e d l i f e . m ay 2 8 , 2 0 1 2 w i l l g o d ow n i n d o h a’s h i s to Ry i n B l ac k , B o l d l e t t e R s . For however we look at it, it is just not acceptable that a country with low population den-sity and high GDP levels had to sacrifice the lives of 13 innocent tiny tots, four teachers and two rescue workers from Civil Defence, to be reminded of safety features in a public space. All of us at Qatar Today pray for the souls of the departed and hope that this lesson will never ever be taken lightly.Everything seems to lose context when faced with such tragic loss but since we have to get back to business, we remind you of another setback the country faced a few days earlier and how the impediment was used to trigger positive reactions.

Qatar was hoping to add the 2020 Olympics Games to the list of prestigious events it will host, but was denied after a technical report found that shifting the Games from its traditional summer slot to avoid the extremes of temperature risked damaging television revenues. But what was refreshing was how Doha 2020 – the orgainisng committee for the event – reacted to this disappointment, saying they will continue to bid for the Olympics.

“With so many sports venues already in place and budgeted for, we felt that we offered the IOC great certainty and a low cost games plan as well as an exciting legacy vision, es-pecially around developing women’s sport in the Middle East. However for Doha, it will always be a question of when not if,” said Noora Al-Mannai, Chief Executive of Doha 2020.

And while this setback is in no way comparable to the tragic loss of lives, the response and the lessons learnt could be replicated to create a model city, one that makes safety and regulations its cornerstone.

While most of us find it difficult to learn from failure, modern businesses have already learnt that there is no greater teacher than failure.

This month, the Qatar Today cover story is on businesses that have shown great resil-ience at the market – the Qatar Today Top Ten. The CEOs of these top companies share their insights on winning and dealing with failure and some take us through their suc-cessful journey, not all of which were smooth and uneventful. The Qatar Today Top Ten are companies have been evaluated based on the performance of the 42 companies on the Qatar Exchange.

We also talk to the Director of Islamic Market Indexes for Dow Jones, Tariq Al-Rifai and gather his thoughts on a range of issues regarding Sharia-compliant investments. A study in Qatar tries to understand what is holding back women in the workplace, while the Chair-man of Qatar Project Management emphasises quality in construction projects. The Qatar Museums Authority is trying to reach out to the masses through its art exhibition and talk-ing to us is the Director of Public Art Programmes, Jean-Paul Engelen.

In our Spotlight section, we focus on companies who are giving back to society to help sustain our future generations. As the summer peaks, we urge you to be safe.

Drive safe. Doha doesn’t need any more tragic stories…Ma’a salama!

s i n d h u n a i R

f R o m t h e d e s kj u n e 2 0 1 2

l e t t e R s

More than Passion needed

Qatar Today’s May cover story said that “it is only passion that steers the youth towards startups”. Whilst this may be true to an extent, there’s an element of having ‘nothing to lose’ in play as well. Sheikha Al-Misnad entertained the idea of it being more an indulgence – maybe even a novelty – and less of a necessity in this country as there wasn’t an entrepre-neurial culture here, nor is there a serious drive for one when the public sector is so well looked after. It’s all very well and good starting a business, but I’d be interested to know how long these startups stay operational and what kind of revenues they are pulling in.

nora jackson

international startuPs in Qatar

It’s fascinating to read about the political, economic and social relations Qatar is having with the rest of the world. Qatar has a lot to offer the world in terms of hydrocarbon fuels, but it’s willing to negotiate deals with other countries to accelerate practical improvements on the ground and not just to fill its coffers. It’s encouraging to see so many existing and proven companies set up their regional homes here, but I wonder how many internationals come here to start up their businesses?

richard flatley

Water Wastage

I see the government are spending big on a campaign of water conservation. “Keep Water Pulsing – Consume Wisely,” they say. That’s a nice message. I’m afraid the only way people are going to be wise in this context is if they are charged for every drop which comes from their taps. Why not give households a certain amount of “free water” and put a levy on the surplus? If they’re spending so much money on policy, spend it “wisely” and not on lazy rhetoric.

sharanya malik

Best of luck, Qatar

I’d like to wish the Qatari national football team all the best in their June fixtures for 2014 World Cup qualification. They have done the nation proud getting this far, but from what we have seen from this country in the past four or five years, a real push for qualification isn’t beyond this tiny nation any more – in fact, it’s what we now expect.

mohammed al-hassan

[email protected]

outstanding May issuethe may issue of qatar today was simply brilliant. while the quality of the articles is good

as usual, the design has gone really trendy. although i am more tuned in to conventional

ways of presenting an article (for any magazine in general) but this one i guess matches

the style of any international business magazine. qt is always ahead and extensive in con-

tent/topics. looking at its current size and the amount of readable material it packs, it is

definitely good value for money too.s bhardwaj

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Qatar today reserves the right to edit and publish the correspondence. views and opinions expressed in the published letters may not necessarily be the publication’s views and opinions.

can qataR fosteR a cultuRe of entRe-pReneuRship By 2030?

76% 24%y e s n o

t h e w i n n i n g n u m B e R o f t h el as t q t p o l l i s 3 6 7 1 6 4 9

qataR today invites ReadeRs’ feedBack

shaRe youR views on the magazine oR any issue connected to qataR. one lucky ReadeR will win an exquisite montBlanc wRiting instRument.

write to: the editor, qatar today, po box 3272, doha.

fax: (+974) 44550982, email: [email protected]

check out all aRticles of qataR today onwww.issuu.com/oRyxmags/qataRtoday

follow us onwww.faceBook.com/qataRtodaywww.twitteR.com/qataRtodaywww.qataRtoday.tumBlR.com

will you invest in some company on the qataR exchange in 2012?

news Bites

qataR today j u n e 2 0 1 212

csR today: ouR society matteRs 75

he Emir, HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, asked Israel to make a serious push for peace in light of what has happened across

the region in the past 18 months. Addressing the Doha Forum last month,

the Emir said: The Israeli premier is now required to take a long-awaited step to-wards achieving peace. And that peace should be based on cessation of disputed settlements (in occupied Palestinian terri-tories), the 1967 borders and the two-state solution. The Emir reminded Israel that if it continued with its strategy, it would be become isolated in the region.

“Arab public opinion seeks freedom of citizens as well as of countries. Pales-tine is the last Arab homeland that has not been given its freedom to date, and it s time to earn it,” said the Emir while opening the 12th Doha Forum and Enriching the Middle East s Economic Future Confer-ence at the Sheraton Doha.

The Doha Forum is looking to be a figu-rative platform that contributes to shap-ing political and economic aspirations in the region going forward. The Doha Fo-

rum, which is an annual event staged by the Qatar, will take a new approach in the future, by becoming a platform for propos-als that benefit mankind, the Minister pro-posed. There is something wrong, and we

must recognise it. It requires politicians, economists, thinkers, civil society and in-ternational bodies and organisations to in-tensify their solutions, he said.

emiR encouRages isRael to push foR peace

possiBle change in sponsoRship law

t

atar is looking into replacing the contentious sponsorship laws with a liberal contract-based system and the estab-lishment of a trade union to

help advise workers about their rights.The Undersecretary of the Ministry of

Labour. Hussein Yousuf Al Mulla said ask-ing private companies not to keep the pass-ports of their employees was a positive step in removing the sponsorship system, adding

that the term sponsorship is akin to slavery by some human rights organisations.

Al Mulla reiterated however, that a work-er who wished to move to another job in Qatar would have to terminate his contract and leave the country, but he should have some rational justification to do that.

If another employer brings that worker back to Qatar, he must sign a new contract, he clarified. However, he didn t specify if the worker would be required to spend a signifi-

cant amount of time overseas before taking up a new job in Qatar.

Al Mulla said that a Labour Committee would be established with a representa-tion from the private sector and expatri-ate workers to bring about a trade union in the future, whose primary task would be to receive complaints from workers and de-fend workers rights. The Labour ministry would ultimately have no control over the committee.

q

the eMir, hh sheikh haMad Bin khalifa al thani addresses the doha forum at the sheraton last month.

j u n e 2 0 1 2 qataR today 13

n e w s B i t e s

atar National Research Fund (QNRF) recently announced that it has awarded QR512

million to research proposals that come under the scope of the Na-tional Priorities Research Program (NPRP), which has been specifi-cally designed to foster a culture of research in Qatar. Now in its fifth cycle, this marks a 16% increase on the previous one.

Proposals received covered a broad range of disciplines such as the natural sciences, engineer-ing and technology, medical and

health sciences, agricultural sciences, social sciences and humanities.QNRF, a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), launched the fifth cycle in September 2011

and has received over 1,460 Letters of Intent since then, generating a large number of re-search proposals. The 632 proposals that qualified were sent for external review and evalu-ation by up to five international peer reviewers.

atar Solar Technolo-gies (QSTec) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Qa-

tar Electricity & Water Company (QEWC) last month to commit to exploring the possibilities of de-veloping power generation using solar energy in Qatar and beyond. Dr Khalid Klefeekh Al Hajri, Chair-man and CEO of QSTec and Fahad Hamad Al Mohannadi, General Manager of QEWC signed the MoU at QEWC s headquarters.

“This marks important progress towards providing a sustainable source of energy in Qatar, which is part of the Qatar National Vision 2030,” said Dr Al Hajri. “We hope that collaboration will see many projects become a reality both here in Qatar and across the globe.”

Al Mohannadi stated: “The interest in alternative energy sources and solar energy in Qa-tar is growing. The development and advancement of solar cell technology and the related industry should be the corner stone for the future strategy on alternative energy resources. Over the past several years the region has seen a number of pioneering and strategic efforts to diversify energy resources and develop projects that rely on renewable energy. These are all efforts to help conserve traditional energy resources.”

qnRf to commit to new ReseaRch pRoJects

qstec and qewc to develop solaR poweRed eneRgy

q

q

the Supreme Council of Infor-mation and Communication Technology (ictQATAR) estab-lished that QTel had commu-

nicated confusing and/or incorrect information to its customers about data usage limits and charges that ap-ply when those limits are exceeded.

ictQATAR explained that there were no recent tariff changes to the QTel s Hala BlackBerry service offer-ing. It remains that customers who buy the pre-paid Hala BlackBerry service are debited in increments ac-cording to data usage. As the included data usage is 250 MB per/week, QTel is required to notify these customers when they are reaching that limit so that they may be aware of charges that may apply after the limit is ex-ceeded. ictQATAR directed QTel to provide clear and accurate clarifica-tion to its customers on usage limits and charges that apply for the QTel s Hala BlackBerry service offering.

Qtel responded, stating: “Qtel implemented a network upgrade to enhance the customer experience through a new SMS alert service. In the course of implementing this up-grade, a number of customers were identified who were using more than the 250 MBs allocation and were not being charged for the additional data consumed. This system error was soon rectified, resulting in some customers receiving an unexpected charge over the last few days. Qtel acknowledges that the application of data limits took some customers by surprise, and is taking immedi-ate steps to rectify this issue. In-line with Qtel s Customer Charter, those BlackBerry customers who were charged for excess data consump-tion over the past week will have that credit restored to their account.”

ictqataR investigates hala BlackBeRRy seRvice

faisal M. alsuWaidi, qf president of research and development

dr khalid klefeekh al hajri,chairman and ceo of qstec and fahad haMad al Mohannadi, general manager of qewc


n e w s B i t e s

stanbul, Tokyo and Madrid will compete to host the 2020 Olympics after Doha and Baku were cut from the list last month. Doha has

been rejected for a second time in a row. The remaining cities will now embark on a lobbying period with the winner named on September 7, 2014.

The decision by the International Olym-pic Committee (IOC) not to shortlist Doha for the Olympics and Paralympic Games 2020 does not curtail the country’s ambi-tions or its work in progress towards be-coming a regional and global sports hub, Doha 2020 officials said.

Doha 2020 CEO Noora Al Mannai said the Bid Committee was disappointed, but

remained definant about the future. “We are still committed to our sports legacy proj-ects and to empowering women through sports. With so many sports venues already in place and budgeted for, we felt that we of-fered the IOC great certainty and a low cost Games plan as well as an exciting legacy vi-sion, especially around developing women’s sport in the Middle East.

“The good news is that our National Vi-sion and master plan guarantees an urban fabric that places sport at its heart; there-fore Doha will be ready to host the Games whenever the IOC leadership grants the wider IOC membership the opportunity to decide the fate of bidding nations at this stage of the process. Nevertheless, much of the legacy plans for 2020 will go on.”

atar National Broadband Network (Q.NBN) and Vodafone Qatar QSC (Vodafone) have signed an interim wholesale agreement in a move towards bringing high-speed communications to all who live and work in Qatar. The agreement was signed by Mohamad Al-Mannai, Q.NBN CEO and Richard Daly, Vodafone Qatar CEO.

This agreement is the first such wholesale agreement to enable a licensed telecom opera-tor to use Q.NBN s network to deliver telecom services to customers. Last year they defined how the two organisations could work together to realise the Qatar government s objective to roll out an accessible nationwide high-speed fiber optic network.

Under this interim wholesale agreement, Vodafone will initially provide broadband ser-vices to residential and business customers in Barwa City and Barwa Commercial Avenue.

q.nBn and vodafone qataR sign agReement

doha fails to make 2020 olympic shoRtlist

q

i

qatar joined a consortium of found-ing member countries to establish the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) last month. HE Abdullah bin

Hamad Al-Attiyah, Chairman of Qatar s Administrative Control and Transparency Authority, who initialed the agreement on behalf of Qatar, described the institute as an important initiative to address the challenge of climate change.

HE Al-Attiya stated: “The GGGI plays a critical role in our collective effort to pro-mote the paradigm of green growth, and ultimately improve the economic, envi-ronmental and social conditions of both developing and emerging countries.”

The member countries now move to-wards shaping the global knowledge for green growth, an initiative that will work on identifying major knowledge gaps in green growth theory and practice.

social Development Center (SDC), a member of Qatar Foundation, an-nounced the winning entrepreneur-ial projects for the first series of the

Reyada Awards for Qatari Entrepreneurs. The awards were presented to the win-

ners by HE Munira Bint Nasser Al Missned, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, SDC, accompanied by Amal Al Mannai, Executive Director, SDC, as well as a number of VIPs and renowned figures in Qatari society.

Winning entrepreneurs in the New Ven-ture Challenge category included Lulwa Al Mansouri, who earned the Golden award, followed by Mohamed Mansour Al Shar-shani, recipient of the Silver award.

Saleh Alaidh was also awarded first place for Entrepreneur Achiever Award while Shams Al Qasab ranked second in that cat-egory. In the Outstanding Entrepreneurial Support Award category, Vodafone earned the Golden award for its dedicated corpo-rate social responsibility efforts to support entrepreneurship, while College of the North Atlantic earned the Silver award in the same category.

qataR Joins the gloBal gReen gRowth institute

sdc announces winning entRepReneuRs

o & g oveRview


alJazeeRa telling the stoRies 70

oil pRofessionals meet in dohaundreds of oil and gas in-dustry professionals met in Doha for three days to discuss new production op-timisation technologies to

meet the rapid growth in the global demand for energy.

The International Production and Opera-tions Conference and Exhibition, organised for first time in Qatar by the Society of Pe-troleum Engineers, was held on May 14-16, under the patronage of HE Dr Mohamed bin Saleh Al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry.

Wael Sawan, Executive Vice-President for Qatar Shell, underlined Shell’s views on the global energy challenge and the forecast growth of global demand.

He said: “Global demand for energy is ex-pected to double in the first half of the cen-tury, driven by a rising global population and growth in the developing economies. At the same time, we must urgently tackle greenhouse gas emissions to avoid the worst consequences for the environment. Although cleaner energy sources will meet

a growing share of demand (30%), fossil fu-els will continue to meet up to 65% of global demand for decades.

“At Shell,” Sawan went on, “we’ve re-searched all current energy types. And we found that in the 20th century, it took around 30 years for new energy sources and carriers to capture 1% of the market after commercial introduction.”

The top executive of Shell in Qatar cited a number of examples detailing Shell’s response to this challenge, including en-hanced oil recovery (EOR) technologies, unlocking tight gas using floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG), and also chemically converting gas into high-quality liquid hy-drocarbon (GTL) to meet growing global demand for these products.

h

asGas Company Limited (RasGas) achieved yet another milestone when the first Q-Flex vessel delivered Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) at the Barcelona LNG receiving terminal in Spain. It was not only the first RasGas Q-Flex vessel to discharge LNG at the Barcelona LNG receiving terminal but also the largest the terminal had ever received.

The LNG cargo was delivered aboard RasGas’ long-term chartered Q-Flex vessel Al-Ut-ouriya. The cargo was part of RasGas’ long-term LNG Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with Endesa Generacion, SA.

R

BaRcelona gets Rasgas lngQatar takes Major stake in shellqatar became an investor in royal

dutch shell company as the coun-

try’s sovereign wealth fund prepare

to buy a 3 to 5% stake in europe’s

biggest oil company.

“we are delighted to welcome the

qatar investment authority (qia) as

a long-term and major shareholder

in shell, and particularly given our

excellent strategic relationship

with the qatari state,” said ross

whittam, a london-based spokesman

for shell.

the company’s comments fol-

lowed a report on the purchase in

the middle east economic survey

(mees). shell said it would issue a

statement when any shareholder’s

stake rose above 3%.

h i g h l i g h t

he dr MohaMed Bin saleh al-sada, minister of energy and industry with shell officials

Bank notes


qataR’s women in Business 64

he Qatar Asset Manage-ment Company (QAMC) – a collaboration between the Qatar Financial Centre Authority (QFCA) and the

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) – and Barclays Natural Resources Investments (BNRI), a division of Barclays Bank PLC and global private equity business focused on natural resources investment opportu-nities, recently announced the formation of a strategic partnership.

Under the partnership terms, QAMC will invest QR910 million ($250 million) in BNRI’s current and future portfolio com-panies, of which a substantial proportion will be allocated to BNRI’s existing QR7.65 billion portfolio of companies. BNRI will continue to source, execute, manage and exit private equity transactions in the natural resources sector on a global basis and co-investors will be invited to partici-pate immediately upon completion of each

transaction.The regional BNRI office will be located

within the QFC and Mark Brown, Manag-ing Director and Head of BNRI, added: “The demand for natural resources continues to grow as the global economy expands, but their supply is limited. This means our focus investment area of global natural resources is set to continue to generate attractive in-vestment opportunities. Our partnership with QAMC and Qatar allows BNRI to cap-ture that opportunity for the benefit of all our co-investors.”

Abdulrahman Ahmad Al-Shaibi, Man-aging Director of the QFCA, commented: “This strategic partnership is an important milestone in Qatar’s strategy of developing an asset management hub and promoting the expansion of Qatar’s financial services industry. Barclays is already well estab-lished in Doha as a QFC-licensed entity, and we are delighted now to welcome the BNRI team to the QFC.”

qamc and BaRclays foRm paRtneRship

t

BQ reported that inflation in March, as measured by the consumer price index (CPI), levelled at 1.2% year-on-year (y/y) for the third

consecutive month. By the end of 2011 inflation had averaged

1.9% (y/y), rising on the back of a rapidly-growing economy, expansionary fiscal poli-cies, burgeoning global fuel, food and com-modity prices (especially in the first half of 2011) and a stabilising rental market.

Among the four largest components of the CPI, “entertainment, recreation and culture” posted the highest year-on-year change of 5.5%, followed by “food, bever-ages and tobacco”, which increased by 3.4% y/y. “Transport and communications” gained 2.0% y/y, while “rent, fuel and en-ergy”, the largest category, continued its deflationary pattern, declining by 5.7% y/y.

Pronounced inflation in the transport and communications category, which aver-aged 6.4% during 2011, came in the wake of a 25% increase in the price of fuel by the Qa-tari government in January, 2011. This was a major contributor to inflation in 2011.

Despite depressed housing rents, head-line inflation is expected to continue to rise gradually over the course of the year by an average of 2.0% y/y. Inflationary impulses are likely to stem from government’s capi-tal spending plans ahead of the 2022 World Cup, burgeoning credit growth, accommo-dative monetary policies and recent public sector pay and pensions increases in 2011.

consumeR pRice inflation

i

al khaliji announced the launch of its new online banking service last month.“as a result, close to 95% of transactions that can be done at any of our branches can now be done online,” said robin mccall, al khaliji group chief executive officer. “whether it be transferring funds, paying off a credit card, and so forth. but what really makes this service stand out is the user interface; it appears, and acts, like a modern smart application, as we decided that the traditional look and feel of typical online banking websites met neither our needs nor our brand,” he added.

al khaliji launches online banking service

s&p Rates qataR islamic Bank ‘a-/a-2’

in a move that reflects Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB)’s sound financial position and busi-ness strategy, Standard & Poor’s recently

assigned its ‘A-’ long-term and ‘A-2’ short-term counterparty credit ratings to QIB with a stable outlook rating on the long-term.

S&P, which rates QIB for the first time, hailed the bank’s business position, its leading position in the fast-growing Qatari Islamic banking seg-ment and its business model and management. It views QIB’s capital and earnings as ‘strong’ and expects the bank to register strong loan

growth, believing its operating margins should remain stable enough to operate with healthy internal capital generation.

According to S&P, the bank’s lending book is predominantly domestic, and therefore direct-ly tied to the domestic environment in Qatar. This is largely in line with its view on the Qatari economy having strong momentum, being de-pendent on oil and liquefied natural gas pro-duction and large infrastructure development programmes. With regard to industry risk, the banking industry is underpinned by a high and stable share of core deposits, strong efficiency, and recently more stringent lending practices.


[email protected]

BY david russellSenior executive officer, Guardian Wealth ManaGeMent

david russell joined guardian wealth management in geneva, helping from inception to establish an office which is now regarded as one of the leading providers of independent financial advice

to the employees of many international organisations.with the expansion of the company into the middle east, david was elected to take over the reins

as the senior executive officer for qatar. he brings a wealth of experience to the qatar office as well as a sound legal background, which stands him in very good stead in ensuring the team

bring the best in financial advice to their many expatriate clients.

longeR life expectancy and potential caReeR BReaks aRe two stRong Reasons to make financial planning a pRioRity foR pRofessional women. and while the Basics of a good financial planning stRategy should not Be gendeR-dRiven, theRe aRe a numBeR of suBtle diffeRences that pRofessional women should take into account.

Achieving financial success during your time working in Qatar is a fundamental target for all pro-fessional women. Effective planning is the

route to realising such a goal - one which maps out your financial priorities. For many women, shoring up potential financial gaps in your career in terms of retirement planning is a key priority.

This involves maximising the tax free status you currently enjoy while working here. A good starting point is to draw up an income/expenditure plan which will reveal how much of your salary you can commit to a savings plan. Take into account company allow-ances which may take care of essentials such as housing, car, health insurance and other perks - all of which leverage the amount of disposable income.

A key consideration for professional women is the possibility of taking a career break to accommodate family commitments. Taking a few years out of the earnings pool can greatly reduce the growth potential of your savings. So putting aside more now while you are earning can help to keep your financial plan on track and ensure your savings grow to the required level.

It’s also important to take extra care about the savings vehicle chosen. Plans that allow you to pause contributions or ones that offer flexibility in terms of payment level can be more useful to those who have an eye on future family commitments.

Retirement planning features highly on the agenda for most women who have been working or living internationally, partic-ularly where they have been doing so for a number of years. Job changes, uncertainties of short-term contracts, moving to differ-ent countries and career breaks all take their toll on the flow of sav-ings into retirement schemes and a review of pensions and other retirement options should be carried out on a regular basis.

So taking a look at some of the key issues facing professional women when undertaking financial planning in more detail, we have highlighted three important considerations that profes-sional women need to take into account when drawing up their financial plan.

1. The glass ceiling. The percentage of female expatriates has

hovered at 17-20% for the past five years, according to the latest report from Brookfield Global Relocation Services. In its 2011 re-port, Brookfield potentially puts this stagnant growth down to ca-reer development issues which see women less likely to be offered international assignments. Family issues and lack of support are other reasons put forward for the lack of growth in female expatri-ates. So professional women need to bear in mind that with career progression choice potentially limited they need to ensure they are maximising the financial benefits offered in their current role.

2. Career breaks. Women are more likely than men to take long career breaks for family reasons. It is important to build this into planning for retirement and to cover any potential gaps by maxi-mising your current earning potential and increasing monthly savings and investments.

3. Longer life expectancy. According to statistics, women gener-ally live longer than men, which means they will need to consider saving more for a longer retirement. There is no easy answer to this, apart from increasing savings, as your savings goal could also be complicated by the possibility of taking a career break. Howev-er, don’t overlook the potential to maximise tax breaks and using tax efficient savings and investment strategies where possible.

Of course longer life expectancy aside, there is a chance that some of these conditions will change in the future. With global companies under increasing pressure to remain competitive, tra-ditional expat packages are giving way to alternative models that include shorter term assignments abroad.

According to Brookfield Global Relocation Services 2011 survey this move favours women who, as a result, are likely to see an in-crease in the number of expatriate career opportunities available to them. And with increased choice comes increased opportunities for financial planning.

Getting in tune now with the subtle financial planning dif-ferences professional women face may prove beneficial in the longer term

A subtle ApproAch to finAnceB a n k n o t e s

Realt y check


qpm: the poweR of quality 24

espite grappling with challenges and delivery issues related to current projects, major opportunities in the construction sector remain preva-lent in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Iraq in 2012, according to the newly released Deloitte Middle East’s annual report on the sector: ‘GCC Powers of Construction: Five Lessons to Learn From’.

Key findings in the Deloitte report indicate that large infrastructure projects, par-ticularly around social and transport infrastructure, will offer tremendous opportuni-ties for contractors, as will continuing upstream and downstream oil and gas related developments in the coming years.

Of the biggest investments currently underway is Qatar’s plan to spend QR364 bil-lion ($100 billion) in preparation for hosting the 2022 World Cup and achieving its 2030 vision, and Saudi Arabia’s capital spend programme approaching QR1.5 trillion ($400 billion) over the next 10 years alone. The Deloitte report indicates that although there are massive opportunities associated with huge construction spend, many proj-ect sponsors still have to deal with illiquid projects and debt.

The Deloitte report classified Qatar as the fastest growing economy in the GCC re-gion and holding an 8% share of the total value of the regional projects. In terms of its construction industry, its value was forecasted at approximately QR29 billion in FY11. Projects planned to be underway in Qatar in the future are valued at approximately QR840 billion ($230 billion). Sports will be a key element of the construction industry boom, in the non-oil and gas sector, with investments allocated to hotel, leisure, tour-ism, sports, recreational and infrastructure projects estimated at QR220-250 billion ($60-70 billion).

d

qataR holds 8% shaRe of Regional pRoJects

cityscaPe shoWcases neW Projectscityscape qatar, an international real estate investment and development exhibition and conference, was opened by the vice chairman of the qatar chamber of commerce, mohammad bin ahmed bin towar al-kuwari at the doha exhibition centre.

al Wa’ab City officially announced the ap-pointment of Benchmark International as its Development Managers. Benchmark brings a wealth of experience in managing

iconic developments offering solid, sustainable propositions across the MENA region.

Sheikha Hanadi Bint Nasser Al Thani the CEO of Al Wa’ab City welcomed the new part-nership and said, “We are very pleased to have Benchmark International on board as Al Wa’ab City’s Development Managers. While this part-nership will ensure quality and delivery, it shall also reflect vision and values of Al Wa’ab City, cementing its central position as the inviting hub of a vibrant community, a complete living, working and lifestyle experience.”

Boasting an array of living and working spac-es, a large percentage of Al Wa’ab City consists of landscapes; providing an attractive, authen-tic and enhanced environment. It will be home to more than 8,000 people, offering a safe and well maintained environment with one of the lowest density ratios of any major development around the city of Doha.

al wa’aB Backon tRack


arwa Real Estate Group, revealed its latest commu-nity-oriented residential property – Lusail Golf Resi-dential Development, at

Cityscape 2012, which was held from May 23 to 25, 2012.

Covering an area measuring 3,659,736 square metres, 31% of Lusail Golf Residen-tial Development is allocated to residen-tial areas and 69% to sports facilities and green areas. 28% features public areas and gardens, 12% open spaces, such as, pedes-trian paths, roads and utilities, and 2% is dedicated to community amenities, such as, schools, mosques, a hotel, and a health clinic. A further 26% is dedicated to sports amenities which include a golf course, golf club and tennis facilities, and 31% features low and medium residential density zones.

R e a l t y c h e c k

BBaRwa’s new ventuRe announced

he winners of the inaugural Cityscape Awards for Real Estate in Qatar were an-nounced to recognise and reward outstanding indi-viduals and companies who

are leaders in delivering outstanding real estate developments in the exciting Qatari market. Awards were presented in six categories, and winners were:

Best Sustainable Development Award – Msheireb Properties, for the Msheireb Downtown Doha project

Best Public Sector Award – Hamad Medical Corporation, for the Cyclotron PT CT Centre

Best Mixed Use Project Award, BUILT – The Pearl Qatar United Development Company

Best Mixed Use Project Award, FU-TURE – Barwa Real Estate, for the Bar-wa Al Doha – Baraya project

Best Tourism and Hospitality Award, FUTURE – Al Sharq Village & Spa Hos-pitality

Best Residential Project Award, BUILT – The Pearl Qatar United Development Company

zdan Real Estate Company is ranked first among the Arab real estate com-panies, by sector, and is listed as one of the top 500 Arab companies based on capitalisation listed for the year 2011. According to the list of the ‘Finance and Business’, the specialised business magazine, the market capitalisation of Ezdan Real Estate Company reached $16,165,590,000 (QR59 trillion)

by 2011. Ezdan Real Estate Company is one of the first 500 listed Arab companies, and is ranked

seventh based on market capitalisation for the years 2010 and 2011. The company has been ranked third among the local companies that are listed at the Arab market list comprising the GCC countries, Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco, Lebanon, Jordan and Palestine.

Of the top ten companies out of the 500 selected Arab companies there are three Qatari companies, four Saudi companies, two Kuwaiti companies and one Emirati company. As for the Qatari companies, Qatar National Bank is ranked first, among the Qatari companies, and is ranked third among the Arab nations; while Industries Qatar ranked second among Qatari companies and fourth in the Arab world. Ezdan Real Estate Company is ranked third among Qatari companies, and seventh overall in the Arab world.

the Best Real estate pRoJects Recognised

t

RaRe honouR foR ezdan

e

barwa’s stand at cityscape 2012



Al Fadala says that quality can never be achieved with-out proper management no matter how impressive the initial plan or how innovative the design is. And quality is at the forefront of the project management industry today and of vital importance to the develop-ment of Qatar as it continues its pace of growth. He

talks to Qatar Today about Project Management in Qatar.

What are the most important elements of project manage-ment in relation to large scale construction projects?I would like to quote His Highness Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, “Comprehensive development is our main goal in achieving advancement for our country and the prosperity of our people.” In one sentence, His Highness has summed up our wide-ranging goals - to create and build a comprehensive development plan which will serve Qatar’s people and their quality of life, infrastructure, economy and social foundations and, in effect, its future.

These words touch upon the most elementary factors of suc-cess, the most fundamental of which is quality. Quality is at the forefront of the project management industry today and of vi-tal importance to the development of Qatar as it continues its stunning pace of growth.

Another imperative role project management has always played is that of cost control and cost management. Project man-agement helps owners complete a project on budget regardless of variable factors; this applies to governments, real estate devel-opers or even investors. Project management identifies all cost-relevant areas and takes into consideration risks, contingencies and currency fluctuations. Project management oversees the

designers’ work, the material specification process and require-ments to ensure the client’s budget and desired outcome are in line with the project owner’s expectations. This essential exer-cise does not end there, but continues throughout the project lifecycle to manage the cash flow of the project and to control the running cost.

The result is a robust and reliable budget that can take the project from the initiation date to completion and beyond, to a successful and viable outcome. The key to success is, again, timely involvement of project management.

To give you an abbreviated example of the necessity and cost effectiveness of project management, I will share with you one of our recent cases. Our team was asked to provide a value en-gineering exercise for a multi-billion riyal development. This project management approach helped the owners of the project save 14% of the total cost of the project at a cost of 2% for project management services.

Last, but not least, the third and most important pillar is time. To make sure that we deliver on time, we need to plan, execute and monitor our projects through effective project management and time management using scheduling and planning.

Which are the projects in Qatar that are being managed by QPM?The scope of QPM’s projects are diverse and incorporate multi-use developments including residential apartments and villas, civil infrastructure, hotels, retail and commercial centres, leisure facilities such as golf courses and health clubs, medical facilities, schools, and mosques.

Within Qatar, QPM is currently providing project management

we always assume quality costs moRe. But it is undisputed among those who undeRstand total quality management that quality Reduces cost, pRimaRily By Reducing waste and unnecessaRy system Redundancy. stRessing the impoRtance of quality, dR hassan al fadala, vice chaiRman and managing diRectoR at qataR pRoJect management quotes william a fosteR. “quality is neveR an accident. it is always the Result of high intention, sinceRe effoRt, intelligent diRection and skilful execution.”

the power of quAlity dr hassan al fadala,

vice chairman and managing director, qatar project management



services for three key developments: Phase 1 of Barwa City, Bar-wa Commercial Avenue, QP District, and Al Duhail Camp. Barwa City is a site that masses a footprint of approximately 2.7 million square metres and is located in the Musaimeer Area. This devel-opment is positioned as one of the largest civil projects in Qatar and directly reflects QPM’s ability to facilitate mega-projects.

Once completed, Phase 1 will offer housing for more than 35,000 residents by creating nearly 6,000 apartments.

What are the steps undertaken by QPM in the project management process?Effective project management encompasses conducting feasi-bility studies and reviews, programme development and man-agement, cost management, project control, health and safety management, environmental management, risk management, stakeholder management, claim management and resolution, all while implementing the client’s vision according to international quality standards.

What challenges are faced when managing big projects, especially those that are specific to the region? One of the omnipresent challenges – the world over – is cost. The global financial crisis shook the whole world and affected all.

The real estate sector was the biggest loser in this crisis, world-wide. We’ve learned from past experiences that reaching the former level will take time. Therefore, we need to make wise and diligent economic decisions and build our projects on the basis of supply, demand and economic feasibility. From a project man-agement perspective, the crisis showcased the need for experi-enced project management companies because a project will not be economically successful if it is delayed, of high cost or of low construction quality.

What according to you is the biggest constraint in the region, with regard to timely completion of projects?The sheer size of the projects is the biggest factor. Due to their large size, most projects are split into phases and take years, some of them decades, to complete. For example it will take 12 years to completely finish the new Barwa project in Cairo. Many things may happen within that timeframe i.e. change in scope, design, budget, manpower or any other external factors, which make project management very challenging.

Who are your competitors in this field?Our competitors are all foreign companies, but we look at com-petition with a positive perspective, which stimulates us to work harder and develop our services and capacities in order to benefit the national economy.

What are the important projects in the region and what is the USP of QPM to be the preferred choice in project management?QPM’s regional portfolio includes Al Hourara Coastal Resort in Morocco, Ibn Hani Bay Resort in Syria, Al Rayyan Hills in Ye-men, the Mshaireb project in Sudan, and the Waterfront project in Libya are just a few of QPM’s international projects. The port-folio also extends to three projects in Egypt, including the Nile

Corniche in downtown Cairo, BARWA New Cairo and the Sharm El Sheikh Resort.

We provide our services through a multinational team of high-ly-skilled, qualified professionals supported by the latest Infor-mation technology and effective project management software such as the Building Information Modelling System that maps an entire project and isolates construction clashes before they might present a problem.

The Building Information Model provides a single, consistent and dependable source of all the information associated with a building project for each of the three major phases in the build-ing lifecycle: design, construction, and operation.

Our international expertise derives from strategic partner-ships with world-renowned companies supported by a wealth of know-how, developed over decades.

QPM is celebrating its fourth year in operation. What have you achieved in the past four years and what is your vision to move forward? QPM has attained management system certifications in three sectors: namely ISO 9001:2008 (for Quality), ISO 14001:2004 (for Environment) and OHSAS 18001:2007 (for Health and Safe-ty). QPM has secured a contract to manage a huge new develop-ment on behalf of Qatar’s Internal Security Force (ISF). The ISF has a requirement for a new camp at Al Duhail on the outskirts of Doha. QPM will oversee the design, construction and overall project management for the development, which will cover four million square metres in total.

Further, QPM is managing the project of Musheireb Develop-ment in Khartoum, which represents a milestone for QPM in that it is an international project.

These are just three examples of the scores of positive steps QPM has made in its short history.

Where does the construction sector stand at present in Qa-tar? When do you think all the projects will come together for the 2022 World Cup, and at what stage should planning for these projects be executed?

The construction sector in this country is certainly healthy. Qatar has weathered the global downturn and replied with stun-ning growth to become the world’s fastest-growing economy.

The country has many ongoing projects which is changing the face of the country. These include Lusail City, the Doha Metro, Qatar Rail and, of course, the development of the stadiums and infrastructure for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

We are now beyond the planning stage and into the develop-ment of the projects related to the World Cup. I have no doubt that with effective project and time management Qatar will de-velop and execute an excellent 2022 World Cup, on time and on budget. But again, while Qatar’s GDP is currently heavily reli-ant on hydrocarbon extraction and sale, the diversification of the economy continues apace to bring other revenue streams online. QPM is part of this process, bringing the hugely productive skills-based sector of project management to the table. There is much to do, but QPM sees the challenges ahead, welcomes them, and aims to turn these challenges into opportunities through vision, ability and application

aRaB snippets


haRleying all the way to oman 96

for the first time, Oman will hold elec-tions for its Municipal Council (MC) in October, according to an announcement

by Sayyid Hamoud bin Faisal Al-Busaidi, Minister of Interior.

The date for the elections will be an-nounced later, but the nomination process

started on May 19. Nominations would close on May 30, said a report by the official Oman News Agency (ONA).

Members of the Shura and State Coun-cils are not eligible to contest the municipal elections. The rules also bar all government employees from contesting MC elections.

he leaders of the Gulf Coop-eration Council (GCC) have endorsed an agreement that will promote collec-tive security among the six member states.

Abdullatif Al-Zayani, the GCC secre-tary-general, said at a press conference on May 14, in Riyadh following the 14th GCC consultative summit that all the countries approved the accord and that the leaders had instructed their interior ministers to sign it.

The agreement stipulates full coopera-tion between member states and mutual responsibilities to preserve their collective security and stability.

It also highlights the need to promote common security arrangements to the highest standards to help combat transna-tional and organised crime. It also boosts full compliance with the law by all GCC citizens in the member states. Gulf leaders gathered in the desert kingdom to discuss developing their six-nation council into a union, a Saudi proposal likely to start with the kingdom and unrest-hit Bahrain.

o m a n

ua e

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gcc union on the caRds?

in a handout picture released by the official saudi press agency (spa), gcc leaders and officials pose for a group picture on the sidelines of a summit meeting in the saudi capital, riyadh on may 14, 2012. from l to r: saudi crown prince nayef bin abdulaziz, kuwaiti emir sheikh sabah al ahmad al sabah, qatar’s emir sheikh hamad bin khalifa al thani, omani deputy prime minister fahd bin mahmoud al-said, saudi arabia’s king abdullah bin abdulaziz, his bahraini counterpart king hamad bin isa al khalifa and emirati vice-president and ruler of dubai, sheikh mohammed bin rashid al maktoum.

the Arab Parliament has reaffirmed the UAE’s full sovereignty over three islands – the Greater and Lesser Tunbs and Abu

Musa – calling on Iran to settle the issue amicably through direct negotiations or the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

Ahmed Mohammed Al-Jarwan, Head of the UAE Parliament Bureau delegation to the Arab Parliament meetings, said in a statement that the issue of occupation of the three UAE Islands by Iran had been in-cluded in the agenda of the Arab Parliament to settle it, adding that the UAE is keen to

participate in all regional, international and special parliamentary sessions.

He called for parties to comply with the Palestinian Reconciliation Charter, speed up its implementation, set up a national reconciliatory government and comple-ment the work of a committee to develop the Palestinian Liberation Movement. Al-Jarwan also called on the Arab Parliament to seriously support the Palestinian strug-gle, especially over Jerusalem, through as-sertion of the right of the Palestinian people to resist the occupation in all forms.

municipal elections foR the fiRst time

islands matteR

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to

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w o R l d v i e w


hollande Pour la francefrance, paris: france’s newly-elected president francois hollande

celebrates at the place de la bastille on may 7 after the announcement

of the first official results of the french presidential second round.

socialist candidate hollande won the french presidential election with

51.6% of the vote, ousting right-wing incumbent nicolas sarkozy.

afp photo / thomas coex

yeMen unrest yemen, sanaa: a yemeni military police-

man shows his bloodied gloves as he

and colleagues collect evidence at

the site of a suicide bomb attack in

sanaa on may 21, 2012. a yemeni soldier

packing powerful explosives under his

uniform blew himself up in the middle

of an army battalion in the yemeni

capital, killing 96 troops and wound-

ing around 300, a military official and

medics said.

afp photo/ mohammed huwais

w o R l d v i e w


tyMoshenko recoveringukraine, kiev: the daughter of ukraine’s jailed

former prime minister yulia tymoshenko, yevgenia

tymoshenko, reads a letter from her mother in

front of a giant screen displaying a picture of

the opposition leader on may 12 during an anti-

government protest in kiev. the 51-year-old orange

revolution standard-bearer, who suffers from

debilitating back pain, was moved from jail to a

hospital in ukraine’s second city, kharkiv, on may 9.

she had accused prison guards of beating her and

released photos of her bruises.

afp photo / sergei supinsky

Blue Moonunited kingdom, manchester: manchester city’s

belgian midfielder vincent kompany (r) and

manager roberto mancini hold the trophy

as they celebrate becoming english premier

league champions in a parade leaving from

manchester town hall on may 14. manchester

city scored twice in injury time to beat qpr and

ultimately beat manchester united on goal dif-

ference to the premier league crown.

afp photo/ andrew yates

sino-us tension easesunited states, new york: blind chinese activ-

ist chen guangcheng ( l) and his wife yuan

weijing smile upon their arrival at the new

york university village apartment complex in

manhattan in new york, may 19, 2012. china al-

lowed the activist to leave a hospital in beijing

and board a plane for the us, a move which

was hoped would end a diplomatic standoff

between the two countries.

afp photo / mladen antonov


v i e w p o i n t

companies stRive to cReate value foR theiR stakeholdeRs, a puRsuit that occupies countless houRs in BoaRdRooms and executive suites aRound the woRld. only a select numBeR of companies, howeveR, get it Right.

seven vAlue-creAtion imperAtives from privAte equity

Middle East companies can improve their chances of finding the correct approach by applying the best practices of the top-tier private equity (PE) firms. These international players have lessons to teach because they regularly create economic value and build efficient, high-growth businesses. Leading PE firms in the Middle East, that have the correct value-creation approach for their portfolio companies and sustain it over time, have been generously rewarded. Owners, boards and executives of public and private companies can learn from PE firms’ seven critical imperatives that Booz & Company has identified. They can adapt them to their own business models to cre-ate additional and lasting value.

Focus on valueThe first imperative for PE firms is a re-lentless focus on value. To attract contin-ued investment from investors and right-fully earn their fees, PE firms maintain close attention to value-creation beyond

simple financial engineering and severe cost-cutting. Today, PE deals are increas-ingly featuring substantial operational improvements that result from the ap-plication of deep industry and functional expertise, going down to core operations. More importantly, PE firms regularly evaluate the value-creation potential of the businesses in their portfolio and quickly exit business lines that do not draw on these companies’ core strengths and differentiating capabilities.

Middle East companies can apply a sim-ilarly impartial lens to their portfolio, that will allow them to prune their activities after assessing financial performance and then the degree to which a portfolio com-pany employs mutually reinforcing capa-bilities that cross business unit lines and that distinguish the enterprise as a whole.

Remember that cash is kingPE firms typically finance 60-80% of an acquisition with debt. This high-leverage model instill a sense of urgency among firms to liberate and generate cash as ex-peditiously as possible. To improve cash flow, PE firms tightly manage receivables and payables, reduce inventories, and scrutinise discretionary expenses. To

preserve cash, they delay or cancel lower-value discretionary projects or expenses, investing only in initiatives and resources that contribute significant value.

Middle Eastern companies can take a page from PE playbooks and develop similar performance-improvement plans. Although specifics will vary by enterprise, any such plan will focus on increasing profits and improving capital efficiency. Executives should start with a blank slate and then objectively and systematically rebuild a company’s cost structure, justi-fying every expense and resource.

Time is moneyThe third imperative identified as criti-cal among PE firms is operating as though time is money. With an urgency to gen-erate cash quickly to pay down debt, PE firms run on this “time is money” mantra. PE managers can ensure that the leader-ship of companies in their portfolio un-derstands the necessary changes through 100-day plans.

To be sure, portfolio company execu-tives are extraordinarily empowered, and have close working relationships with ac-tively involved boards and are not driven to appease external stakeholders. Still,


even public company executives could learn a lot from the PE firms’ need for speed. Waiting carries an opportunity cost that too many firms inadvertently and un-fortunately pay.

Apply a long-term lensAnother PE firm imperative is to apply a long-term lens. While PE firms act with speed, they still engage in rigorous analy-sis and thoughtful debate. They typically have three to five years to invest their fund, and then a window of about 10 years to exit and return proceeds to investors.

After realising the short-term cost ben-efits of eliminating low-value activities, top-tier PE firms necessarily invest in long-term high potential ideas for creat-ing core value in companies they acquire to position them for growth and profit-ability - the fundamental drivers of a great exit. The art of making these judicious choices is a capability that companies should develop.

Assemble the right teamAssembling the right team creates value. PE firms intuitively understand that strong, effective leadership is critical to the success of their investment. They sometimes invest in a company based solely on the strength of its management. Pressured to do more with less, PE firms must continually reassess individuals in

middle as well as top management posi-tions and quickly remove or replace weak performers. In fact one-third of portfolio company CEOs are replaced in the first 100 days. These same talent manage-ment tenets can apply to companies in the Middle East.

Link pay and performanceThe next PE firm imperative is linking pay and performance. CEOs and senior man-agers at PE portfolio companies are deep-ly invested in the performance of their business – their fortunes soar when the business succeeds and suffer when it fails to achieve objectives. Significant sharing of upside and downside potential through equity participation ensures consistency of agendas.Top managers in portfolio companies receive their annual perfor-mance bonus only if they achieve a hand-ful of aggressive but realistic performance targets. Although not all companies may be able to match the equity-based rewards of a successful PE-backed venture, they can create a tighter link between manage-ment pay and performance, particularly over the long term. Companies can stimu-late a high-performance culture through a performance review process that distinguishes and rewards star talent.

Select stretch goalsThe final PE imperative that public com-

panies should embrace is developing and paying rigorous attention to a select set of customised metrics. PE general partners quickly assess what matters in driving the success of an acquired company, and then isolate and track these factors. Chief among these are measures of cash and return on invested capital as true barom-eters of financial performance. They set clear, aggressive targets in these few criti-cal areas and tie management compensa-tion directly to those targets.

Many companies are already follow-ing the PE example by developing “dash-boards” that monitor the main measures of business performance and longer-term value-creation.

The vision and long-term strategy should drive a set of specific initiatives with explicit objectives. These initiatives and their financial implications should, in turn, shape annual plans and budgets.

There are reasons why those who can afford the substantial management fees continue to invest in private equity. Evi-dence shows that the best of these firms repeatedly generate strong returns by im-plementing genuine and sustainable op-erating and productivity improvements in their portfolio companies.

Similarly, Middle Eastern companies can benefit from PE firms’ proven and broadly applicable imperatives to create lasting value

v i e w p o i n t

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v i e w p o i n t

having estaBlished itself as a gloBal leadeR in liquefied natuRal gas (lng), qataR’s Recent stellaR economic gRowth was widely expected to plateau in 2012. as the impact of two decades of expansion in gas output Reached fRuition, the geneRal secRetaRiat foR development planning pRedicted that 2012 would see loweR oil and gas pRices due to falling gloBal demand.

Rising hydrocarbon prices since late 2011 – which some believe is evidence of a re-surgence in the global economy – are ensuring that the forecasts have not transpired. Expected growth figures for

2012 have been revised, with the International Bank of Qatar (IBQ) putting GDP at 9.8% for 2012.

Yet this is not purely the result of buoyant prices on global ener-gy markets. Rather, the better-than-expected performance of the Qatari economy points to the growing strength of the non-hydro-carbons sector, chiefly driven by a rapidly expanding construction industry, which is showing itself to be a valuable contributor to economic growth. Indeed, such has been the extent of new infra-structure and building projects that Qatar is set to enter a second wave of growth, buoyed not by oil and gas but by the building sec-tor. According to financial services company Standard Chartered, non-oil activity will take control for the remainder of the year.

In many senses construction has been the biggest winner of Qa-tar’s bid to host the 2022 World Cup, with infrastructure projects across a range of sectors now getting off the ground. The “building boom”, as it’s already being called, will see projects worth QR910 billion being executed over the coming decade, with the bulk of these set to start in 2013. Indeed, in 2012 alone over QR80 billion ($22billion) of new contracts are expected to be signed, mainly concerning infrastructure, retail areas and office space.

Among the major developments proposed are construction of the New Doha International Airport (QR25 billion); a deepwater seaport (QR20 billion); some QR73 billion worth of new roads and planned upgrades to existing road networks, as well as 12 air-con-ditioned football stadiums at a cost of QR117 billion.

Moreover, Qatar’s tourism sector is set to benefit from a near-70% growth in hotels, with 77 new hotels and 42 hotel apartments planned to accommodate World Cup visitors, according to STR Global’s latest construction pipeline report. And in transport in-

frastructure, Qatar Railways Company (QRail) has signed a deal worth QR1.9 billion with Qatari Diar Vinci Construction for the new phase of works on the Lusail Light Rail Transit system.

These developments are being part-funded by the Qatari gov-ernment, with promised public investment of around QR346 bil-lion during the 10-year period leading up to the World Cup, over QR237 billion of which is expected to be in infrastructure. This in-creased investment in construction is driven by the government’s plan to diversify the economy away from hydrocarbons – which currently accounts for half of the country’s total economic out-put – and boost Qatar’s real non-hydrocarbon GDP growth rate, which the IMF puts at between 9% and 10% for 2012.

It is worth considering the economies of scale that are becom-ing evident as a result of the spotlight falling on the construction sector. Chief among these is the fact that Qatar’s fast-growing construction sector is now generating a great deal of interest from international players. The Project Qatar 2012 construction trade show, for example, which was held in Doha in early May, was at-tended by over 40 French firms, many of whom have won global recognition for their development of innovative materials, and expertise in sustainable construction and smart buildings.

Among these France-based global construction specialists are Adler Technologies, specialists in concrete construction materi-als; Alterrya, which focuses on power-generating technology and renewable energy; and Groupe Atlantic, which is already highly involved in the Middle East and is a leader in multi-energy solu-tions in Europe. Their presence at Project Qatar is indicative of the wealth of immense construction opportunities now present in the 2022 World Cup host nation, as well as new opportunities to offer innovative solutions for a variety of ambitious projects.

Overall, the future trajectory of Qatar’s economy looks set to bring a virtuous cycle of rising investment in construction, in-creased foreign expertise and project involvement and falling de-pendence on hydrocarbons revenue. It’s a bright future indeed

construction sector propels qAtAri economy

by oliver cornockthe author is the regional editor

of oxford business group

[email protected]

l i s t e n i n g p o s t


ince the launch of the Dow Jones Islamic Market (DJIM) World Index in 1999, the DJIM family has expanded to provide a wide variety of benchmarks tracking Shar-ia-compliant securities – including indexes for 69 countries, across both developed and emerging markets. The family also in-cludes regional, industry sector and market capitalisation indexes. By screening invest-ments for compliance with Sharia law, the indexes help to reduce research costs and compliance concerns that Muslim inves-tors would otherwise face in constructing Islamic investment portfolios.

Qatar Today caught up with the Director of Islamic Market Indexes for Dow Jones,

Tariq Al-Rifai, and gathered his thoughts on a range of issues regarding Sharia-compliant investments and how produc-tive the DJIM World Index is against more ‘unrestricted’ indexes.

“In many cases it performs better,” ar-gued Al-Rifai. “We’ve gone back in history and we’ve noticed that in developed mar-kets, such as Europe and the US, Islamic indexes perform better. There are a few cases where they didn’t – one was when the dotcom bubble burst, for instance. Islamic indexes tend to be high technology and healthcare, and these were hit badly dur-ing the dotcom bubble, so prices fell harder than the regular indexes. But during the recent financial crisis the Islamic indexes held on better because there aren’t any fi-nancial or insurance companies included. The highs and lows are similar but the severity is different.”

Foundation of the indexesDow Jones founded the indexes in 1999, seeing a rising awareness of Islamic finance and Islamic investments – asset manag-ers wanted to have a world-renowned

islamic maRket indexes aRe designed to stRip out stocks which don’t comply with shaRia pRinciples. so wheRe can one find fiscal value in such an acutely Regulated enviRonment? can it compete against its conventional counteRpaRts?

GROWING POPULARITY FOR ISLAMIC INDEXES

Sb y r o r y c o e n



benchmark. Before 1999, if you had an Is-lamic fund you didn’t have a measure or a gauge to compare it against, which made it difficult to estimate how your portfolio was performing. There were of course the con-ventional indexes, but they used different rules and regulations.

“From 1999, Islamic investing really took off,” said Al-Rifai. “Our main index – the DJIM World Index – represents the world’s markets and it’s weighted according to how many companies are in each market and how big the markets are. There’s a miscon-ception about Islamic indexes. It’s invest-ing in companies which are permissible for Muslims to invest in. For example, Evian produce bottled water; they’re an American company without any discernible ties to Is-lam. However investing in them is permis-sible.”

Some of the high profile companies which make up its Islamic Market World Index in-clude Apple, Microsoft, IBM and Google in the Technology sector; Exxon Mobil and Chevron in Oil and Gas; and Johnson & Johnson and Pfiser in Healthcare.

ScreeningThe selection universe for the DJIM index-es includes the components of 69 country-level benchmark indexes. To determine their eligibility for the DJIM indexes, the stocks are screened to ensure that each meets the standards set out by the Sha-ria regulatory board. A company must meet Sharia requirements for acceptable prod-ucts, business activities, and interest and income expenses.

After eliminating companies that profit from unacceptable business activities, the DJIM Index Sharia board evaluates those that remain using several financial ratios, which are established to exclude companies that have unacceptable levels of debt or earn impure interest income. Liquidity is an ad-ditional criterion for inclusion, and the in-

dexes include only actively traded stocks that are easily accessible to investors.

“The DJIM World Index has about 2,600 companies – this number fluctuates every quarter when we add or remove compa-nies,” said Al-Rifai. “There are three rea-sons why we might drop a company from an index. The simplest one is if it is acquired or it merges – this has nothing to do with Sha-ria principles, it’s just no longer traded on the market.

“Then there is Sharia screening. We look at the world markets – which have thousands of companies and we apply two screens to determine Shariah compliance. The first one is industry screening. There are obvious industries which we cannot in-

vest in – alcohol, tobacco, gaming, conven-tional banking and insurance companies are not permissible. Then we put financial ratio screens on the resulting universe to minimise companies which have a high lev-el of debt, because this means that they are paying a lot of interest, which is not accept-able. The resulting universe includes the companies which make up the index.

“So for instance, a company might go to the market to raise a conventional bond. This is no good because they broke through the leverage ratio so we remove it at the next review. Another reason would be if a chick-en producer decided to buy a pork producer – they have a line of business now that’s no longer permissible so we must drop them also,” he explained.

Tool for fund managersSo who are these Islamic indexes aimed at? The average man on the street who wants to earn a quick buck whilst adhering to Sharia principles, or a fund manager at an invest-ment bank? The indexes collate data and get averages, but how do they help to make strategic investment decisions?

“Our investor is not the average man on the street,” explained Al-Rifai. “It’s the fund manager that manages the fund or the bank that launches a product to attract a fund. So why would they choose us as a customer? If you’re a fund manager you need to be able to gauge yourself to see how well you are doing against others, and how is this done? These investment managers work with a benchmark – they’ll choose an index and say: ‘We’re going to launch a GCC equity fund, so we need a GCC index. We also want it to be Islamic.’ That won’t only be their benchmark, but they’ll also be able to see what stocks are permissible.

“We also work with fund managers in creating exchange-traded funds (ETF) or exchange-traded products, which are essentially funds which behave in their

“theRe’s a misconception aBout islamic indexes. an islamic index is one which is peRmissiBle foR

muslims to invest in. it doesn’t mean that one must only invest in qataR islamic Bank oR duBai islamic Bank. it’s investing in companies which

aRe peRmissiBle to invest in.”

Tariq al-rifai

director of islaMic Market indexesdow jones



characteristics as a stock – you buy it and sell it on the stock market like a stock – but it’s actually investing in a basket of stocks based on an index. That’s a bit more techni-cal, but they need an index to do this struc-ture,” he explained.

Trends in the marketIn a practical sense, where are we seeing the indexes help investors make decisions? Are we seeing any discernible trends in the marketplace? On the back of the results which the indexes throw up, where are as-set managers and investment banks placing their chips?

“Right now we’re looking at three trends in the market,” said Al-Rifai. “First off we’re seeing a lot of growth and interest – espe-cially since the financial crisis – in fixed-in-come products such as bonds or the money market. It gives you ongoing income while limiting the downside potential. Volatile stocks and real estate are where inves-tors have got hurt the most, but bonds are popular now, they’re almost like a deposit and every month you get a tidy return. In 2006 we launched the first ever Sukuk In-dex – sukuk are Islamic bond equivalents. That has been going well, but the major issue is that the sukuk market is still rela-tively small compared to the demand that’s there – it’s not widely traded, so there are liquidity issues.

“Secondly, investors are looking for something which gives them an income, gives them some comfort and minimises the downside. Seeing this, we launched the Dow Jones Select Dividend Index, which mea-sures the stock performance of the world’s top dividend-paying companies – maybe 3-4% returns. For investors, and particu-larly Islamic investors, this kind of return gives them the solution they’re looking for –

which is something that’s liquid, something they can trade in and out whenever they want and at the same time it’s generating an income for them.

“Thirdly, we see that there is a lot of in-terest in commodities – oil, precious metals, grains and things like that. But commodi-ties, such as oil and natural gas, are traded on futures pricing, which is not Sharia com-pliant. As such, Islamic investors have shied away from this sector. However, there is another way these investors can gain expo-sure to commodities. This is what we did at Dow Jones Indexes. We took the companies that are in our Dow Jones Islamic Market World Index and selected the ones that are commodity producers (such as Exxon Mo-bil, Total, BHP Billiton, Newmont Mining, etc.) and we made an index of these compa-nies (i.e. an index of commodity-producing companies – not direct commodities). This is the solution we came up with to solve one of the dilemmas in the Islamic finance in-dustry. Another solution would be to devel-op Sharia-compliant pricing for commodi-ties directly, but this is out of our scope so we will leave it up to others,” he said.

The DJIM Global Equity Commodity Index intends to measure the stock perfor-mance of companies engaged in the explo-ration or production of scarce and renew-able commodities, as well as companies that provide related services. Only compa-nies that pass rules-based screens for Sha-ria compliance are included in the index. The commodity sectors represented are agriculture, energy, metals, precious metals and water.

Easy accessibilityLiquidity is an additional criterion for in-clusion in the DJIM indexes, and they in-clude only actively traded stocks that are

easily accessible to investors. The selection universe expressly excludes the very small-est and most thinly traded stocks. So does this rule out the likes of China, where some stocks may be difficult to access?

“We have indexes for China,” said Al Ri-fai. “In fact in Asia we launched a Greater China Index, which is China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It basically offers exposure to that market. What we launched recently for GCC-based asset managers is the ‘CHIME Index’ – for China, India and the Middle East. We made this index for those asset managers who want to invest in compa-nies in these countries, and we launched a fund with a Qatari company to do Islamic CHIME. From our perspective we have no problem getting pricing in China, or other-wise we wouldn’t have done an index.”

RegulationsA five-member independent Shariah su-pervisory board advises Dow Jones Indexes on the methodology of the DJIM Indexes. With Sharia being largely based on inter-pretation, how difficult is it to gain a con-sensus on contentious matters which may be understood differently depending on the country you are in?

“In 1999 there wasn’t any consensus,” said Al Rifai. We’re a global index provider – we wanted to make sure we had a meth-odology that we could use to screen what’s universally accepted. So if you look at our board members, it’s pretty diverse. We have an American, a Syrian, a Bahraini, a Saudi and a Malaysian, so I think we have a good representation of the schools of thought. Obviously the standards that we developed are widely used today, but when you look to invest in the stock market – the concepts, the methodology and the screening – they are all fairly universal right now”

sectoR allocation

countRy allocation

%

%

technology

us

12

54

oil & gas

uk

17

7

healthcaRe

Japan

16

5

industRials

canada

14

5

Basic mateRials

switzeRland

13

3

consumeR goods

austRalia

9

3

otheRs

otheRs

9

21

dJim woRld index

(as at 30/5/2012)

j u n e 2 0 1 2 Qatar today 37

masraf al rayan

woQod mawashi industries Qatar

national leasing holding company

1 2 3 4 5

Qatarindustrial

manufacturingcompany

Qatar national cement

company

doha insurance company

doha bank Qatar islamic

insurance company

96 7 8 10

cover story Qt top ten

Qatar today j u n e 2 0 1 238

t the end of 2011, the Qatar Exchange (QE) price in-dex finished at 8,779.03 points – a gain of 1.12% on its closing value in 2010 and one of 26.2% on its 2009 closure. Major indicators such as the general index,

market value, total trading value, total trading volume and the number of transactions making up the traded volumes all increased in the twelve-month period.

The total traded volume of shares (in 252 trading days) increased to 2.3 billion during 2011 – a 10% in-crease on 2010, which had one less trading day. The daily average of traded shares rose to 9.1 million com-pared with 8.3 million in 2010. The value of traded shares was QR83.4 billion in 2011 – a 24% increase on 2010, while the daily average traded value was QR331 million compared to QR268 million in 2010.

Sixteen of the 42 companies listed finished the final day of trading in 2011 at a higher value, while 26 stocks declined from their end-2010 price. Total subscribed shares reached 9.663 billion, a 5% increase. The mar-ket capitalisation of the 42 listed companies increased to QR457 billion – an increase of 1.6% from 2010.

So amidst all the global negativity, who were the drivers of all this growth on the QE? The QE is com-prised of 42 listed companies with just 9% owner-ship interest from overseas – a statistic which may be analysed in more detail if the 2011 trend continues. Qatar Today and AlShall Economic Services provide your one-stop-shop on the most lucrative shares on the QE over the past five years. We have collaborated once again to review the QE’s Top Ten.

after some respite in 2010, the global economy returned to sentiments of uncer-tainty in 2011, as focus switched from the private financial sector to individual

countries, particularly in the us and europe. after a general improvement in the performance of most stock market indexes in 2010, fears of sovereign debt-default led to a regression in their performances in 2011. however, in a show of remarkable

defiance, the Qatar exchange managed to buck that trend and was one of the only markets to finish the year in the black.

A


“We retained the same calculation methodology as in previous years,” said Camille Raphael, General Manager of AlShall Economic Services. “We tried to ascertain which companies would have brought an investor a better return had the investor bought one share in that company at the beginning of 2007 and sold it at the end of 2011, including any addi-tional shares they may have received for free during this period.”

Calculation methodology“To the share market price appreciation,” he contin-ued, “we added the amount of cash that the company distributed to its shareholders from its net profits over the period under study as well as the attractive-ness of the company’s shares based on revenue and net profit growth, with the rationale that the value of a company (hence its share price) could potentially in-crease if the company’s sales revenues and net profits keep increasing extraordinarily year over year.

“Lastly, liquidity of the stock expressed in terms of average traded volume and number of transactions was taken into consideration, given that if someone would like to exit the investment, they should be able to do that with relative ease,” he added.

For calculations of price per share, cash distribu-tions, net profit and revenue growth, Al Shall looked at total shares held at the end of 2011 on the basis of the purchase of one share in that company at the begin-ning of 2007, and the computations were made on a per share basis. This was done to offset any ownership dilution from corporate actions such as mergers and acquisitions or capital increases. It should be noted that from time to time, Qatar listed companies dis-tribute cash to their shareholders during the year, de-pending on their previous year’s performance (what is referred to as cash dividends), as well as free share dividends.

“We also decided to measure all financial and trad-ing performance as an average of the five-year period, to mitigate extraordinary one-time performances, and assess the listed companies during a period that has seen both boom and gloom,” said Raphael.

AlShall understands that it calculated the rankings based on a selection of financial measurements, that

may or may not be the best criteria to assess the at-tractiveness of a company, but it feels it needs to use a holistic lens to be fair to all companies.

“It is important to diversify the financial measure-ments in conjunction with statement analysis to achieve a more objective approach in determining a company’s rank,” said Raphael.

Relevant to an investor’s point of view, the overall ranking of companies was based on seven financial indicators in line with their respective weighted aver-age criteria. The weights used are 20% each for price growth, dividend yield and liquidity, while net profit growth, revenue growth, return on equity and return on assets are weighted at 10% each.

Price growth Historical data on year-end share closing prices and share dividend distributions for the past five years are used to assess each company’s ranking in terms of price growth (or average yearly portfolio value increase based on one share purchased in each com-pany at the beginning of 2007). Gulf Warehousing Company (59.7%) was by far the best in terms of price growth, followed by Mawashi and National Leasing Holding Co.

Dividend yield Dividend yield demonstrates how much a company pays out in dividends each year in relation to its av-erage market capitalisation. Masraf Al Rayan (7%) achieved the highest ranking in this category, followed by Doha Bank and Doha Insurance Co (both 5.4%). It is also evident that six of the Top Ten come from the financial sector.

Liquidity The measure of liquidity should indicate how easily shares can be purchased or sold on the QE based on average trading volume per year and the number of trades per day. Generally speaking, companies with both a high daily volume of traded shares and a high number of trades have better liquidity than those with light trading volumes and a low number of trades. Masraf Al Rayan ranked first on this criterion, fol-lowed by last year’s top performer, Mawashi.

“it is important to diversify the financial measurements in conjunction with state-ment analysis to achieve a more objective approach in determining a company’s rank.”

Camille Raphael

General ManaGerAlShAll Economic SErvicES

(con’D on P.42)



QE is opEn for businEss

“one important thing in early 2012 was the readiness of the Qe venture

market, which is the market estab-

lished for small enterprises.

we’ve created the environment and from a technical

and regulatory perspective we’re ready to go. we’re

now engaging with potential

listing candidates.”

he Qatar Exchange (QE) maintained its position as the best-performing market in the GCC and Arab region in 2011. It is a well-regulated en-vironment that uses state-of-the-art NYSE Euronext technology to support transpar-

ency and accuracy, which makes trading an efficient experience overall.

The QE aims to support the country’s economy by providing a market for issuers to raise capital to grow their businesses and an environment for investors to cultivate the opportunities they see in the listed companies. The QE currently has 42 listed compa-nies, which aggregate for a market capitalisation of QR457 billion ($126 billion). It understands that to grow, to attract more companies and investors to its table, it needs to set that table right, and QE Chief Ex-ecutive Officer, Andre Went explains that reform and diversity are key to that drive.

“We defined a five-year strategy in 2009 which in-corporated three phases,” says Went. “Phase one was the reform of the cash market; phase two is to launch derivatives and a central counterparty, and phase three is to try to generate more international business development. We’re currently in phase one.”

Reform of the cash marketFollowing a strategic partnership agreement in 2009 between Qatar Holding and NYSE Euronext, a Euro-American corporation that operates multiple securi-ties exchanges, the Doha Securities Market (DSM) was renamed the Qatar Exchange. It was hoped NYSE Euronext’s experience and reputation would give the market some added features and credibility in a global context.

“The partnership has three components,” says Went. “One is the shareholding partnership – NYSE Euronext has a 20% stake in the exchange, so they work in developing the exchange (the other 80% is represented by Qatar Holding); second is a technical aspect where IT services like Universal Trading Plat-form (UTP) are being arranged; and the third is a ser-vices agreement where ‘knowledge transfer’ is being done on an ongoing basis, so we have a number of ex-perts coming from Europe, some on a consultancy ba-sis. In all three areas, the partnership is going great.”

Went is adamant that to improve the liquidity of the cash market and to secure the confidence of traders –both in Qatar and abroad – there had to be alignment with global standards in all areas, from the trading in-frastructure to the settlement of transactions. Apart from attracting investors from Europe, Asia and the US, the exchange is also starting a campaign to attract more expatriates living in Qatar to look into invest-ing in QE. So what changes has the QE implemented in the past 12 months to affect its strategy of enticing

tandre WentcEo,QATAr EXchAnGE


more investors to trade on the exchange?“In 2010, we started implementation of a new trading system

called UTP, which is a state-of-the-art technology in line with in-ternational standards. We also made a change in the ‘post-trade’ – or the settlement of transactions – where in the past the mon-etary side of those transactions was handled by a private bank; it’s now handled by the Qatar Central Bank (QCB). We have also increased our number of registered brokers from seven to 10.

“We also introduced a delivery-vs-payment (DVP) system, which is a set of rules on how a transaction is settled. It ensures you receive your shares at exactly the same time you pay for them, and of course the other way round – when you sell your shares you lose control of them at precisely the same time as you receive your settlement. Towards the end of 2011 we implement-ed the T-bills market, which is the very first step towards the development of a bond market.

“Early last year we made some changes in terms of the trading hours,” Went adds. “A half-hour was added in the morning and the afternoon, so now we’re open from 9.30am to 1:00 pm for continuous trading; this adds a bit more overlap with the Asian and European markets.

“We also decided to change the ‘tick sizes’ in the market – tick sizes are the smallest increment in which you can enter orders into our order book. It used to be ten dirhams, but we related it more to the price of the shares. For example, for low-priced shares up to QR25, the tick size is one dirham; for QR25-50 it’s 5 dirham and above QR50 it’s 10 dirhams.”

Diversity of investment opportunitiesThe QE is now past the half-way marker in its five-year plan, so where does Went see the exchange at this intermediate stage? How is it performing in line with its stated mission of offering di-versity in the range of investment and trading opportunities?

“We are seeing satisfactory progress in the cash markets - some things we would like to see done a little bit quicker, but then our T-bills market has been implemented ahead of time. The next major step will clearly be derivatives, but we first need to fina-lise the cash-market phase and ensure that sufficient liquidity is available in the market.

“One important thing in early 2012 was the readiness of the QE Venture Market, which is the market established for small enterprises. We’ve created the environment, and from a tech-nical and regulatory perspective we’re ready to go. We’re now engaging with potential listing candidates. This is the only such market in the region – it follows a similar principle to the Alter-native Investment Market (AIM) of the London Stock Exchange, which allows smaller companies to float shares with a more flex-ible regulatory system than is allowed on the main market.

“The bond market would fit very well in any situation finan-cially,” says Went. “It’s a different way to raise capital and it hasn’t a high-risk profile – definitely not the bonds that are issued by the State of Qatar or Qatari companies; it’s very secure and well rated. I think the uncertainty after the financial crisis adds to the demand for these kinds of instruments. Bonds and sukuks, are very secure instruments which wouldn’t be impacted by the financial crisis; if anything, the demand for them increases.

“The hopes for the remainder of this year would be to launch exchange-traded funds (ETFs). We are in discussions with the regulator about the implementation of other instruments and measures, such as real estate investment trusts (REITs), liquid-ity provision, securities lending and borrowing, and direct elec-tronic access, which will be important steps in the development of the exchange. Then going forward we will start looking at the derivatives market – we can’t focus on this until we see results in the cash market.”

Went also reveals that the exchange is looking at a Sharia com-pliant index for those who require such an investment tool.

“It is part of the product development – a Sharia-compliant index can be used to enhance and develop other products like ETFs, and further down the road derivatives that are linked to an index.”

Performance There are 42 companies listed on the QE, but it has just 20 con-stituents. It’s normal for any market to have a so-called “blue-chip index” that reflects the largest and the most actively traded companies. Inclusion is statistically determined by such factors as liquidity in the market, velocity and market capitalisation, and constituents are reviewed every six months.

The QE maintained its position as the best-performing mar-ket in the GCC and Arab region in 2011. After a 24% increase in 2010, the index grew by 1.12% in 2011 – the only market in the re-gion to post a positive return. The year ended with a total market capitalisation of QR457 billion ($126 billion) – a 1.59% increase on 2010.

“We have seen some swings in the past, but 2011 brought a lot of stability, both on the QE Index and the Total Return Index (TRI),” says Went. “If you look at some of the other markets in the region, QE has clearly been the best-performing market in the region.”

The exchange is being developed to attract traders and investors from Qatar and abroad, so how much is the market here being stimulated by foreign interest?

“The economy of Qatar is clearly very attractive - it’s develop-ing very well,” says Went. “Foreign investors (both institutional and retail) make up about 8% of the market capitalisation of QE, but in terms of annual turnover, they account for about 35%.”

One aspect which encourages foreign investment is a well-regulated marketplace, where investors can feel at ease with the environment in which they are placing their money. The State of Qatar has been trying to get all regulatory authorities under the same umbrella for some years now and the plan is to have a single regulator in the near future.

When asked for an outlook on the future, Went says: “The strength of QE is directly related to the strength of the Qatari economy and the integrity of the capital market in Qatar as the country continues to grow and develop in line with Vision 2030, and as liquidity continues to flow into Qatar the positive im-pact this will have on QE will only further enhance our strong and robust trading environment and give investors increasing confidence in our listed companies.”

(Interviewed by Rory Coen)



Net profit growth Net profit growth is calculated on a cumulative shares held basis, to reflect whether the shareholder’s original claim over each com-pany’s net profit has increased or decreased over the five-year peri-od, and on average by how much. This is done to offset any possible dilution resulting from corporate action.

Healthcare company, Medicare Group ranks the highest, achiev-ing a remarkable 942% average increase per share held, with

Masraf Al Rayan in second place on 178%.

Net Revenue growth Revenue growth is one of the basic criteria to assess a company’s attractiveness, with the assumption that the higher the revenue growth, the more the potential for future profits. Qatari German Co. for Medical Devices significantly led the rankings in this category with its cumulative shares held multiplied by revenues per share growing at an average of 855%. Last year’s top performer in this cat-

(con’D From P. 39)

Source:AuDiTED FinAnciAl STATEmEnTS For ThE PAST FivE yEArS (2007-2011), QATAr EXchAnGE AnD AlShAll cAlculATionS

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

59

.7%

Gu

lf W

are

ho

usi

ng

co

.

3

5.5

%

Qata

r c

o. f

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meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

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3

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n

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28

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Film

Dis

t. c

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23

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m

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Gro

up

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%

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ited

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k

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ind

ust

ries

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r

med

icare

Gro

up

9

41.

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m

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ayan

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78

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ed

Develo

pm

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t c

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ing

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06

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rein

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ata

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arw

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state

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masr

af

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ayan

5.4

%

Do

ha in

sura

nce c

o.

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%

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ha B

an

k

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%

Ah

li B

an

k

4.5

%

Qata

r in

du

stri

al m

an

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rin

g c

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4

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ata

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uel (W

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)

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nati

on

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g c

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3

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ata

r c

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or

meat

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ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

3

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Q

ata

r in

sura

nce c

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3.8

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e c

om

merc

ial B

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k o

f Q

ata

r

Qata

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an

co

. fo

r m

ed

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evic

es

8

54

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Q

ata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

374

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m

asr

af

Al r

ayan

1

45

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Gu

lf W

are

ho

usi

ng

co

. 7

8.1

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n

ati

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ng

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ldin

g c

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72

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nit

ed

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

64

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ata

r c

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or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

62

.2%

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ata

ri invest

ors

Gro

up

6

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%

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a r

eal E

state

co

. 6

1.1%

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ata

r Te

leco

m (

Qte

l)

47.

2%

6

2.6

%

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r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

3

4.5

%

ind

ust

ries

Qata

r

3

1.2

%

Qata

r E

lectr

icit

y &

Wate

r c

o.

2

5.7

%

un

ited

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

2

3.6

%

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r n

ati

on

al B

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k

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em

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t c

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Do

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A

hli

Ban

k

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20

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ata

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m (

Qte

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ind

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ata

r F

uel (W

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) 2

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Qata

r n

ati

on

al c

em

en

t c

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17.

0%

Qata

r is

lam

ic in

sura

nce c

o.

16

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ata

r in

du

stri

al m

an

ufa

ctu

rin

g c

o.

14

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Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

10

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A

l K

hale

ej Ta

kafu

l G

rou

p.

9.9

%

nati

on

al l

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ng

ho

ldin

g c

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9.7

%

Qata

r c

inem

a &

Film

Dis

t. c

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9.7

%

un

ited

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pm

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t c

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9.6

%

masr

af

Al r

ayan

Q

ata

r c

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meat

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(m

aw

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ata

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Tra

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ited

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Qata

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erm

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r m

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ical D

evic

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m

ed

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Gro

up

Q

ata

ri invest

ors

Gro

up

Q

ata

r is

lam

ic B

an

k

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ust

ries

Qata

r

average dividend

yieldprice

growth

average net profit

growth

Ave

rag

e P

rice

Gro

wth

20

07

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rag

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ivid

en

d Y

ield

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07

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rag

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tive

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ide

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00

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rag

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row

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ide

nd

s 2

00

7-2

011


egory, the gas transportation company Nakilat, slipped down one place despite registering an average growth of 375%.

Return on equity Return on equity measures the ability of the company to gener-ate sufficient returns for the capital invested by its shareholders. Woqod (62.6%) and Industries Qatar (34.5%) maintained their top two positions as in last year’s ranking in this category.

Return on assetsROA determines the company’s ability to utilise its assets effec-tively and efficiently, thus earning a good return from them. In this criterion – crucial to asset-intensive companies – Industries Qatar (28%) ranked best followed by Woqod (23.4%), which was again similar to last year.

Financial sector inching upIt is important to note that the rankings apply to only 32 of the

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

59

.7%

Gu

lf W

are

ho

usi

ng

co

.

3

5.5

%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

3

4.5

%

n

ati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

2

8.2

%

Qata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

28

.0%

Qata

r c

inem

a &

Film

Dis

t. c

o.

26

.6%

Zad

ho

ldin

g c

o.

23

.0%

m

ed

icare

Gro

up

1

7.3

%

Qata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

17.1

%

Qata

r n

ati

on

al B

an

k

1

7.1%

ind

ust

ries

Qata

r

med

icare

Gro

up

9

41.

7%

m

asr

af

Al r

ayan

1

78

.3%

u

nit

ed

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

12

6.4

%

Q

ata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

10

7.5

%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

1

06

.7%

n

ati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

51.

0%

Zad

ho

ldin

g c

o.

50

.7%

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r G

en

. in

sura

nce &

rein

sura

nce c

o.

35

.8%

Q

ata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

) 2

7.7

%

B

arw

a r

eal E

state

co

. 2

4.8

%

7.0

%

masr

af

Al r

ayan

5.4

%

Do

ha in

sura

nce c

o.

5.4

%

Do

ha B

an

k

4.7

%

Ah

li B

an

k

4.5

%

Qata

r in

du

stri

al m

an

ufa

ctu

rin

g c

o.

4

.1%

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ata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

4.0

%

nati

on

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ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

3

.9%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

3

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Q

ata

r in

sura

nce c

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3.8

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e c

om

merc

ial B

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k o

f Q

ata

r

Qata

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r m

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evic

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8

54

.6%

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ata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

374

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m

asr

af

Al r

ayan

1

45

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Gu

lf W

are

ho

usi

ng

co

. 7

8.1

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n

ati

on

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ng

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ldin

g c

o.

72

.1%

u

nit

ed

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

64

.4%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

62

.2%

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ata

ri invest

ors

Gro

up

6

2.0

%

Barw

a r

eal E

state

co

. 6

1.1%

Q

ata

r Te

leco

m (

Qte

l)

47.

2%

6

2.6

%

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r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

3

4.5

%

ind

ust

ries

Qata

r

3

1.2

%

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r E

lectr

icit

y &

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r c

o.

2

5.7

%

un

ited

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pm

en

t c

o.

2

3.6

%

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r n

ati

on

al B

an

k

2

3.0

%

Qata

r n

ati

on

al c

em

en

t c

o.

2

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%

Do

ha B

an

k

21.

2%

A

hli

Ban

k

2

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%

nati

on

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ng

ho

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g c

o.

20

.3%

Q

ata

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m (

Qte

l)

ind

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ries

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r 2

8.0

%

Q

ata

r F

uel (W

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od

) 2

3.4

%

Qata

r n

ati

on

al c

em

en

t c

o.

17.

0%

Qata

r is

lam

ic in

sura

nce c

o.

16

.6%

Q

ata

r in

du

stri

al m

an

ufa

ctu

rin

g c

o.

14

.5%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

10

.9%

A

l K

hale

ej Ta

kafu

l G

rou

p.

9.9

%

nati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

9.7

%

Qata

r c

inem

a &

Film

Dis

t. c

o.

9.7

%

un

ited

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pm

en

t c

o.

9.6

%

masr

af

Al r

ayan

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

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a r

eal E

state

co

.

Q

ata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

nati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

Qata

ri G

erm

an

co

. fo

r m

ed

ical D

evic

es

m

ed

icare

Gro

up

Q

ata

ri invest

ors

Gro

up

Q

ata

r is

lam

ic B

an

k

ind

ust

ries

Qata

r

average return

on assets

net revenue growth

liQuidity average

return on eQuity

Ave

rag

e R

OE

20

07

–2

011

Ave

rag

e R

OA

20

07

–2

011



42 listed companies on the QE, because only those that have been listed since the beginning of 2006 – and have at least five years of recorded public disclosure – were selected.

So with the criteria defined and the 32 companies assessed in each one, who were the 2011 top-performing companies in the QE over the past five years?

This year’s top performers came from various industries. Six of last year’s top 10 companies are included in this year’s rankings. Islamic Bank, Masraf Al Rayan – which was excluded from the

calculations last year given its recent listing – takes top spot from fuel supplier Woqod, which slips to second position.

The financial sector showed a major improvement in terms of rank-ings with four companies in the Top Ten – Al Rayan, Doha Insurance Co., Doha Bank and Qatar Islamic Insurance Co. Woqod has consis-tently been in the Top Ten to date, while the industrial sector is rep-resented by Industries Qatar and Qatar Industrial Manufacturing Co. Two companies come from the consumer services sector – Ma-washi, the meat and livestock trading company, and National Leasing

SourcE: AuDiTED FinAnciAl STATEmEnTS For ThE PAST FivE yEArS (2007-2011),

QATAr EXchAnGE AnD AlShAll cAlculATionS

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

163

.9%

Qata

r c

inem

a &

Film

Dis

t. c

o.

14

3.7

%

Al m

eera

co

nsu

mer

Go

od

s c

om

pany

108

.2%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

5

6.1

%

Gu

lf W

are

ho

usi

ng

co

.

45

.8%

masr

af

Al r

ayan

35

.1%

m

ed

icare

Gro

up

33

.5%

A

hli

Ban

k

27.

5%

Q

ata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

2

5.5

%

Sala

m in

tern

ati

on

al in

vest

men

t l

imit

ed

2

5.0

%

Qata

r o

man

invest

men

t c

o.

u

nit

ed

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

52

7.5

%

E

zd

an

real E

state

co

. 1

84

.7%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

90

.0%

D

lala

Bro

kera

ge &

invest

. ho

ldin

g c

o.

72

.1%

in

du

stri

es

Qata

r 4

4.8

%

Q

ata

r G

en

. in

sura

nce &

rein

sura

nce c

o.

42

.3%

Q

ata

r G

as

Tra

nsp

ort

co

. lim

ited

(n

akila

t)

25

.3%

n

ati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

19

.8%

A

l m

eera

co

nsu

mer

Go

od

s c

om

pany

18

.0%

m

asr

af

Al r

ayan

1

6.3

%

1.

66

%

m

asr

af

Al r

ayan

0

.88

%

Sala

m in

tern

ati

on

al in

vest

men

t l

imit

ed

0

.84

%

Do

ha in

sura

nce c

o.

0

.81%

Q

ata

r in

sura

nce c

o.

0

.76

%

Th

e c

om

merc

ial B

an

k o

f Q

ata

r

0.7

4%

Do

ha B

an

k

0

.70

%

Qata

r in

tern

ati

on

al is

lam

ic B

an

k

0.6

5%

Ah

li B

an

k

0.6

4%

A

l K

hale

ej Ta

kafu

l G

rou

p

0.6

4%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

un

ited

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

257.

2%

G

ulf

Ware

ho

usi

ng

co

. 1

06

.8%

Q

ata

ri G

erm

an

co

. fo

r m

ed

ical D

evic

es

9

8.8

%

Do

ha in

sura

nce c

o.

81.

8%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

59

.2%

E

zd

an

real E

state

co

. 4

2.0

%

Qata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

37.

1%

nati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

34

.3%

in

du

stri

es

Qata

r 2

9.2

%

Aam

al c

om

pany

26

.0%

6

5.0

%

un

ited

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

3

9.2

%

Qata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

)

3

8.3

%

Qata

r E

lectr

icit

y &

Wate

r c

o.

3

3.1

%

ind

ust

ries

Qata

r

3

0.5

%

nati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

2

9.7

%

Al m

eera

co

nsu

mer

Go

od

s c

om

pany

2

9.4

%

Qata

r is

lam

ic in

sura

nce c

o.

26

.1%

Q

ata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

2

5.0

%

man

nai c

orp

ora

tio

n

22

.7%

Q

ata

r n

ati

on

al B

an

k

in

du

stri

es

Qata

r 4

4.6

%

u

nit

ed

Develo

pm

en

t c

o.

25

.0%

Q

ata

r F

uel (W

oq

od

) 1

7.6

%

Qata

r n

ati

on

al c

em

en

t c

o.

17.

0%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

16

.3%

Q

ata

r is

lam

ic in

sura

nce c

o.

15

.3%

Qata

r in

du

stri

al m

an

ufa

ctu

rin

g c

o.

14

.8%

Al m

eera

co

nsu

mer

Go

od

s c

om

pany

12

.9%

m

an

nai c

orp

ora

tio

n

12

.5%

n

ati

on

al l

easi

ng

ho

ldin

g c

o.

11.

6%

Qata

r c

o. f

or

meat

& l

ivest

ock T

rad

ing

(m

aw

ash

i)

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Holding Co.

Comparative performance The QE finished 2011 with a 1.12% gain. The Dow Jones Index took the lead last year however, by gaining about 5.5% from the end of 2010, but this was an exception in a very poor year in the markets. Losses on other key markets included -24.6% in India and -21.7% in China.

In the GCC, the Bahraini market was the biggest loser with losses of about -20.1%. Conditions in all markets could have been much worse had it not been for the outcome of the December 9 Euro-leaders’ summit conference, which provided some provisional assurance. Their failure could have resulted in more major regressions

(Brief on each of the Top Ten companies from page 46)

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10

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top 10 companies in terms of

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Al ShAll Economic SErvicS QSc iS A PrivATE QATAri ShArEholDinG comPAny ProviDinG

DiFFErEnT Economic, BuiSnESS AnD corPorATE FinAncE ADviSory SErvicES To locAl AnD

rEGionAl inSTiTuTionS. iT hAS BEEn ESTABliShED in lATE 2002 By Al ShAll conSulTinG comPAny

KScc, A KuWAiT-BASED PrivATE conSulTinG comPAny, AlonG WiTh oThEr PArTnErS, AS A STrATGic

Arm in QATAr in orDEr To ProviDE ThE SAmE rAnGE oF ESTABliShED SErvicES in KuWAiT.



“the availability of financial and

other relevant information that

is made publicly available in a com-

prehensive and timely manner is

vital to the proper functioning of a

market.”

milhan Baig

Head of Valuation

SerViceSDEloiTTE QATAr

MarkEt EfficiEncy

ver the past year, the value traded on the QE increased by about a quarter to reach QR83.5 billion. This increase was largely driven by the services and bank-ing sectors. However Milhan Baig, Head of Valuation Services at

Deloitte Qatar, intimates that since last year the num-ber of transactions making up the traded volumes only increased by about 6% (1.05 million to 1.12 mil-lion transactions), which implies a relatively greater increase in the value per transaction compared to the actual number of transactions.

“It may be argued that as the increase in traded value is driven by a relatively small number of trans-actions, the share values involved portray the senti-ments of only a small number of investors, who may have, for example, greater confidence in or a better understanding of the market as opposed to the overall pool of potential investors,” says Baig.

“Under the Efficient Market Hypothesis (EMH), at any given point in time the quoted prices of shares listed on an exchange in an efficient market should fully reflect all available information, and they should be appropriately priced based on the ‘overall’ senti-ments of the market. If we conceptually consider QE in the context of the EMH and the key attributes of efficient markets, it might seem reasonable to as-sume that shares listed on QE might be priced differ-ently if they were listed on more developed markets, given the following factors that impact the efficiency of a market: the availability of timely and relevant information; and the volume and frequency of trans-actions which capture the market’s reaction to that information,” says Baig.

“The availability of financial and other relevant in-formation that is made publicly available in a compre-hensive and timely manner is vital to the proper func-tioning of a market, as it provides investors with the basis on which to form decisions to buy and sell quot-

ed shares, affecting demand, supply and ultimately pricing. As such, investor relationship management functions and adequate governance procedures, with transparency in financial reporting as well as ample existence of equity analyst reports, sustain the avail-ability of quality information and contribute to the existence of a more efficient market overall.

“Greater volumes (size) and frequency (timing) of transactions generally depict fluidity in a market, which leads to more up-to-date and relevant pricing of quoted shares, which gives investors a relatively higher level of confidence in the available market data,” he says.

More efficiency through increased participationBaig argues that the level of transactions and informa-tion available is generally much lower than for more developed markets such as the LSE, NYSE, NASDAQ and Nikkei, and as such might be considered less ef-ficient. An improvement in market efficiency may be achieved through increasing the number of com-panies listed on QE and providing more information relevant to those companies. This, as well as the intro-duction of margin trading and short-selling, could fa-cilitate more transactions, which ultimately develops more market efficiency.

“It is also interesting to note that of the total 42 companies listed on the QE, the average foreign own-ership interest held in the companies is only around 9%. Allowing a larger pool of local and global investors to buy and sell shares listed on QE may be another way to increase the level of transactions,” he contends.

In summary, Baig maintains that facilitating mar-ket efficiency should be a vital concern for any emerg-ing economy and there are certain initiatives that can be taken to facilitate this. From a share pricing or val-uation perspective, investors and speculators need to be, as ever, aware of the factors fundamental to mar-ket efficiency and should apply a degree of subjectiv-ity when considering the valuation of listed company shares in an emerging economy such as Qatar.

{The opinions expressed here are the views of Milhan Baig and do not necessarily reflect the views and opin-ions of Deloitte & Touche (M.E.)}

o


ow has Masraf Al Rayan performed in the past 12 months?We grew our total assets at a rate of 59.4% last

year; our net profit also went up by 16.3% to QR1.41 billion, with earnings per share of QR1.88. (Please see attached tables.)

How are you leveraging Qatar’s eco-nomic growth to perform the way you are doing? We are the fastest-growing bank in Qatar. Masraf Al Rayan has been sustaining this excellent growth trend since its inception, and this is something that we expect to maintain in both the short and the longer terms, as we are blessed with well-diversi-fied customers in both sources and the use of funds.

What were the key changes/decisions your company had to make recently to keep performing and how difficult was it to make these changes/decisions?

When Masraf Al Rayan was established, there was a clear vision and strategy to implement a Sharia-compliant work en-vironment to facilitate the best possible performance, versus the conventional, traditional methods. We are continuously being innovative and forward-looking in our strategies for delivering the best pos-sible services to our customers whilst maintaining and providing internation-ally acclaimed standards in a familiar local environment.

Have you noticed fresh competition? How do you feel about this, and what are you doing to keep on top of it?We operate in a free-market economy and we therefore, acknowledge that competi-tion is an integral part of the landscape. It is also something that we welcome, as it creates more innovation in the industry and better services for customers. But we are continuously improving our market share by the day.

Masraf al rayanfa i lu r e n ot a n o p t i o n

H

1 n o t e l i g i b l e l a s t y e a r

1 D i v i D e n D y i e l D

1l i q u i D i t y

2n e t P r o f i t

g r o w t h

m as r a f a l r aya n was l au n c h e d i n o c to b e r 2 0 0 6 a n d i s p r i m a r i ly e n g ag e d i n t h e p r ov i s i o n o f ba n k i n g , f i n a n c i a l a n d i n v es t m e n t s e r v i c es i n ac c o r da n c e w i t h i s l a m i c s h a r i a p r i n c i p l es . i ts s t r at e g i c v i s i o n o f t h e f u t u r e i s to b e a l e a d i n g a n d i n n ovat i v e i n t e r n at i o n a l i s l a m i c f i n a n c i a l i n s t i t u t i o n w i t h c o r p o r at e , r e ta i l , s m e a n d p r i vat e ba n k i n g , as w e l l as t r e as u ry. a l r aya n i n v es t m e n t i s t h e i n v es t m e n t a r m o f m as r a f a l r aya n , w h i c h c o m p l e t es t h e c i r c l e f o r m as r a f a l r aya n as a f u l l- f l e d g e d i s l a m i c ba n k . g r o u p c e o a d e l m u s ta faw i d i s c u ss e d h ow t h e ba n k r e ac h e d t h e # 1 r at i n g .

mASrAF Al rAyAn AchiEvED nET

ProFiT oF Qr1,408 million – A

16.3% incrEASE on 2010. ToTAl

ASSETS rEAchED Qr 55,271 mil-

lion in 2011 – A GroWTh rATE

oF 59.4% on 2010. FinAncinG Ac-

TiviTiES incrEASED To Qr 34,766

million – uP 38.7% on 2010. cuS-

TomEr DEPoSiTS incrEASED To

Qr 46,264 million – GroWTh oF

71.2%. ToTAl ShArEholDErS’ EQ-

uiTy rEAchED Qr 8,504 million

– uP 13.3% on 2010, WhilE ThE

DiviDEnDS PAiD To ShArEholD-

ErS For 2011 rEAchED Qr1.10 PEr

ShArE.

“we always finish #1 in the efficiency category in the local banking

industry, so the word failure is not in our dictionary”

adel mustafawii

GrouP ceomASrAF Al rAyAn



1l a s t y e a r

4 P r i c e g r o w t h

5D i v i D e n D

y i e l D

2a v g r e t u r n o n a s s e t s

1a v g r e t u r n

o n e q u i t y

9n e t P r o f i t

g r o w t h

oqod has been profitable since establishment and was the first Qatari com-pany, to pay a dividend in its first financial year. Its

strategy is to be the best downstream en-ergy company in the region as measured in terms of customer and employee satisfac-tion and shareholder earnings.

“We pride ourselves on the continua-tion of the success and development that has been registered since the Company’s inception,” says Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah, Chairman of Woqod.

During the financial year ending

December 31, 2011, Woqod managed to maintain positive net profit rates that ex-ceeded 7.5% to reach QR1,155 million.

Despite the 20% increase in the paid-up capital of the company during 2010 through the distribution of bonus shares, earning per share (EPS) for 2011 increased by 7.5% to reach QR27.77 per share against QR25.83 in 2010.

“Based on the results achieved for this period and on our expectations for developments in the global economy and their impact on the local, regional and international levels during the upcom-ing period, and in view of the company s

Are there any inhibitors to your growth here in Qatar? What changes would you like to see which might boost your own performance and that of your industry?No. The local economy is growing at a high double-digit rate, supported by the LNG expansion and the government’s huge in-frastructure spending; banks are financing this historic growth and development for the country, as it is our duty to take part in the nation-building mission.

What are your Company’s goals for the

coming year?Chief among our goals for 2012 is to sustain our current high growth levels on all our business books by aligning with the nomi-nal GDP growth rate of the country.

What makes a leader different from an entrepreneur? What qualities must one have to be an inspirational leader in a large organisation?Leaders inspire others to do the right thing. We also strategically think and plan for the institutions that we lead.

Lastly, we lead by example and also

depend on the goodwill and reputation of our staff. At Masraf Al Rayan, we believe that our human resources are our greatest assets.

How do you deal with failure? There s a perception that a failure culture within an institution is proactive, as it means staff are willing to try something different maybe a little too risky for the good of the company. We always finish #1 in the efficiency catego-ry in the local banking industry, so the word failure is not in our dictionary

2

“we pride ourselves on the continuation of the success and development that has been registered since the company’s inception.”

mohamed tuRki al-soBai

Vice-cHairMan and ManaGinG director

WoQoD

WoQod f u e l l i n g e n e r gy n e e d s

W

wo Q o d i s a p u b l i c s h a r e c o m pa n y l i s t e d o n t h e Q ata r e xc h a n g e s i n c e 2 0 0 2 . t h e c o m pa n y i s r es p o n s i b l e f o r t h e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f f u e l w i t h i n Q ata r . t h i s i n c lu d es d i es e l , g as o l i n e a n d av i a-t i o n f u e l t h r o u g h a f l e e t o f m o r e t h a n 1 5 0 r oa d ta n k e r s . i t t r a d es i n s h i p -to - s h i p b u n k e r i n g , b i t u m e n i m p o rtat i o n a n d d i s t r i b u t i o n , lu b r i c a n ts a n d m o d e r n s e r v i c e s tat i o n s . wo Q o d a l s o d i s t r i b u t es a l l l p g i n Q ata r .


ow has the company performed over the past 12 months?Last year saw a continu-ation of the successful

journey that began in 2010, thanks to the efforts of the Mawashi team in all depart-ments. Our profits doubled to QR64 million compared to the same period in 2010 and we are now focusing clearly on our future expansion plans.

The idea of a company takeover in 2011 was a major challenge for the staff and made them feel insecure, but I confronted

the challenge by raising morale and reas-suring them that we were the best people to run the sector. In fact I made it clear to the government that we had manoeuvred a difficult corner and it rewarded the new Board of Directors by cancelling the take-over and entrusting them with continuing its work in this sector.

But Hassad Food Company was actu-ally instructed to begin the takeover process. What were the reasons for the intended takeover? Was it just a matter of the company’s declining profits or

future plans and projects,” Al-Attiyah continued, “the Board of Directors rec-ommended to distribute cash dividends of QR415.8 million according to a rate of 100 % of the value of the paid-up nominal capital, i.e. QR10 per share, in addition to 25% bonus shares. This recommendation takes into account the company’s current financial liquidity and the future funding needs for capital projects that were adopted for the year 2012.”

However, it reported that its net profit fell 10.5% to QR241 million in the first quar-ter this year. The decrease in net profit was due to a “decline in sales” for certain petro-leum products following completion of the New Doha International Airport and gas projects, among others.

Announcing the first quarter results

Woqod, Vice-Chairman and Managing Di-rector Mohamed Turki Al-Sobai said the company’s assets totaled QR7.6 billion in March, up 20.6% on 2011, while equity reached QR4.6 billion in March, up 18% on 2011.

As a result of the increase in capital base through the issuance of 25% bonus shares in 2011, earnings per share reached QR4.6 in Q1 2012 compared with QR6.5 in the same period last year.

Al-Sobai said Woqod was currently en-gaged in some 31 key projects in Qatar. They include setting up new petrol stations, vehicle inspection centres and Sidra stores, Woqod Tower (Dafna), product supply pipelines, new deals for supply of lubricants and expansion of the LPG distribution network

3

DurinG ThE FinAnciAl yEAr

EnDinG DEcEmBEr 31 2011, WoQoD

mAinTAinED PoSiTivE nET ProFiT

rATES ThAT EXcEEDED 7.5% To

rEAch Qr1, 155 million. DESPiTE

ThE 20% incrEASE in ThE PAiD-uP

cAPiTAl oF ThE comPAny DurinG

2010 ThrouGh ThE DiSTriBuTion

oF BonuS ShArES, EArninG PEr

ShArE (EPS) For 2011 incrEASED

By 7.5% To rEAch Qr27.77 AGAinST

Qr25.83 in 2010.

“i don’t like the word failure – i prefer to say experience. an initial

mistake is not a failure but a lesson, though if the mistake is repeated

then it is a failure. “ ahmed nasseR sRaiya al-kaaBi

ManaGinG directormAWAShi

MaWasHia j o u r n e y o f s u c c ess

m awas h i h as s u c c ess f u l ly m a n ag e d to t u r n w h at was p e r c e i v e d by t h e Q ata r i g ov e r n m e n t to b e a n u n d e r p e r f o r m i n g c o m pa n y i n to o n e t h at i s h i g h ly p r o f i ta b l e . i n fac t, t h e r e w e r e p l a n s f o r t h e g ov e r n m e n t to s t e p i n to r e f o c u s t h e c o m pa n y. Q ata r to day m e t i ts m a n ag i n g d i r e c to r , a h m e d n ass e r s r a i ya a l- k a a b i , to f i n d o u t m o r e a b o u t t h e a ba n d o n e d ta k e ov e r as w e l l as i ts p l a n s f o r t h e f u t u r e .

4l a s t y e a r


8D i v i D e n D

y i e l D


2l i q u i D i t y

5n e t P r o f i t

g r o w t h

7n e t r e v e n u e

g r o w t h

H



were there other reasons?At the end of 2009 profits were QR18 mil-lion and starting to decline, and for that reason the government decided to step in to protect shareholders’ equity. But thanks to the efforts of the new Board of Directors and staff at Mawashi, we turned things around to become the third most profitable company.

Last year you were aiming to cover the whole Gulf market. How far have you got with this?Mawashi is made up of a parent company and some subsidiaries. The parent com-pany signed an agreement to import Aus-tralian meat to the UAE under an exclusive distribution deal, and has also signed an agreement with Wellard, the world’s larg-est livestock transporter. We have other transport agreements but we really want to acquire some livestock carriers of our own, as we have the resources to invest here. We are planning to acquire two ships (with the capacity to carry 75,000 and 15,000 head of livestock respectively) to transport animals from neighbouring countries such as Sudan and Somalia. We intend to set up a specialist transportation company within Mawashi.

Our investments in Georgia are growing and Georgian meat is already on sale in the market. We have focused this year on bring-ing in Georgian breeding females, which are highly regarded by Qatari breeders. We see this as a production line to increase Qatar’s animal stocks.

What are the main changes or decisions the company has recently been forced to make to maintain its performance, and how hard has it been to make them? All our decisions follow exhaustive study as to whether they will increase our profits, and we will not abandon any of our tradi-tions for financial reasons. Take the ex-ample of our decision this year to increase imports from Sudan. Last year we were only dealing in agricultural and animal products, but now we have started to export Sudanese sheep as well as various kinds of Sudanese fodder, including compounds. The com-pany’s output was initially modest, but even that decision was only taken after research into the Sudanese market, and it shows in the Sudan project’s substantial profits.

Have you noticed the emergence of any new competition? Competition in any sector always means

better service for consumers. There are other companies working in the refrigerat-ed meats trade and competition is good for innovation and development. We innovate when we see something missing in Qatar, such as meat processing. The distinguish-ing feature of our products is that they are fresh, whereas everything else in the mar-ket is frozen. We work on the basis that we have no competitors on the same scale as us, so we measure ourselves against inter-national companies.

Are there any obstacles to growth here in Qatar? What changes would you like to see to help improve the performance of Mawashi and the meat sector as a whole?The economy in Qatar is supportive and en-

couraging. Our monthly sales figures have been showing continuous growth, and we’ve been seeing a big increase in the number of companies coming here. We are optimistic about the prospect of a boom in real estate and construction, and foodstuffs activity. I hope that foreign capital will be allowed into the Qatari market and that the market will be open and free to flourish; that there will be a slight easing of the foreign invest-ment laws; and that it will happen gradually

so that Qatari investors can compete with the foreigners.

How is a business leader different from an entrepreneur? What are the quali-ties a person needs to be an inspiring leader in a big corporation?A leader, in my view, is someone who can create and manage a team, outline an objec-tive (or vision) and make it happen. A leader creates a kind of confidence in his employ-ees so that they work enthusiastically and share the vision of the future of the business. The best leader was the Prophet Muham-mad (pbuh), who communicated the idea of Paradise to his followers and made them see it as a reality. An entrepreneur, however, is an inventor; he needs someone with leader-ship qualities to keep his business going and translate his idea into reality.

There is a view that a ‘culture of fail-ure’ within an organisation is a positive thing, because it means the employees are prepared to try something differ-ent, even though it may be risky. What is your opinion on this?I have no time for failure and I don’t like the word failure – I prefer to say experience . An initial mistake is not a failure but a les-son, though if the mistake is repeated then it is a failure. A person has to be allowed to fail in order to do anything, and if a leader is afraid of failure he simply won’t act at all. So let’s call it a ‘culture of experience’ .

What are your goals for the year ahead?We have a poultry project here in Qatar where local production meets no more than 30% of requirements – which we are just starting to get up and running. We are also planning to get into food processing in liai-son with the Qatar National Food Security Programme (QNFSP). 2011 was a year of fo-cusing on our core activity. but now that we have established our success and boosted the company’s profits, there are no limits to our ambitions for the future

M a w a s h i ’ s p r o f i t s :2 0 0 9

QR18 M i l l i o n

2 0 1 0

QR32 M i l l i o n

2 0 1 1

QR64 M i l l i o n

iT iS ThE SEconD TimE in iQ'S EiGhT yEAr hiSTory ThAT GrouP rEvEnuES EXcEEDED ThE

Qr12 Billion mArK. ThE GrouP rEcorDED rEvEnuE oF Qr12.3 Billion For ThE yEAr EnDED

DEcEmBEr 31, 2010, AnD Qr3.9 Billion in ThE FourTh QuArTEr, rEPrESEnTinG A yEAr-on-

yEAr incrEASE oF 25.1%. WiTh Full yEAr nET ProFiTS ToTAlinG Qr5.6 Billion, ThE GrouP

hAS AchiEvED iTS SEconD hiGhEST EArninGS on rEcorD.

(Interviewed by Ezdhar Ali)


heikh Falah bin Jassim bin Jabr Al Thani, Chair-man of the Board of Di-rectors, recently revealed how the company per-formed up until the end

of 2011. “NLHC witnessed a growth in profits

in 2011 of QR215 million – an increase of 20% compared with QR179 million in 2010,” he said.

Total operating revenues reached QR602 million – an increase of 41% on 2010. Total equity increased by 17%, jumping to QR762 million, while earnings per share rose to QR6.53 per share, a 20% increase on 2010. The Board of Directors at NLHC also rec-ommended approval of distributing a cash dividend of 35% (QR3.50 per share) – a total of QR115,453,800.

“Our success is not out of the void, nor was it reached with ease,” said NLHC Chief Executive Officer Hamad Abdulla Al-Emadi. “In fact, the strategic objectives were vigilantly set. The plans were meticu-lously laid down and processed with steadi-ness and faith towards attaining objectives which strictly complied with our values and principles.”

NLHC is aiming to expand the scope of its work and get involved in real estate de-velopment, infrastructural works, machin-ery, and hospitality services.

“We all share a firm belief that the gigan-tic accomplishments attained in 2011 will sooner or later reflect their positive impact upon the company,” added Al-Emadi. “Our financial results during this year have been nothing but an actual translation of efforts. Our focal objective for 2012 is simplified to address the capability to elaborate a stably-structured company with the potential to withstand all challenges in the future.”

NLHC recently successfully completed a rights issue process to increase capital. The subscription was 245% of the offered shares, and they managed to collect QR1.2 billion, bringing the total to 41 million shares at QR29.50 per share.

Sheikh Falah bin Jassim stated that NLHC had taken all necessary measures to ease the process of the rights issue for share-holders. The rights issue met with a massive response from the shareholders, showing their confidence in the strong equity of the company and its ability for continuous development and sustainable growth in ac-cordance with its business plans

national lEasing Holding coMpanya c a lc u l at e d e f f o rt

s

4

n at i o n a l l e as i n g h o l d i n g c o m pa n y ( n l h c ) was es ta b l i s h e d i n 2 0 0 3 as a Q ata r i s h a r e h o l d i n g c o m pa n y. i ts s h a r e c a p i ta l i n 2 0 0 9 was Q r 3 2 9 , 8 6 8 , 0 0 0 c o m p r i s i n g o f 3 2 , 9 8 6 , 8 0 0 s h a r es at Q r 1 0 p e r s h a r e . i t p r ov i d es a w i d e r a n g e o f p r o d u c ts a n d s e r v i c es i n c lu d i n g fac i l i t i es f o r l e as e a n d fac i l i t i es f o r r e n t a n d r e n t i n g l e a d i n g to ow n e r s h i p f o r i n d i v i d ua l s a n d f i r m s i n ac c o r da n c e w i t h i s l a m i c s h a r i a r e g u l at i o n s w h i c h s u i t t h e f i n a n c i a l r e Q u i r e m e n ts o f l a r g e , m e d i u m a n d s m a l l f i r m s .

nlhc WiTnESSED A GroWTh in

ProFiTS in 2011, AmounTinG To

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million in 2010. ToTAl oPErAT-

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Qr115,453,800.

“our rights issue met with a massive response from the shareholders,

showing their confidence in the strong eQuity of the company and

its ability for continuous develop-ment and sustainable growth in

accordance with its business plans”

sheikh falah Bin Jassim Bin JaBR al-thani

cHairMan and ManaGinG directornATionAl lEASinG holDinG comPAny

3l a s t y e a r


7D i v i D e n D

y i e l D


5l i q u i D i t y

6n e t P r o f i t

g r o w t h

5n e t r e v e n u e

g r o w t h



ndustries Qatar (IQ) and Qatar Petroleum (QP) are intertwined by their ownership, opera-tions and management,

where QP holds 70% of the share capital of IQ and IQ’s board members are the same as the QP Board members. Furthermore, the Chairman and Managing Director of QP serves concurrently as Chairman and Managing Director of IQ, as well as Qatar’s Minister of Energy and Industry, to ensure full coordination between QP/IQ and key national policies.

IQ recorded revenue of QR16.5 billion for the year ended December 31, 2011, rep-resenting a year-on-year increase of 34%. This increase can be primarily attributed to resilient prices across all key products as price inflation benefited the group by QR3.4 billion. The Board of Directors rec-ommended a total annual dividend distri-bution for the year ended December 31, 2011 of QR 4.1 billion, equivalent to a pay-out of QR7.50 per share and representing 75% of nominal value.

In addition to the record revenue, the group also registered its highest net profit. Full-year net profit of QR7.9 billion was significantly ahead of the previous record, in 2008, of QR 7.3 billion. Profit margins during the year were also extremely strong, averaging almost 48%.

“The financial year was noteworthy for the group as it contained a significant number of milestones and achievements,” said HE Dr Mohamed bin Saleh Al-Sada, Minister of Energy and Industry, and Chairman and Managing Director, IQ.

“As we have promised, we have de-livered,” he added. “In the financial and operational performances achieved, we witnessed further evidence of IQ’s ongo-ing quest for excellence. The group also proved its ability to execute and advance its various strategies, leading to greater fi-nancial and operational integration among group companies and enhanced the devel-opment of the domestic economy through the employment of qualified and trained nationals, while at the same time continu-ing to achieve strong financial results,” said Abdulrahman Ahmad Al-Shaibi, Chief Coordinator of IQ.

“Last year was undoubtedly a decisive year as IQ recorded its highest revenue and net profit since its establishment, with rev-enue exceeding QR16 billion and net profit of approximately QR8 billion. And, with the completion of that year, we are now able to reflect with admiration on the goals achieved, the successive accomplishments and ongoing progress made,” he said.

In early 2012, IQ received an AA- rating from Standard & Poor’s, in recognition of the group’s strong competitive advantages

industriEs Qatarr i d i n g t h e wav e o f s u c c ess

i

5 2 l a s t y e a r

1 0 P r i c e g r o w t h

1a v g r e t u r n o n

a s s e t s

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o n e q u i t y

i n d u s t r i es Q ata r was i n c o r p o r at e d as a Q ata r i j o i n t s to c k c o m pa n y i n 2 0 0 3 a n d h as b e c o m e a n i n d u s t r i a l g i a n t w i t h i n t e r es ts i n t h e p r o d u c t i o n , d i s t r i b u t i o n a n d sa l e o f a w i d e r a n g e o f p e t r o c h e m i c a l f e rt i l i s e r s a n d s t e e l p r o d u c ts , t h e s e c o n d l a r g es t o f t h i s t y p e i n t h e r e g i o n . i ts p r o d u c ts a r e s o l d i n ov e r o n e h u n d r e d c o u n t r i es wo r l dw i d e .

iQ rEcorDED rEvEnuE oF Qr16.5

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ShArE AnD rEPrESEnTinG 75%

oF nominAl vAluE.

“iQ proved its ability to execute and advance its various strategies,

leading to greater financial and op-erational integration among group companies and enhanced the devel-

opment of the domestic economy through the employment of Quali-

fied and trained nationals.”

aBdulRahman ahmad al-shaiBi

cHief-coordinator inDuSTriES QATAr


and debt protection metrics, to add to the Aa3 rating received from Moody’s in 2011. Both ratings were predicated on the group’s excellent cost positioning, largely due to competitively-priced gas feedstocks, prod-uct and end-market diversification, posi-tive debt metrics and very important pub-

lic policy role. The ratings were assigned a “stable outlook”, reflecting the expectation that key assumptions, including the group’s importance, debt levels and cost position would not be materially compromised. Both ratings place IQ one notch below the sovereign rating of Qatar and in a very se-

lect group of international petrochemical and chemical companies.

Moody’s rating reflects the highly com-petitive cost structure of the group’s ven-tures, and IQ’s role in enabling two key poli-cies of Qatar: economic diversification and wealth distribution.

l-Ansari explained that QIMC is currently draw-ing up a new strategy to enable it to keep pace with the economic up-

swing in the country. This also applied to QIMC s subsidiary companies, for which a clear vision and new five-year strategies had to be set.

“Our new strategy calls for certain standards to be met,” said Al Ansari. “Our management has been trying to apply total quality standards and obtain ISO 9001:2008 certifications for QIMC and its subsidiaries.”

QIMC is also applying for a credit rating, but purely for evaluation purposes and not with the aim of borrowing money.

InvestmentsQIMC commissioned a consultancy ser-vices bureau to review the company last

year. It had always been operating accord-ing to a particular strategic view with a particular set of policies and procedures, so it felt this needed to be re-examined.

“We have put in place a new company structure and new policies and proce-dures,” said Al-Ansari. “We have also rebranded the company to reflect its stra-tegic direction of improving its market position and expanding through small and medium-size projects, while remain-ing interested in entering into large-scale projects.”

AspirationsAl-Ansari said: “QIMC has a broad indus-trial base covering petrochemicals, min-erals, food processing and construction materials, and is continually working to di-versify its portfolio of projects. The board promises shareholders that it is up to the task of revitalising the company and carry-

QiMcs t r at e g i es to k e e p pac e w i t h p r o g r ess

a

6 5 D i v i D e n D y i e l D

9 l a s t y e a r


a s s e t

Q ata r i n d u s t r i a l m a n u fac t u r i n g c o m pa n y was es ta b l i s h e d i n 1 9 9 0 w i t h c a p i ta l o f Q r 2 0 0 m i l-l i o n ( $ 5 5 m i l l i o n ) h e l d 2 0 : 8 0 by t h e s tat e a n d t h e p r i vat e s e c to r , w h i c h was pa i d i n f u l l by 2 0 0 2 , t h e n r a i s e d i n 2 0 0 6 to Q r 3 0 0 m i l l i o n a n d i n 2 0 1 0 to Q r 3 9 6 m i l l i o n . Q ata r to day m e t c e o a b d u l r a h m a n b i n a b d u l l a h a l-a n sa r i to f i n d o u t m o r e a b o u t t h e s t r at e g i es t h at h av e m a d e t h e c o m pa n y s u c c ess f u l .

“Qimc is ready to keep pace with the coming economic boom. we have a lot

of expansion projects initiated on the basis of market research and in

anticipation of an economic boom.”

aBdulRahman Bin aBdullah al-ansaRi

cHief executiVe officerQATAr inDuSTriAl mAnuFAcTurinG comPAny



ing out future projects in a more expeditious manner.”

He explained they had completed the first stage of four, that of reviewing the compa-ny’s position. The second stage is identify-ing options and alternatives; then drawing up the strategy is stage three before finally determining the overall organisational framework.

New projectsAl-Ansari talked about a number of expan-sion projects, initiated on the basis of mar-ket research and in anticipation of an eco-nomic boom.

“We are ready to keep pace with the com-ing economic boom,” he said. “QIMC has a lot of projects lined up linked to develop-ment in Qatar.”

He gave the example of the Qatar Sand Treatment Plant, which is geared to pro-duce 40,000 tonnes of sand per day, com-pared with the country’s current daily con-sumption of 18,000 tonnes.

Another example is the ongoing expan-sion at Qatar Acids Co.’s sulphuric acid plant to meet increasing consumption in Mesaieed Industrial City (MIC) and other key industries. He also said that Gasal Com-pany, which specialises in manufacturing industrial gases, had been able to cover MIC’s overall requirements and was plan-ning to invest hundreds of millions of dol-lars in setting up an industrial gas network to cover the entire Ras Laffan Industrial City.

“We will set up industrial gas plants in Ras Laffan on the same lines as those in Mesaieed, and will supply the installations there with industrial gases,” he said.

QIMC’s expansion plans include Qatar Plastic Products Co., along with a wooden tile-producing factory due to come into operation at the end of the year. Work on setting up the Qatar Aluminium Extrusion

Co. is now complete, and the project is wait-ing to be linked up to the national grid. The raw materials will be provided by Qatalum, making its output – 8,000 tonnes per year of it – 100% Qatari.

“It is the only factory of its kind in Qa-tar,” said Al-Ansari. “We expect demand to increase in the period ahead, which is what led us to start thinking about expanding the project even before it actually entered pro-duction,” a reference to the fact that the al-uminium extrusion plant has been built to accommodate production lines with a total capacity of 24 tonnes a year. “We are cur-rently working to add two production lines alongside the existing one. The second line will be ready at the end of the current year, and the third during 2013.”

Meanwhile, the company has started to implement the KLJ Organic-Qatar project to produce chlorinated paraffin, caustic soda and hydrochloric acid, with an expect-ed start date in the first quarter of 2014.

AcquisitionsAl-Ansari revealed a new activity that

QIMC intends to get into as part of its new strategy, which is acquisitions.

“We have come to the view that acquir-ing existing enterprises that complement our own activities and fit with our strategy and aspirations could be of interest,” he ex-plained. “We have appointed a team to work on this, and have made a start by taking a 51% stake in an Italian factory operating in Qatar. We are in the final stages of conclud-ing the deal.”

He indicated that the investment fund available for such acquisitions stood at around QR200 million, while QIMC’s total investment in its subsidiaries was roughly QR1 billion.

“We have a number of acquisition proj-ects under consideration that will be an-nounced in the near future,” Al-Ansari continued. “There are negotiations going on to acquire companies both in Doha and elsewhere.”

Furthermore, the CEO announced, the company would be setting up a 100,000 sq. metre project in the Industrial Area, “QIMC Logistics Village”, to provide logistical sup-port to QIMC and its subsidiaries.

First quarter resultsQIMC’s profits were up in the first quar-ter of this year and were expected to im-prove further by the end of the first half, the CEO said, but he was quick to point out that first quarter results don’t give a good idea of the company’s performance for the rest of the year because a lot of op-erational costs fall during the first quar-ter and do not recur during the rest of the year, thus depressing the Q1 profit margin compared with the remainder of the year. He noted that QIMC has companies due to come into production during the coming months, which again suggests that there will be a rise in returns and profits to come

2 0 1 1 i n f i g u r e sn e t p r o f i t

QR206 M i l l i o n

D i v i D e n D

QR118.8 M i l l i o n

s h a r e h o l D e r s ’ e q u i t y

QR1,253 M i l l i o n

Qimc’S ProFiTS WErE uP in ThE FirST QuArTEr oF 2012 AnD WErE EXPEcTED To imProvE

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ow has QNCC per-formed over the past 12 months?Sales income fell because of reduced demand for

cement, washed sand and quicklime during the year in view of the negative impact of the global financial crisis on the local mar-ket and against a backdrop of new competi-tion in the market, with the entry of anoth-er Qatari company producing appreciable quantities of cement, and another company producing washed sand. In addition, Qatar Steel ceased to take deliveries of quicklime last June, having previously been our prin-cipal quicklime customer. These factors had a direct effect of reducing the compa-ny’s sales income over the past year.

However the company managed, through its own production lines, to meet the local market’s requirements for different prod-ucts while maintaining the same high qual-ity and stable prices, and this has made a tangible contribution to the development boom in Qatar.

We set up a new calcium carbonate pro-duction unit with a capacity of 250 tonnes per day to meet Qatar Electricity and Wa-ter Company (QEWC)’s requirements, in

line with the government policy of trying to source strategic materials within the country. By the end of 2011 the project had reached the performance testing stage. We already had a contract with QEWC to sup-ply all its calcium carbonate requirements, amounting to about 250,000 tonnes per year, for 25 years with an option to renew.

What are the main changes or decisions QNCC has recently been forced to make to maintain its performance, and how hard has it been to make them?

During the past year we have gone a long way towards meeting the corporate gov-ernance standards required by the Qatar Financial Markets Authority (QFMA) in order to achieve the desired objectives of transparency, openness and probity. We are one of the first public shareholding compa-nies in Qatar to introduce the QFMA’s cor-porate governance regime. Our administra-tion was overhauled, with the introduction of comprehensive modern systems cover-ing various areas, by consultancy bureau Ernst & Young, which was appointed by the Board at its meeting last December. We also contracted Al Mannai Trading Company to install an Enterprise Resource Planning

Qatar national cEMEnt coMpanyc o n f r o n t i n g c h a l l e n g es

H

7

d es p i t e t h e i m pac t o f t h e g lo ba l f i n a n c i a l c r i s i s a n d n e w c o m p e t i t i o n i n t h e lo c a l m a r k e t l e a d -i n g to a fa l l i n r e v e n u e , Q ata r n at i o n a l c e m e n t c o m pa n y ( Q n c c ) m e t lo c a l d e m a n d f o r c e m e n t, was h e d sa n d a n d l i m e . Q ata r to day m e t Q n c c g e n e r a l m a n ag e r m o h a m e d a l i a l- s u l a i t i to ta l k a b o u t t h e c o m pa n y ’s ac h i e v e m e n ts a n d i ts f u t u r e p l a n s .

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“there is no such thing as failure, but there are challenges and risks. as far as we areconcerned at Qncc,

we tend to go looking for chal-lenges; we confront them and get

to grips with them in order to make something out of every situation, even a negative situation. and the

most important challenge we face is the issue of a healthy environment”

mohamed ali al-sulaiti

General ManaGerQATAr nATionAl cEmEnT comPAny

3 a v g r e t u r n o n

a s s e t

6a v D r e t u r n o n

e q u i t y

n o t e l i g i b l e l a s t y e a r



(ERP) system to improve performance in the company s various activities, the posi-tive benefits of which will be seen in the years to come.

What changes would you like to see in Qatar to help improve the performance of QNCC and the building materials sec-tor as a whole?The infrastructure for importing through the ports is still not meeting the country’s needs, and we would like to see Mesaieed Port expanded to keep up with the country’s development boom and avoid the current bottlenecks where ships have to queue up before they are allowed into the port to un-load. We would also like the road network to be modernised, especially to and from pro-duction areas, and for special roads to be built for transporting heavy, bulky goods.

What are your goals for the year?To keep pace with plans for the country’s development over the crucial years ahead,

we are making efforts to raise the produc-tive capacity of our cement plants. Manage-ment is looking at new options for increas-ing output, achieving maximum economy and efficiency in the various production op-erations, seizing every possible opportunity to increase sales of washed sand using the large quantities stored on site, and clearing the way to exploit the company’s available productive capacity so as to achieve an at-tractive economic return. We will also ex-plore all available options to deal with the fallout from Qatar Steel’s termination of quicklime deliveries to prevent any further damage to the company. We will continue to implement the ERP IT system in all de-partments and sections to enhance perfor-mance within various business activities in all locations.

How is a leader different from an entre-preneur? What are the qualities a per-son needs to be an inspiring leader in a big corporation?

The most important qualities of an in-spiring leader are that he should have a clear vision of the goals he is steering his workers firmly towards; that he should be skilled in the arts of communication, planning and motivation; that he should be able to win the confidence of others and be prepared to take risks; and that he should achieve his goals with the fewest possible losses.

There is a view that a ‘culture of fail-ure’ within an organisation is a positive thing, because it means the employees are prepared to try something differ-ent, even though it may be risky. What is your opinion on this?

There is no such thing as failure, but there are challenges and risks. As far as we are-concerned at QNCC, we tend to go looking for challenges; we confront them and get to grips with them in order to make something out of every situation, even a negative situ-ation. And the most important challenge we face is the issue of a healthy environment

oha Insurance Company (DIC) is a Qatari share-holding company which is engaged in the business of insurance and reinsur-

ance. Its capital base is QR234 million ($65 million).

During 2006, DIC established an Islamic Takaful branch under the brand name “Doha Takaful” to carry out insurance and reinsur-

ance activities in accordance with Islamic Sharia principles.

DIC is the latest qualitative addition to the Qatari national insurance market. With a fresh approach to the concept of security and protection, DIC is sharply focused on delivering tailor-made products to suit the specific needs of clients. It has been assigned an interactive credit rating of BBB+ stable by Standard & Poor’s

8doHa insurancE coMpanyi n s u r i n g c o m p e t i t i v e n ess

d


5 l a s t y e a r

d o h a i n s u r a n c e c o m pa n y was f o r m e d i n 2 0 0 3 , i n r es p o n s e to t h e n e e d f o r g r ow t h i n t h e i n s u r a n c e s e c to r . t h e c o m pa n y i s s t i l l i n i ts i n fa n c y b u t h as g r e at v i s i o n s f o r e x pa n s i o n i n s t r at e g i c a r e as .

DohA inSurAncE comPAny’S

FinAnciAl STATEmEnTS For

ThE yEAr EnDED DEcEmBEr 31,

2011 rEvEAlED A nET ProFiT oF

Qr65.8m in 2011 vErSuS Qr60.7m

in 2010. ThE comPAny’S EArn-

inGS PEr ShArE AmounTED To

Qr3.66 in 2011 comPArED To

Qr3.37 in 2010. ThE FinAnciAl

STATEmEnTS For ThE ThrEE

monTh PErioD EnDED mArch

31, 2012 rEvEAlED A nET ProFiT

oF Qr21.2 million in comPAri-

Son To Qr19.2 million For ThE

corrESPonDinG PErioD in

2011ThE EArninGS PEr ShArE

(EPS) AmounTED To Qr0.91 AS oF

mArch 31, 2012 vErSuS Qr1.07 oF

ThE SAmE PErioD in 2011.



oha Bank had a highly satisfying business year in 2011, according to R Seetharaman, Group Chief Executive Officer.

“We had demonstrated our resilience dur-ing the 2008 crisis, and in 2012 Doha Bank will continue to be mindful of global and regional risks,” he said. “Our results are largely attributable to the bank’s strategy to innovate, diversify and capitalise on market synergies, as it continues to increase share-holder value.”

Doha Bank posted full-year net profit of QR1.24 billion in 2011, up 18% on the year before. The bank’s total assets rose to QR52.4 billion last year, an increase of 11% compared with 2010. Loans and advances rose to QR30.7 billion in 2011, representing growth of 15.7 %. Customers deposits grew by 2.8% to QR31.7 billion in 2011, while shareholders’ equity totalled QR7.1 billion in 2011, an increase of 17.3%. Earnings per share were QR6.03, while the average re-turn on shareholders’ equity and the aver-age return on assets were 22% and 2.49% respectively. The bank’s non-performing

loans (NPLs) were 3.3% of total loans.Doha Bank’s quarterly results were an-

nounced recently, where net profits of QR390 million for the first quarter of 2012 marked a 7.4% increase on the same period last year. Loans and advances grew by 13.1% to reach QR29.5 billion, as at March 31, 2012, while total assets increased by QR5.9 billion, a growth of more than 12.8% since March 31, 2011. Customer deposits and un-restricted investment accounts registered growth of 11.8%.

International rating agencies Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, Capital Intelligence and Fitch Ratings assigned a stable outlook for the bank owing to its consistently strong fi-nancial fundamentals, asset quality and ro-bust liquidity. In addition to this, Standard & Poor’s maintained the rating on Doha Bank Assurance Company. Doha Bank As-surance Company LLC (DBAC), has been given a counterparty credit and insurer fi-nancial strength rating of BBB with a stable outlook by Standard and Poor’s, on success-ful utilisation of its relationship with Doha Bank and continuation of its strong ratios

doHa bankp r o m ot i n g i n n ovat i v e s t r at e g i es

d

9

d o h a ba n k i s t h e l a r g es t p r i vat e c o m m e r c i a l ba n k i n Q ata r . i t c o m m e n c e d i ts d o m es t i c a n d i n t e r n at i o n a l ba n k i n g s e r v i c es i n 1 9 7 9 . i t p r ov i d es i n d i v i d ua l s a n d c o m m e r c i a l , c o r p o r at e a n d i n s t i t u t i o n a l c l i e n ts w i t h ways to m a n ag e t h e i r f i n a n c i a l l i v es .

DohA BAnK PoSTED Full-yEAr

nET ProFiT oF Qr1.24 Billion in

2011, uP 18% on 2010. ThE BAnK’S

ToTAl ASSETS roSE To Qr52.4

Billion lAST yEAr, An incrEASE

oF 11%. loAnS AnD ADvAncES

roSE To Qr30.7 Billion in 2011,

rEPrESEnTinG GroWTh oF 15.7%.

cuSTomErS DEPoSiTS GrEW By

2.8% To Qr31.7 Billion in 2011,

WhilE ShArEholDErS’ EQuiTy

ToTAllED Qr7.1 Billion in 2011,

An incrEASE oF 17.3%. EArninGS

PEr ShArE WErE Qr6.03, WhilE

ThE AvErAGE rETurn on ShArE-

holDErS’ EQuiTy AnD ThE AvEr-

AGE rETurn on ASSETS WErE

22% AnD 2.49% rESPEcTivEly.



e q u i t y



ow has QIIC per-formed over the past 12 months?QIIC’s performance has been excellent, with

premium growth of roughly 17%, a 30% dividend to shareholders for 2011, and an insurance surplus refund to policyholders of 20% of subscriptions (premiums paid during 2011).

Moreover, the company is doing all it can to reach the maximum possible num-ber of companies and corporations within Qatar with the aim of broadening its ser-vice base.

The growth we have achieved comes as a result of the prosperity and growth tak-ing place in Qatar. Insurance moves in step

with economic and urban development, since insurance services cover all stages from planning to completion.

What are the main changes or deci-sions QIIC has recently been forced to make to maintain its performance, and how hard has it been to make them? Has the company had to abandon any of its traditional practices or beliefs in order to stay ahead of the competi-tion?QIIC has lowered its premiums in order to be competitive, which is not something it has traditionally done. It regards the pre-miums policyholders pay as subscriptions, and at the end of each year, depending on the results of the insurance business, the

Qatar islaMic insurancE coMpany (Qiic)o u ts ta n d i n g p r o f i ts d es p i t e c o m p e t i t i o n

10 n o t e l i g i b l e l a s t y e a r

4 a v g r e t u r n o n

a s s e t

Q ata r i s l a m i c i n s u r a n c e c o m pa n y ( Q i i c ) c a m e i n t e n t h p l ac e , h av i n g h a d to c o p e w i t h t h e e n t ry o f a l a r g e n u m b e r o f c o m p e t i to r s i n to t h e Q ata r i m a r k e t, ac c o r d i n g to t h e c o m pa n y ’s g e n e r a l m a n ag e r , a l i i b r a h i m a l a b d u l g h a n i , w h o says t h at t h e c o m pa n y i s t ry i n g to b r oa d e n i ts c l i e n t bas e .

“in the insurance field success is measured by results, and it depends

on following the basic technical rules of the business. failure to

stick to these means failure in per-formance, as failing to follow the

basics is taking a gamble that could lead to success for a short time but

usually ends in failure.”

ali iBRahim al aBdul ghani

General ManaGerQATAr iSlAmic inSurAncE comPAny

H


company gives them back the surplus of these subscriptions, which in 2011 came to 20%. In other words, the subscriptions the company charges are only estimated, based on expected levels of risk.

Have you noticed the emergence of any new competition? How do you feel about that, and what are you doing to beat your off rivals?Fifteen new entrants to the Qatari market have been licensed by the Qatar Financial Centre, some in insurance and some in re-insurance, and they have taken a large vol-ume of various types of insurance, such as health and engineering. This is not a good sign for us, as they are not Qatari companies and are not investing in the local market, and there is no knowing whether they are in it for the long-term. In other words, if they make losses they might simply close their of-fices and leave.

Are there any obstacles to growth here in Qatar? What changes would you like to see to help improve the performance of QIIC and the insurance sector as a whole?

There are no obstacles to growth, because the Qatari economy is strong and vigorous,

but among the changes we would like from government agencies or companies is pref-erential treatment for Qatari companies over foreign ones, because the success of local companies is in the interests of the national economy. We would also like to see the formation of an umbrella group of Qa-tari insurance companies that would enable them to consult and work together to con-front external challenges. It could be called the Association of Insurance Companies, or any other name the authorities were happy with, to make this umbrella grouping known.

What are your goals for the year ahead?QIIC’s goals for the coming year are to ex-pand its services to all economic, industrial and commercial sectors by developing its insurance programmes and improving its services.

How is a business leader different from an entrepreneur? What are the quali-ties a person needs to be an inspiring leader in a big corporation?A successful leader is someone who achieves continuous, steady success, whereas an en-trepreneur is a businessman with a number

of businesses, in some of which he is ex-tremely successful while in others his per-formance is modest or weak. So a successful leader is also an entrepreneur, but not the other way around. The marks of an inspir-ing leader are constant improvement, pre-cision in delivery, and close monitoring of every aspect of the work.

There is a view that a “culture of fail-ure” within an organisation is a positive thing, because it means the employees are prepared to try something differ-ent, even though it may be risky. What is your opinion on this?In the insurance field success is measured by results, and it depends on following the basic technical rules of the business. Fail-ure to stick to these means failure in perfor-mance, as failing to follow the basics is tak-ing a gamble that could lead to success for a short time but usually ends in failure.

At QIIC we work according to the rules of Sharia law because they form the basis of our work as an Islamic insurance company. We see the company as a brick in the edifice of the Islamic economy that we believe is from Allah and holds good for all times and places

Qiic’S PErFormAncE hAS BEEn EXcEllEnT, WiTh PrEmium GroWTh

oF rouGhly 17%, A 30% DiviDEnD To ShArEholDErS For 2011, AnD An

inSurAncE SurPluS rEFunD To PolicyholDErS oF 20% oF SuBScriP-

TionS (PrEmiumS PAiD DurinG 2011). morEovEr, ThE comPAny iS DoinG

All iT cAn To rEAch ThE mAXimum PoSSiBlE numBEr oF comPAniES

AnD corPorATionS WiThin QATAr WiTh ThE Aim oF BroADEninG iTS

SErvicE BASE.

B o t t o m l i n e


identify what you’ve always wanted to do Fifteen years in construction engineering left you with dust in your eyes and a dull, grey outlook on life. You’re ready to get some emotional fulfilment from your next job and exer-cise your creative flair. Except you need to figure out what you want to do.

For some, the decision to switch careers is based on some life-long interest or hobby, say jewellery designing or fabric painting. For others, old jobs have become tedious and unful-filling and their future course is unclear.

Take this time to examine your priorities, values, interests and goals in life. Ask how important the financial element is versus the geographic or creative, intellectual or inter-personal element. If you don’t know what you want to do next, narrowing down your pa-rameters of interest helps you focus. Research different areas, read industry publications, travel, scout business fairs and read college brochures to identify an area of business/study that will meet your life objectives. Consider franchise opportunities and setting up a small business of your own if you don’t want to be employed again. You will be surprised at how many interesting opportunities are out there just waiting to be explored!

Mid-Career Transition it is neveR too late to staRt again, as is evident fRom the stoRies of mid-caReeR investment BankeRs Becoming inteRnet guRus, aRchitects tuRning into landscape aRtists – the list is endless. if you aRe feeling unfulfilled with youR caReeR and know that changing JoBs, companies oR locations won’t change that, oR if you have taken time off to puRsue otheR inteRests and aRe Ready to staRt a new Role, don’t fRet – it’s neveR too late to staRt afResh, pRoviding you plan ahead and follow a few Basic Rules.

Here are tips by career experts to ease you tHrougH your career transition:

B o t t o m l i n e


utilise and Repackage old skillsYou’ve found that job you want but don’t know how to get it. It doesn’t help that you were a civil engineer and the job you now want is in media advertising. Don’t be dis-couraged. Take your CV and start dissect-ing your skills and past experience to find all those elements that would apply to your new role. You will be surprised at how many skills are interchangeable and constant across careers and disciplines. Highlight those common denominator skills and at-tributes. These could be creativity, com-munication skills, organisational skills, leadership skills, quantitative, qualitative and problem-solving skills. Also highlight your general ‘aptitude’ for learning. Indi-cate how you learnt certain aspects of your past job in the minimal amount of time, got promoted early, were assigned to special projects or received praise for accomplish-ments.

leveRage client contacts and past connections

Once you have identified your future ca-reer direction, leverage your contacts to get your CV in the best shape possible and to get the interviews you want. Your con-nections will come in very useful in helping you secure the future job of your dreams. If you can find a mentor in the field you want to pursue, that would be ideal. Find out from these mentors how best to go about educating yourself for your future role, what courses to take, what seminars to at-tend, what books and journals to read and how to approach your job search.

don’t look Back

A radical career change often means com-pletely different working hours, responsi-bilities, work environment and peer cul-ture. To adapt to this new life, you must slowly shed all vestiges of your old career. Acquire the tools of the new trade, the skills, the education and the relationships, and don’t look back. Emulate those who have succeeded in this new role and visua-lise yourself succeeding just as much by learning from them and from every other resource available.

peRfect youR maRketing kitYour CV and cover letter should be geared towards your new role. Elaborate on the relevant items and focus less on technical jargon and skills that are completely irrele-vant in your new role. Run the CV and cover letter by friends/acquaintances in the new field to make sure they are in the best pos-sible shape.

Build a Roadmap foR success

Plan for success in your future role right down to the nitty-gritty details. By now you should have a very good idea of what is needed for success in your new role. Set goals for yourself and milestones to achieve these goals. Visualise yourself already suc-cessful in this new endeavour and work backwards to see how you can get there.

leaRn

This may be the time to go back to college or vocational school to get that degree/train-ing/certification you’ve always wanted. Take this opportunity to study whatever it is that you’ve always been interested in.

If you have taken time off work to have children, travel, get married or other rea-sons, going back to school is a great way to beef up your CV, update your skills and enter the job market on a competitive foot-ing.

BookMarkwww.issuu.com/oryxmags

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over 6,750,000 registered job seekers from across the middle east, north africa and the globe, representing all industries, nationalities and career levels. post a job or

find jobs on www.bayt.com today and access the leading resource for job seekers and employers in the region.

B o t t o m l i n e


he Chief Executive of a medium-sized firm is standing by the office shredder and looking puzzled. “Mary,” he says to one of his staff, “my secretary has gone and I don’t know how to work this machine. I put this confidential paper in and pressed the button.” Mary re-sponds: “That’s it, that’s all you need to do.” “Great,” says the CEO. “So when will my 20 copies come out?”

Corporate communications can some-times feel like a shredding experience: a perfectly good strategy is dissected into strips of disconnected news that don’t always resonate with the various target audiences.

The role of a corporate communications unit is to consider the strategic communi-cations programme required to achieve the objectives of an organisation.

Much of the work is focused on targeted communications with stakeholders and audiences, whether it’s communicating a project, product, service or policy.

Often “news” is related solely to media relations or an internal newsletter, but what if the concept of “news” is applied to all audiences and stakeholders? How could corporate communication practitioners re-frame their approach or restructure their operations to treat all communications and

DISCONNECTED COMMUNICATIONS:ThE CORPORATE NEWSROOM

T

NewsroomHub

all corporate comms.contribute to output

Outw

ard

Inw

ard

websiteonline

customer communication

stakeholder comms.

crisis, ect.

externalmedia

internalcommunication

media monitoring& analysis

archive/data & mediamanagement

News Input

Strategic & Executive Input

B o t t o m l i n e


information as news?The first step is identifying your audi-

ence, stakeholders or market. A simple helicopter approach to audience analysis is using the three I’s. Cluster your audi-ence into three groupings – those who are Involved, those who have an Influence over what you do and those who simply need to be Informed.

It may be that some audiences appear in more than one of these groups. For example, there may be key media that can greatly in-fluence public opinion or the reputation of a product or project, so they are influential, but there will be other media that simply need to be informed.

Generally speaking, those who are In-volved or have an Influence are considered stakeholders and those in the Informed group are considered audiences.

Tell me a storySo why might it be important to think about communications as “news”? Here are three ideas that could dynamically shift an or-ganisation’s approach to corporate commu-nications.

While it may seem like an oxymoron, sometimes the failing of corporate-driven communication is that it is delivered from the perspective of the corporation. The or-ganisation is too focused on what it wants to say and how it wants to say it, rather than comprehensively considering the requirements of the audience.

A case in point is the regional environ-mental agency that sent out large posters around the Pacific urging countries to save turtles. One official from the organisation visited a local village to find out how the campaign was being received. Nobody in the village could read English or French so apart from a few posters pinned up in classrooms for decorative purposes, most were used in the local school for drawing on the reverse blank side and the official was

promptly served up a meal of turtle soup by the local chief.

A second benefit of taking a news ap-proach is that it obliges the corporate entity to develop a story. So rather than corporate-speak, the communication is delivered in the age-old storytelling format.

“In business,” says Cary Brazeman, prin-cipal of The Corporate Storyteller, “an ef-fective corporate story usually begins with an idea, the same idea that is the basis of the business plan. What’s the company’s raison d’etre - its promise to business customers or consumers? That big idea should be the basis of the corporate story.”

Brazeman says great business perfor-mances often elude otherwise strong or-ganisations because their stories are poorly conceived or inadequately told.

“In most markets, saying your company provides ‘exceptional customer service’ or makes ‘value-added’ products doesn’t inspire a prospect, because your competi-tors either do the same things or say they do. Corporate storytelling digs deeper and reflects on the core ideas that define a com-pany and its personality,” says Brazeman.

So in North Dakota, in the United States, when Pamela Schmidt wants to explain why she left a career in television to start one of the first long-term care insurance agen-cies in the country, she tells the story of her grandfather’s pride; when Randy Hatzen-buhler wants to inspire 300 seasonal em-ployees at North Dakota’s largest tourist at-traction to rise to a higher level of customer service, he tells a story about feeding elk; and when Nancy R. Willis wants to remind the staff at St Alexius of the importance of the medical centre’s mission, she tells a story of nine young women bringing health-care to the Dakota territory.

Storytelling is a particularly powerful tool when used by leaders to inspire and en-gage employees, transform corporate cul-tures and communicate the values of their

organisation in an engaging and memorable way, says business writer from ND Business Watch Debora Dragseth.

In the examples above, each corporate story delivers a different big idea: Schmidt demonstrates “Bringing Meaning to the Work We Do”; Hatzenbuhler conveys “A Legacy to Future Generations”; and Willis talks about “Mission and Purpose”.

In the news tomorrowA third, more challenging but potentially dynamic, idea is to completely reframe the corporate entity’s communication infra-structure to the concept of a “corporate newsroom”.

Corporate communication practitioners fully understand the notion of treating their communication as news when it comes to media relations, because the audience (the media) requires a story in a news or press release format. Even internally, profession-als understand stories must be written in a news style for newsletters and the like.

But treating the function of corporate communications, whether outsourced or in-house, as a “newsroom” could also have a dynamic impact on how the organisa-tion communicates. Whether it is for the website, an opinion leader piece, writing a speech, for archival purposes, a corporate video, even an annual report, the notion of converting each communication to “news” could have a powerful impact on how a cor-porate entity reaches its audiences.

The challenge for senior executives is to fully understand and appreciate how to uti-lise the communication tools and talents at their disposal most productively. Using corporate communications only to convey what the corporation wants in a rigid style and format, and being blinkered to other opportunities or approaches, could be as wasteful as using a shredding machine to photocopy a confidential briefing paper

by saMson saMasoni, managing director, grow

visit www.omsqatar.com

founded in 2005, grow is a creative multiple award-winning brand communications and pr agency based in doha. grow pr specialises

in strategic communications, public relations and change communications.

B o t t o m l i n e


omen have become increasingly present in the public discourse in Qatar in recent years. Their participation in the workforce and their career advancements are ac-knowledged as pivotal factors in the Qatar National Vision (QNV) and Development Strategy (QNDS).

There are a number of high-level protag-onists like HH Sheikha Mayassa, who em-phasised at the recent UNCTAD conference that “Qatar will spare no effort to empower women”. However, efforts at accelerating women’s empowerment are still largely small-scale, disjointed efforts that con-centrate on entrepreneurship or women working from home.

But how prevalent are women in organi-sations here in Qatar, let alone in middle or top management? And what is being done for these women?

In other parts of the world, organisations that excel have long been asking themselves that question. They do so not just to em-power women and make them an equal part in the workforce, but because it makes solid business sense. A Catalyst study linked prof-itability to women in leadership, finding that companies with more women board members, on average, significantly outper-form those with fewer women. Eighty per-cent of HR managers in a recent McKinsey study considered gender diversity a busi-ness imperative.

More diversity matters because it is linked to higher productivity and a more engaged workforce and makes a company

more attractive to join and stay with for ex-cellent people (men and women). Multina-tional companies like Pfizer in the Middle East have established gender diversity pro-grammes and thus a “nourishing environ-ment for innovation”, as Darein Hassan, Africa Middle East Diversity Lead at Pfizer, stated at the recent Arab International Women’s Forum.

Qatar is no exception to this trend – to the contrary. “Women’s contribution to lo-cal and regional economies is essential to commercial success,” said Hamad Rashid Al-Mohannadi, Managing Director, RasGas, at the 2011 Qatar International Business Women Forum.

When developing the QNDS, Qatar took the opportunity to include goals for women in the workforce to rise to 42% by 2016. Women in leadership positions are hoped to increase by 30% in the same time.

It is laudable to have lofty goals, but how are they going to be implemented?

How do those ambitious goals find their way into organisational strategies?

That is where Qatar needs the buy-in from its business community, the people on the ground who can make it all happen.

So we took a closer look at the situation in Qatar and asked women in over 20 or-ganisations in various sectors how they felt about their own situation and the opportu-nities for women in their organisation.

Whereas some women still work in set-tings and industries where there are only a few female colleagues far and wide, some organisations increasingly employ women. Almost one-third of those surveyed worked in companies with a 15-20% female share. A quarter estimated that share at 35-45%, while in one-sixth of cases the female share was estimated at 50% or above. Companies employ more women than before at the entry level, but how do things develop for them along the career path?

Women are stuck in the leadership pipelineWe also asked people to estimate the share of women in middle and top management, and here the picture looks quite different. In more than half the cases, women make up less than 10% of middle managers and one-third said that there are even less than 5% female managers on that level. In top management, women become even scarcer: one-third of those surveyed did not have a single female top manager (CEO, GM etc). On the upside, it could be observed that the share of women in top management is higher in small and medium enterprises.

So what do organisations in Qatar do to increase women in leadership?Not enough, the men and women surveyed thought. Over 60% said that there were no programmes or offerings for women of any kind. Fourteen percent had inter-mittent programmes and only one-fifth of the organisations had more compre-hensive women’s initiatives, ranging from women’s associations to development and mentoring programmes.

Women are not (yet!) working to their full potentialAs a consequence of the above, it is not surprising that women feel they cannot contribute to their maximum. More than half said they are currently “not at all” or “not really” working to their full potential. When asked whether the organisation pro-vided opportunities to realise their poten-tial, 50% said “not at all” or “not really”.

Given the disparity between the pres-ent situation and the goals set, what can be done? Since there is a business case for it as well as a national commitment to promot-ing and increasing the female share in the workforce and in leadership in Qatar, let’s have a look at what organisations and their female employees can do:

Qatar’s HigH-potential womenplease stand up

W

B o t t o m l i n e


We call it the ‘two-pronged approach’: shifting the institutional AND the individ-ual mindset. Experience from coaching and consulting work, case studies and research have shown that simultaneously address-ing institutional and individual barriers to women’s advancement in the organisation leads to greater success.

The institutional mindsetOrganisations are creating structures and cultures which both need to be considered if they want their employees – both men and women – to be engaged and to live up to their full potential at the workplace. Struc-turally, this means looking at individual strengths and matching the individual tal-ents to create effective management teams. Structural issues where women still face particular challenges also include flexibility regarding working hours and the location of work, part-time work arrangements, ad-dressing specific needs of women in their development plan and the possibility to work and learn from female mentors and role models.

More importantly, the culture needs to reflect the importance and relevance of the potential of each individual and of gender equality for organisational performance and health. Obviously, the embodiment of that attitude by top management is crucial as it sets the bar for managers and employees throughout the organisation. Leaders need to pay attention to the different challenges women face in the workplace, but need to do so in an empowering, not limiting, way. The recent McKinsey study ‘Unlocking the full potential of women at work’ quoted one leader as saying: “For one opening, we had an employee who was highly qualified-she was running operations in Asia. However, we didn’t ask her if she would be interest-ed in the position, since she was pregnant and we assumed that she wouldn’t want to move.” Many women succeed in juggling both careers and family. As a leader – male or female – it is important to understand each individual’s aspirations and needs and not to make assumptions that might limit

that person’s choices and possible contribu-tions to the company’s success.

The individual mindsetHowever, it is not only up to the organi-sations to foster women. Companies can create circumstances that meet the spe-cific needs of women, but the women them-selves need to be ready and willing to seize the opportunities that present themselves. The McKinsey study revealed that “even among the successful women more than half felt they held themselves back from accelerated growth. Most said they should

have cultivated sponsors earlier because a sponsor would have pushed them to take opportunities. Too often, these women said, they did not raise their hands or even consider stretch roles.” So women need to step up and believe in themselves, their capabilities and their skills – and certainly utilise resources around them: actively ap-proaching mentors, sponsors and networks has proven essential to developing self-con-fidence, getting encouragement and taking on responsibility and thus taking steps to realise their full potential.

In order for that to become possible, there is a more fundamental change to be made, though. Men are, by and large, brought up to believe that it is their birthright to be successful, so it is natural to them to self-promote, seek sponsorship and take risks. Women are taught to be careful and con-siderate or, in more liberal environments, taught that they have to fight harder, to prove themselves even more than their male counterparts. Thus there are whole belief-systems to be tackled in order for women to truly advance – in a way that is aligned with their personal and cultural values.

Companies that work on developing the institutional as well as the individual mindset in an integrated way will succeed in leveraging the high potential of their workforce – men and women – more fully and this, in turn, evidently creates better results

the agile systeM steps to unlock high potential in workplace and management

agile; adjective, figurative: quick-witted, able to respond swiftly and easily

assessMent to determine the current status

goal-setting to define the scope of work

intervention to shift mindsets and behaviours

learning to review the process and its effect

ensure folloW-through to sustain success

yes, completely mostly

not really not at all

Do you feel you are currentlyworking to your full potential?

association &mentoring

development& mentoring

developmentprogramme

intermittentdevelopment

women'sassociation nothing

Women's programmes available

yes, completely mostly

not really not at all

Does organization provideopportunities to grow to your full

potential?

by carolin Zeitler, founder and ceo, and Birgit radl-Wanko,

eMail [email protected] [email protected]

co-founder and general manager, tataowar coaching & consulting, have combined the expertise and experience they gained from

many years in business, coaching and consulting to co-create the unique tataowar programmes with their focus on identifying and empowering women in organisations, business and the community.


ngelen, who worked previously as Christie’s Lon-don expert on contemporary art, has been helping to showcase a psychedelic solo exhibition by the uber-pop Japanese artist Takashi Murakami at the QMA. This makes sense after all: Pop Art was his first love. His candour on the subject of 1960s Pop Art is refreshing as he tells a funny story about how, as an innocent young man, he was blindsided by his first contemporary art happening.

“I started following the contemporary art mar-ket at the age of 15,” he says, “when I went with my

parents to an exhibition at the Museum Ludwig in Cologne to see Andy Warhol’s photography (Expo-sures, 1980). Through Exposures – Warhol’s instal-lation of Polaroid photos – I learned how playful and powerful art reflected popular culture. It opened my eyes, jump-started some thinking and changed my understanding of art permanently.”

Before this, Engelen’s exposure to painting and sculpture was purely limited to exceptional but tra-ditional and representational art. He was born into a Dutch family where a love of art ran through their blood – they were the founders of the European Fine Arts Fair in Maastricht, Holland. He is candid about the conservative nature of his parents’ art collection. (“it was all Ming and Kangxi porcelain”) and was ea-ger to challenge that paradigm once exposed to more challenging and engaging ideas.

The close call with Warhol’s photographs and their understanding and connection to their source of orig-ination set Engelen on his cultural mission, which was an admirable one, to demystify and present “art” in a straightforward way to those who live in the country.

The QMA is currently hosting several simultane-ous art exhibitions in Doha. In addition to the Mu-rakami “Ego” blockbuster at Al-Riwaq, there is the Louise Bourgeois exhibition at Katara Art Centere-

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EJean-paul engelen Recently celeBRated his fiRst anniveRsaRy at the qataR museums authoRity (qma), wheRe he has Been diRectoR of puBlic aRt pRogRammes since maRch, 2011. lauRene leon Boym talks to him aBout the qma’s plans to ignite the aRt scene heRe while educating qataRi nationals in the pRocess.

ART FOR ThE MASSES


and a showcase of the Chinese contemporary artist, Cai Guo-Qiang, “Saraab”, at Mathaf (Arab Museum of Modern Art).

The idea machine is constantly turning at the QMA, with an array of projects in the ideation, planning and execution stages. Recently it commissioned the first public sculpture in the Middle East from American sculptor Richard Serra, in a site-specific work for the tip of the new Pei Partnership Architects-designed Museum of Islamic Arts Park. There is also its spon-sorship of the survey of iconic British artist Damien Hirst currently on display at the Tate Modern, London.

The first Middle East survey of Damien Hirst’s work is planned to engulf Doha, scheduled for the autumn of 2013. Both Hirst and Murakami are blue-chip art-ists independent of their solo exhibitions in Qatar.

“The important message is to show different points of view in art, so people understand the depth and range of what is possible – that there are creative ex-pressions for people to express themselves in a wide variety of ways,” says Engelen. “The first step, in cre-ating that public awareness of art, is to get people into the buildings and looking at the exhibitions. Eventu-ally, we would like to have a comprehensive education programme for school outreach.”

“The core organisation (at the QMA) is a small dedicated team and we need to triage the sequence of events. First exhibitions, then public outreach and

education. If, as a first step, people can connect with the work, then they will be excited to dig deeper into the programmes we are planning,” he adds.

Credit should go to HE Shaikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad Al Thani, Chairperson of the QMA, for her en-thusiasm for the arts and education and her unwaver-ing dedication to incorporating her passions into the building of a new nation.

Indeed, the QMA is taking proactive steps in that direction: a forward-thinking agenda has high hopes that museum visitors will discover creative role mod-els in their community with the upcoming compre-hensive survey of Qatari Artists and Collectors in the Mal Lawal exhibition opening in September at Al-Riwaq. The origins of the exhibition are purely local in nature, and will be seen from two perspectives. The first half of the exhibition is devoted to rare and pre-cious objects from various collectors in Qatar, and the second half is devoted to the exhibition of works from Qatari artists spanning three generations.

The Mal Lawal exhibition is notable as it creates a watershed moment for Qataris to understand they are not just passive consumers of artistic masterpieces but, as the second half of the show will demonstrate, they can also be the future architects of their coun-try’s artistic destiny. Upcoming generations of Qatari nationals may be not only consumers but potentially leading producers and authors of the advancement of culture in the Arab world

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JEaN PaUl ENGElTEN

director of PuBlic arts PrograMMe, qatar museum authority, with the pop artist takashi murakami’s exhibits behind him


hile there are so many elements that are true and exclusive to Qatar, the balanced nature and independent structure of Al Jazeera (AJ)’s eagle eyes, thriving in the midst of a region where government-controlled me-dia are the norm, certainly tops the list of the country’s top ten amazing aspects.

The eighth Aljazeera International Doc-umentary Film Festival (AJICFF) was held here in April and it showcased stories from the Arab world.

“The AJ Documentary Channel is the first Arabic channel in the world that spe-cialises in this genre of documentaries and is available in the Arabic language, on air, 24/7. The theme for this year’s festival was ‘Future’, symbolising the uncertainty hang-ing over the future of the Arab world, and reflects the mood after the Arab uprising,” says Mostafa Nagy, Head of Programmes at Al Jazeera Documentary Channel.

Understandably, then, the films ranged

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ThE STORIES AS ThEY AREit is time foR the aRaB woRld to tell its own stoRies, says ahmed mahfouz, managing diRectoR of aJ documentaRy channel, on the sidelines of the eighth alJazeeRa inteRnational documentaRy film festival.

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from countries across the globe and a vari-ety of topics. However, the preoccupation with the theme of the personal toll on the human psyche resulting from political in-stability, and the film makers’ focus and in-terest around issues of war, martyrdom and the Palestinian cause, were unmistakable.

On the sidelines of the AJIDFF, Qatar To-day was given an exclusive interview with the unassuming Ahmed Mahfouz, Man-aging Director of AJ Documentary Chan-nel, who shared the channel’s vision and philosophy.

The AJIDFF occurs every year. Is there anything different in the festival this year?After the Arab uprising, there is a big ques-tion mark in the minds of the Arab people regarding the future of the Arab world. I think these revolutions are not going to be merely political revolutions but will also be a revolution in the people themselves. Hence this year’s theme symbolises the uncertainty, the big red light flashing in the minds of the Arab world about tomor-row. So this year’s theme, ‘Future’, is very important.

Secondly, we invite filmmakers from dif-ferent countries to join us at the festival and we do workshops with them. We try to use the festival to nurture our relationship and to clarify our direction and goals for the coming year.

This year we made a change in our style of functioning. We have invited filmmakers from AJ English, AJ Arabic, the Balkans, Turkey and Kiswahili-speaking Africa. Same network, five different languages. We are now moving to a concept of integration, and this change in our working style will have a significant impact not only on AJ Documentary Channel’s relationship with the producers but also on the producers’ relationship with the entire AJ Media Net-work. This is a new concept which we are initiating and we hope it will be successful.

The strategic plan with which AJ Docu-mentary Channel is operating seems to be extremely impressive. What changes would you still like to see observed?After five years of working at AJ Docu-mentary Channel, I think now is the time to transfer from the scope of business to the scope of industry. In the existing style,

producers would send us proposals, discuss budgets etc. Now, we want to push them to be able to operate at an international level and style. We want to enable the Arab film producers to move to the next stage of de-velopment, to be able to gain the skills for pitching ideas internationally. I have par-ticipated in a lot of pitching sessions all over the world and I have noticed that there are very few Arab producers at that level. We have now started to provide opportunities for development in this direction by bring-ing agencies here that will train the produc-ers to acquire this talent and knowledge, to enable them to compete with their interna-tional counterparts.

Can we get a peek into the next year’s theme?At AJ Documentary channel, we focus on social, traditional and other aspects so any kind of proposal is acceptable. However, we don’t promote a lot of political programmes – they are covered by AJ English and Ara-bic. We operate in another playground. We are the cultural bridge between the AJ Media Network and the rest of the world. We focus on the youth, especially after the Arab revolution. We have made it a point in our programming to schedule more pro-grammes that will speak to the youth as well as projects that revolve around the topics of new media, the Internet, sports, rap and other music.

Is the channel interested only in Arabic-language films?We accept all kinds of films from all over the world. About 60-65% of our programming comes from our acquisition department, yet we also have our own production divi-sion. We believe that our productions give us our identity, so they focus more on the social, political aspects of the Arab world, and at the same time we are trying to boost the filmmaking industry in the Arab world. We have more than 180 filmmakers all over the Arab world, but we accept movies from anywhere and then dub them to the Arabic language.

Are films made in the Arab world being dubbed into other languages? Is there more that needs to be done in this di-rection?The AJDC is a pan-Arab channel, not just a

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ahmEd mahfoUz

Managing director aj documentary channel


Qatari channel. We are working from Qatar but we also represent the rest of the Arab world. So yes, we do sell all our programmes on DVD to end users at home and think that is also compatible with our goals and with our message. We want to encourage the dia-logue between us and the rest of the world and at the same time we want to be the bridge that carries our story across without

diluting our identity. We want the rest of the world to see us from our point of view.

Why is it important for the world to “see us from our point of view?”I think the world is curious about Arab people and it is the right time to show them our identity, without any stereotyping, so that they can see that we are more than just

“Camel and Sahara”, so they can see our tra-ditions and how advanced we are as a civili-sation. By that I don’t just mean our flash cars and impressive architecture but our culture and our roots, which is what gives us our identity. I think it is illogical to expect that someone else can speak about us better than we can ourselves. It is very important to us that the world knows us as we are

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ThE WINNING LIST

The Aljazeera Golden Award in the long film cat-egory went to “1/2 a Revolution”, co-directed by Danish-Palestinian Omar Shargawi and Egyp-tian-American Karim El-Hakim. The film is a per-sonal story about the filmmakers’ involvement in

the Egyptian revolution. The title was chosen to suggest that the revolution is not quite over yet. . The documentary left behind 25 others in the category to bag the QR50,000 prize.

The Netherlands entry “Permission to Engage” by Suchen Tan won in the medium film category while Kyrgyzstan’s “No-madic” was the winner in the short film category. The former tells about the true meaning of war for the lives of Iraqis while the latter focuses on yak herders’ fight for survival against Na-ture’s wrath.

“This is my land...Hebron”, produced by Italian Giulia Amati and Stephen Natanson, won in the long film category of the Jury Award and “Free Running Gaza” by George Azar took home the award in the short film section.

An interesting common thread engrained in most of these dif-ferent productions hailing from various parts of the world was unmistakably the call of the motherland, an underlying concern for the predicament of people affected by war and unnecessary

strife and an unspoken underlying concern for what the future might hold.

“Fallujah – A Lost Generation”, which won the Public Liber-ties and Human Rights Award in the medium length category, is the outcome of director Feurat Alani’s “personal experience while working as a correspondent in Iraq during the war.” The story revolves around “the consequences of the US bombing on the civil population and especially the babies of Falluja. Birth defects and growing cancer affected Fallujah after the war,” says Alani. “This award means a lot for me and all Iraqis, especially because it is a human rights issue. It is recognition for Iraqis at war. Doing this film was a struggle because the subject is very sensitive and obstacles were in my way. Neither the US nor the Iraqi government was willing to talk,” he added.

“Other Europe” and “The Gaza Monologues” were the other winners of the “Public Liberties and Human Rights” award in the long and short film categories respectively, while the latter also had the privilege of being the film screened at the open-ing night of the festival. This documentary introduces us to the therapeutic effect this play had on war-torn children, all while they were sharing with the world the experience of being under siege in Gaza.


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ut Social TV is changing our cyber-living-room, with increased interactivity with the content through the Internet. In broad terms, Social TV refers to technology that supports social interactions among viewers by the use of social media.

In an attempt to bring back the social as-pects of television that were lost with the in-troduction of multiple-screen homes, Social TV aims to connect viewers with their friends even when they are not watching together. As

a concept, social television is not linked specifically to Internet TV, IP TV or Web TV. It is also not limited to a traditional home screen, but could be available on a desktop, mobile device, tablet computer or notebook. All the mobile devices are collectively known as the second screen.

Many reality TV shows like The X-Factor have already begun to integrate Social TV ei-ther through polling or by integrating social elements within the show.

bSOCIAL TV IS ThE FUTUREthe concept of sitting aRound youR television with fRiends and having a conveRsation is not new.


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News channels are also encouragingly using social media tools to gather content and interact with viewers. Integration of Twitter feed in news hour, and citizen jour-nalism are good examples.

Social TV is definitely the buzzword for the year 2012.

Consumers are turning to the so-called second screen like never before.

Using a laptop in front of the TV is not new behaviour. Every time a commercial plays on the television I switch back to my laptop. Television chan-nels have yet to capitalise on the opportunity of interact-ing with the user when the commercials are on.

A 2011 study conducted by Yahoo/Nielsen found that as many as 86% of viewers use mobile devices while watching TV. This may give a hint about the usage habits of a television viewer that cannot be ignored.

Not being able to capitalise on the second screen during the advertisement breaks cedes it to Facebook and Twitter. Broad-casters get rewarded if they find a way to drive engagement and increase viewership. As per the research conducted by Nielsen, television shows that are widely discussed on social networks like Facebook and Twit-ter also tend to have higher ratings than other shows. I hope I have now justified why Social TV is a growing trend for the year 2012.

How does a user socially interact with television shows? The known mediums are Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Forum.

There are many Social TV apps that are generating organic content and allowing people to interact with the TV shows.

IntoNow is a service that allows you to tell your friends what television shows and movies you’re watching in real time. You “check-in” by hit-ting a button and letting your phone listen to what you’re watching. Yahoo snatched up this audio-synchronisation

app for QR75-110 million last April, just 12 weeks after it was launched.

GetGlue launched in 2008 as a platform on which you could “check-in” to television shows, books and movies, but TV quickly became its pri-mary application. GetGlue,

and another check-in app, Miso, have both closed funding rounds in recent months.

Apple is also in the Social TV race. The much-hyped Apple TV sold 2.8 million of the boxes in the year that ended in Septem-ber 2011. AirPlay, a software tool included with Apple’s iPads and iPhones, is widely viewed as being potentially disruptive to

the cable industry. AirPlay lets you wire-lessly stream what’s on your iOS device to your HDTV and speakers via Apple TV, or mirror exactly what’s on your mobile dis-play to the big screen.

In the Middle East region, Al Jazeera’s The Stream is do-ing an excellent job of com-bining social media and TV. The show producers thought of using the real-time and participatory nature of to-day’s Web to produce genu-ine content and build a community around it. They

use Skype to conduct interviews with par-ticipants and Google+ Hangouts for group interviews, and Storify to curate social net-works to build social stories.

I personally have not come across a TV

show in the region that has integrated so many social media tools at the same time.

Social TV primarily refers to the way that viewers use services like Twitter and Fa-cebook to discuss or ‘“check in” television shows, which is happening increasingly on second screen devices like smartphones and tablets.

With over 60 million people in the MENA region having access to the Internet comes an expected growth of social TV support that’s in line with global trends. Even though many people may not use check-in apps like GetGlue, the trend of using Facebook and Twitter to complement the television will grow on second screen devices.

kapil bhatia is an e-business manager, working in the financial services industry for the past 10 years. his work ranges across digital marketing,

e-channels and development of marketing strategies, with a sound informa-tion technology base.

tfour.me is an upcoming technology blog in the middle east, where talk

about tech entertainment, social networks, digital trends and list jobs. the blog would offer insightful analysis about big data and internet industry

and would feature start ups in the middle east region.

by kaPil BhatiafolloW

www.twitter.com @kapilkb blog @ iwep.blogspot.com amateur photographer @earsplease.blogspot.com


q a t a r t o d a y s p o t l i g h t

Our SOciety MatterSQatar today diScuSSeS cSr with cOMpanieS

whO truly believe in beinG reSpOnSible


corporate social responsibility (CSR) is no longer considered synonymous with char-ity. Companies take their CSR initiatives seriously as it has proved to add value to their businesses, open up new markets and create goodwill among stakeholders. Qa-tari companies, both state-owned and private, are taking a more focused approach to CSR by identifying key areas that best fit the organisation’s overall goals and tak-

ing steps to maximise the impact of their initiatives, and develop a model that will deploy re-sources most effectively. Be it Qtel, Vodafone Qatar, Qatar Financial Centre, Qatar National Bank, Qatar Airways, RasGas, Qatargas or Qatar Petroleum, they have all chosen to work with social communities to create a positive impact on their businesses. Be it supporting skill de-velopment, adopting cleaner technologies, recycling electronic waste or employee volunteer schemes, CSR is now a part of core business strategy and not an add-on.

In Qatar, the approach to CSR is top-down. The Qatar National Vision 2030 sets specific goals for sustainable development and creates a broad framework for individual companies to choose an area that will fit into their business strategy. The country has taken long strides by creating awareness, introducing codes for corporate governance (CG) and developing stan-dards for green buildings.

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the prOGreSS SO far and the way fOrward“Companies with their eye on their ‘triple-bottom-line’ outperform their less fastidious peers on the stoCk market” – the eConomist. triple bottom line is usually referred to as the value attaChed to a Company’s environmental, soCial and governanCe (esg) faCtors. the statement is proving right in the middle east also.

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Regulatory changes a leap forwardSince 2009, a number of regulatory changes have made a key difference. Two new CG codes, for publicly-listed companies, and banks and financial institutions, were in-troduced. It is now mandatory to publish a separate CG report along with the annual report. The CG report discloses key non-financial information that may affect stake-holders’ interest. Introduction of the Qatar

Sustainability Assessment System (QSAS), a code that mandates all buildings in Qa-tar to be constructed sustainably, is yet another landmark development.

Taking their cue from Qatar’s environ-mental policy, organisations such as the Qatar Green Building Council and the Gulf Organisation for Research and Develop-ment are working with green entrepreneurs in the construction and real estate industry to incorporate green building technolo-gies. For a country that is on the cusp of a

construction boom, imbibing sustainability practices at the budding stage is proving to be revolutionary.

ESG indices tracking moneyIn 2011, the Middle East got its first-ever Environmental, Social and Governance ac-tivities (ESG) index that tracks companies based on their ESG scores. ESG indices es-tablish a benchmark for companies involved in CSR activities and acts as a reference for investors who consider ESG in their invest-ment decisions. This was the first attempt in the Middle East to quantify a company’s non-financial parameters and link them to create value in the stock markets. Since the launch of the S&P/Hawkamah ESG Pan Arab Index in 2011, the index has out-performed the S&P Pan Arab Composite Index. During its recent rebalancing in De-cember 2011, Qatar’s weighting in the index increased significantly. Qatar has secured the second position in the index in terms of weighting, a testimony to corporate Qatar’s ongoing CSR efforts. The index has two Qa-tari companies – Qtel and Al Khaliji Bank – in the top 10. Al Khaliji secured a position in the top 10 during the recent rebalance, recognising the company’s CSR initiatives in the past year. There are 12 Qatari com-panies in the 50-stock index as compared to six last year – a significant move that not only takes cognisance of Corporate Qatar’s CSR initiatives but also adds value to these companies. Elevation within the index can mean more institutional interest in the stock, which might ultimately lead to value creation for its shareholders, proving that companies with a triple bottom line do shine in the markets.

The recent announcement by Barclays Bank and MCSI of the creation of a family of co-branded global ESG fixed income in-dices also proves the rising interest in ESG among the investing community. World over, assets worth approximately QR80 tril-lion ($22 trillion) are expected to be chas-ing socially responsible investments, that is more than 10% of the total global capital markets. This market is expected to grow to account for 15-20% of the global market by 2015. As money starts flowing into respon-sible companies, notching its way up the ESG index can help a company get access to cheap funds to fund its growth plans.

Country weights in the s&P esg Pan arab index(after the rebalanCing in deC 2011)

saudi arabia28.49%

qatar22.87%

uae22.77%

egypt10.53%

moroCCo7.33%

kuwait3.2% jordan

2.9%

bahrain1.91%


Greater awareness, maturing attitudeThere is greater awareness among the busi-ness community regarding CSR. The KPMG International Corporate Responsibility Reporting Survey 2011 established that CR reporting enhances financial value due to direct cost savings and enhanced reputa-tion in the market. This thought is echoed across a large number of companies in the Middle East too. A number of state-owned companies publish their CSR activities on their website. For example QNB, Qatar Air-ways and RasGas have dedicated sections on their websites that disclose their CSR activities. However, detailed disclosures about the amount spent and its impact on the company are hard to come by, leaving room for further improvement.

Better reportingQatari companies have yet to embrace re-porting standards. For example, only one Qatari company, Qafco, has published its sustainability report, according to GRI (Global Reporting Initiative), a global or-ganisation that produces one of the world’s

most prevalent standards for sustainability reporting. A quick browsing of the annual reports of listed companies reveals that, not many companies discuss their CSR ac-tivities in the reports. For example, Al Khal-iji Bank and Qtel, both among the top 10 stocks in the ESG Pan Arab Index, have in-cluded a section on their CSR activities, and Qtel has disclosed the total amount spent on CSR activities during the year. However, more work needs to be done to quantify and report the effects of a company’s CSR activities on its business. It can be made mandatory to file sustainability reports as it raises awareness and leads to greater sustainability efforts.

CSR AuditA number of sustainability professionals have advocated the concept of a CSR audit for firms. A CSR audit aims to identify envi-ronmental, social or governance risks faced by the organisation and evaluate managerial performance based on ESG criteria. There are various international standards against which a CSR audit can take place, such as Global Compact, Global Reporting Initia-tive and the Good Business framework.

Effective implementationThere is a strong feeling that more needs to be done to improve policy frameworks and issue guidelines for better ESG prac-tices. Dr Nasser Saidi, Executive Director, Hawkamah Institute of Corporate Gover-nance, suggests that sovereign wealth funds formally incorporate ESG into their invest-ment decisions by investing in companies that are part of the ESG index. He also sug-gests that an SME CG code be introduced akin to that for listed companies and finan-cial institutions to improve disclosure for small and medium enterprises (SME).

The Social Development Council (SDC) recommends that a regulatory body be cre-ated to oversee the strategies employed by companies to prioritise CSR and include it as one of the prime elements in their op-erational plans. It also strongly advises the adoption of Qatarisation as a primary CSR objective for both public and private com-panies. The Ministry of Business and Trade is currently working on local standards for CSR. The country appears to be on the right path to sustainability. It’s a long ride and the journey has just begun

weights at launCh in February 2011

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saudi arabia30.3%

uae14.7%

egypt12.2%

moroCCo7%

oman5.3%

qatar11.2%

kuwait11%

jordan4.8%

bahrain3.7%


the plan intends to work on four different levels, also known as the “four pillars”, as identified by the Qatar National Vision 2030. The pillars consist of human, social,

economic and environmental develop-ment. Driven by its commitment to the community, Oryx GTL considers CSR an integral part of its superior organisational governance and best practice in business.

Human development – investing in people for a brighter futureThe goal of human development is the de-velopment of the people to sustain a pros-

perous society. As a continuation of its cor-porate citizenship, it is proud to be part of an exclusive group of official sponsors for the 2010 National Day Celebrations Or-ganising Committee. These celebrations aim to preserve and reflect Qatar’s national identity and the traditions and values of Qatari society, while at the same time al-lowing for the implementation of modern processes to realise sustainable develop-ment, which is an integral part of the Qatar National Vision 2030.

Within the framework of its programmes to support Qatari society, it has concentrat-

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Oryx Gtl’S fOur pillarS Of SOcietyoryX gtl has inCorporated a diverse Corporate soCial responsibility (Csr) programme, whiCh defines its obligations to Consider the interests of its stakeholders and the soCial and environmental ConsequenCes of its business aCtivities.


ed efforts to attract young, skilled Qataris to train them further. This includes sponsor-ing students to attend international con-ferences and introduce them to the latest technologies, developments and practices worldwide, thereby planting the seeds for development of intellectual capital and best practice standards. For example, it spon-sored students to attend the conference of the Association of International Petro-leum Negotiators (AIPN) and the 2011 XTL conference.

This CSR has also been reinforced through the company’s recent establish-ment of a Mechanical Engineering Chair at Qatar University.

Recently, in an effort to benefit students with special needs, to facilitate their trans-portation within the vicinity of their univer-sity and create easier access to amenities, Oryx GTL collaborated with Qatar Univer-sity to provide club cars, which are meant to serve boys and girls under direct supervi-sion of the student affairs department.

A healthy mind a healthy body, as the saying goes. This is why sports activities are also part of its CSR programme and it is sponsoring Al-Khuraytiat Sports Club for the period 2010-2014. This year it extended its sponsorship to the female football team. This is in keeping with previous efforts to promote sports, such as its donation to the Qatar Sailing and Rowing Federation for the IODA Asian Games in autumn 2008.

Social development – underpinning our faith in familyOryx GTL’s CSR programme for social de-velopment emphasises that the family and its well-being constitute the first element in building a society based on a solid founda-tion. To help achieve this strategic goal, it has committed itself to support organisa-tions that improve opportunities for people who live in Qatar. By effectively participat-ing in broad community social development programmes, from donations to health or-ganisations and actively supporting safety awareness campaigns to visits and social activities with various sectors in need, it aims to make a positive difference to Qatar’s society.

For instance, we have been working closely with Qatar Red Crescent, which re-ceived financing for the campaign “Gates of Goodness in Ramadan”, along with other

charity projects including child cardiac op-erations and eye surgery, which help under-privileged children to regain their health. Oryx GTL’s contributions and activities are designed to support Qatari civil society organisations to improve opportunities for people who live in Qatar.

A sponsorship programme has been im-plemented with Qatar Diabetes Association as well as executing shared programmes within the organisation itself, for the ben-efit of its employees. They have come to-gether to increase awareness about caring for diabetic children by publishing English and Arabic brochures on the subject and distributing them to all schools.

Oryx GTL’s CSR initiatives are not only limited to campaigns, donations and mate-

rial support, but also include activities such as visits to Qatar Foundation for Elderly People Care and the Qatar Society for Reha-bilitation of Special Needs, for whom addi-tional medical equipment was purchased.

Such contributions reflect its role in providing support to members of Qatari society – especially vulnerable groups – and demonstrates its recognition of the work undertaken by these associations. Besides supporting charitable and non-profit organisations, it has provided moral and educational support to the Qatari community by offering workshops that educate and raise awareness on health and environmental issues.

Economic development – securing a high standard of living Last year, HE the Minister of State for Inte-rior Affairs Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani recognised the efforts of Oryx GTL in supporting the national econ-omy and praised its vital role in promoting the security awareness initiatives carried out among community members.

HE the Minister honoured the organi-sation, particularly for its support for the successful traffic awareness campaign “Accident-Free Summer 2010”, that was or-ganised by the National Campaign for Road Accidents Prevention. Oryx GTL’s CSR programme made donations to the Traffic Department, helping finance the yearly national campaign as well as the Traffic De-

partment’s summer campaign at malls and commercial centres during the months of June and July.

To further strengthen Qatar’s economic status by developing job opportunities for Qataris, Oryx GTL’s support and partici-pation at the 2011 Qatar Career Fair gave nationals the opportunity to apply for posi-tions within prestigious companies to inte-grate them into the working environment. This opportunity will not only make them realise their true potential in the workplace but can help to cement Qatar’s position as the GTL capital of the world.

Qatar’s thriving economy can also meet the needs of the people by providing edu-cational opportunities to contribute to

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Oryx Gtl partnerS with the Green prOGraMMe fOr SchOOlSthe green programme for schools (gps) is an environmental initiative of msheireb properties in association with qatar today magazine, which aims to reach, inspire and reward students and schools in qatar by meaningfully engaging and inculcating in them the importance of building a green culture.

as a sub-programme, oryx gtl is sponsoring an energy awareness campaign to enhance envi-ronmental awareness and culture in qatar. by committing as gold sponsor, oryx gtl aims to raise awareness about greener energies, in line with the qatar environmental goals in its national vision 2030.

oryx gtl believes in the power of youth, and that sustainable growth can only be accomplished through education.

for this campaign, which intends to educate students about energy, educational and information boards will be placed in all participating schools. as part of the campaign, there will be quiz com-petitions, a slogan-writing contest, and other events with prizes for the best performances.


their future. In the education sector, its CSR programme facilitated pupils’ en-rolment at Qatar Academy for intensive summer courses through sponsorship via Qatar Foundation’s Al Khor Academy. Furthermore, Oryx GTL supported Qatar Foundation’s Learning Centre to further develop its training programmes through providing advanced special education mate-rials for reading and writing, in addition to technical training for the centre’s staff – mainly administrative skills and computer data entry.

Environmental development –protecting the environment is our fundamental dutyProtection and conservation of the environ-

ment forms one of the main pillars of the Qatar National Vision 2030. Its support in this area reflects our genuine commitment and contribution to add to Qatar’s vision.

Qatar is considered one of the first coun-tries in the region to initiate a major inter-est in the Arabian oryx and preserve it from extinction. For that reason, the Sector of Natural Reserves was established under the Ministry of Environment to take care of the oryx with the latest scientific methods.

The Arabian oryx is considered one of Qatar’s national wildlife animals. It’s part of the Antelope class and known as “Al-Wo-deihy” (Arabic for “clear”). This name has been given to it because of its clear mark-ings. It has a white silvery colour covering its entire body, while some areas of the head and the tip of the tail are covered with black and white hairs, with brown spots on the face and legs and bluish spots around the nose and eyes.

The Oryx has been adopted and cared for by Qatar as a potent symbol of its com-

mitment to save this precious species from extinction. Oryx GTL is proud of its sup-port to the Sector of Natural Reserves in the Ministry of Environment to ensure that one of the most important environmental symbols for preservation and conservation is actively maintained and supported.

Oryx GTL’s would also like to point out that its products are the most envi-ronmentally friendly of their type and the company has been awarded the ISO 14001 for the environment since its first operational year.

In conclusion, the four pillars are the cor-ners that will continue to hold up its soci-ety and pave the way for a prosperous and healthy future for Qatar. Oryx GTL wants to be part of that process, not only contribut-ing to the economy but also to Qatari people and the company’s own staff.

As an example, its CSR programme has paid special attention to the country’s northern area, engaging in the Commu-nity Outreach Programme (COP) to ex-ecute educational, social and investment programmes for the welfare of the people in association with Qatar Petroleum’s Ras Laffan Industrial City (RLIC). The COP has identified the need to establish closer inter-actions and build better working relation-ships and manage the expectations of the communities of Al Khor, Al Dhakira and the north in general.

With these activities and commitments, it is actively engaged with other COP par-ties in executing environmental, safety, health and educational programmes that have direct benefit to the northern com-munities of Qatar and to raise awareness in these locations.

Supporting the Awsaj AcademyOn March 29, Awsaj Academy welcomed the official visit of Oryx GTL’s CEO, Abdulrah-man M. Al-Suwaidi, a special guest and an important partner to the Academy, where Dr Ralph Pruitt, director at the academy, expressed his deep appreciation for Oryx GTL’s generous donations that continue to support and strengthen Awsaj Academy’s programmes and initiatives.

In its turn, Al–Suwaidi made it clear that Oryx GTL’s goal is to reach out and support Qatar’s community and to explore new op-portunities and initiatives that will broaden and deepen their current partnership

c s R t o d a y

oryX gtl has ConCentrated efforts to attraCt young, skilled qataris to further train them. this inCludes sponsoring them to attend international ConferenCes and introduCe them to the latest teChnologies, devel-opments and praCtiCes worldwide, thereby planting the seeds for the development of intelleCtual Capital and best praCtiCe standards.


c s R t o d a y

Shell is the largest foreign inves-tor in Qatar and has invested up to QR76 billion in the last six years. While sustainable develop-ment and social responsibility are

an integral part of Shell’s business prin-ciples, its business strategies are geared to support the Qatar National Vision 2030 and Qatar National Development Strategy 2011-2016 to ensure lasting and sustainable benefits.

As part of this commitment Shell has em-barked on a number of projects that are set to make a difference, both in the country’s short and the long-term future.

QatarisationQatar Shell aims to become the employer of choice for Qatari nationals, who will lead the delivery and operation of Shell’s current and future projects. Shell’s commitment to Qatarisation is seen in its ability to attract bright local talents and train and equip them to become future leaders. Shell has been recognised for its efforts by Qatar and was awarded the Qatarisation Awards for three consecutive years from 2009 to 2011, becoming the only multinational company in the country to win this honour three years in a row.

Qatar Shell Research and Technology CentreShell has established a world-class research and development facility and learning cen-tre, known as the Qatar Shell Research amd Technology Centre, which is located at the Qatar Science and Technology Park (QSTP). The facility includes a learning centre that offers courses to 2,000 participants per year and is one of Shell’s premier learning hubs in the region. Shell is committed to spend-ing QR364 million over 10 years at this world-class research facility.

Through the facility, Shell is pursuing ad-vanced research that covers GTL catalysts,

Qatar ShellinveStinG in the futureqatar is embarking on an era of remarkable eConomiC development and growth under the vision of hh the emir sheikh hamad bin khalifa al thani that aims to diversify the Country’s eConomy and generate value from qatar’s natural resourCes for the benefit of not only the Current generation but future generations as well.

above: shell and qatar petroleum agree to establish a centre of excellence, tafawoq. right: shell have their own demonstation at the scuderia ferrari demo on the corniche earlier this year; and local children particiapate in a quiz challenge about road safety.


delivering novel uses for sulphur, carbonate reservoirs and carbon dioxide storage.

TafawoqRecently Qatar Petroleum and Shell launched a unique initiative to establish and operate a regionally recognised Project Management Centre of Excellence, known as Tafawoq, which is the Arabic equivalent of “excellence”. The centre is a partnership between the two companies and will pro-vide Qatar with a centre for competence de-velopment in management of capital proj-ects and associated supply chain to enable a much more professional project delivery in Qatar.

Its first learning programme, “Essentials of Project Management” was launched by HE Dr Mohammed bin Saleh Al-Sada, Min-

ister of Energy and Industry, and Chairman and Managing Director of Qatar Petroleum, and Wael Sawan, Shell’s Executive Vice-President, Qatar, on April 30, 2012. The pro-gramme is currently attended by 26 project professionals from Qatar Petroleum, Qatar-gas and Shell. Several other courses are be-ing tailored to Tafawoq requirements and will be available in the second half of 2012.

Shell Eco-marathonShell has partnered with universities in Qa-tar to encourage students to participate in the Shell Eco-marathon, a global challenge to design, build and test ultra-fuel-efficient vehicles. This event also helps technical students develop a range of important non-engineering skills such as project manage-ment, teamwork, leadership, marketing,

communications, sponsorship and finance.On April 30, 2012 QSTP and Shell signed

an agreement with Qatar University and Texas A&M University at Qatar under which students from both universities will participate in the Shell Eco-marathon Asia this year.

Both institutions competed in the Eco-marathon Europe last year, making them the first teams from the Middle East ever to compete in this global competition. This year, the universities from Qatar will com-pete at the Eco-marathon Asia that is set to take place this summer from July 4-7 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. For the record, the most fuel-efficient car ever designed by a Shell Eco-marathon student team was capable of driving 4,896 kilometres on a litre of fuel – the equivalent of driving from Doha to Paris.

Road safetyThrough rapid development and an increase in the population, road safety has become a greater challenge in Qatar. The government has made great strides in tackling this prob-lem in recent years.

Qatar Shell believes it can play a role by sharing its best practice and global experi-ence in this important area. Shell has driven over 300 million kilometres in the past six years of its project in Qatar without a seri-ous injury, setting a best standard on road safety performance in the industry.

At a global level, road safety is one of Shell’s social investment themes where considerable experience has been gained through implementing successful pro-grammes in countries where Shell operates, and involving more than one billion kilome-tres driven each year.

In March, Qatar Shell sponsored and par-ticipated in the 28th GCC Traffic Week, or-ganised by the Ministry of Interior, to reach out and engage with the Qatari community in an effort to reduce road accidents. Shell will be working with the National Traffic Safety Committee for Road Safety to con-duct in-depth research on public perception s on road safety and will use the findings to plan future public information campaigns.

These projects are planting seeds of change that will bear fruit in the future. By investing now, Shell is working to help Qa-tar achieve its targeted changes and make a difference for the future, and will contrib-ute towards realising the goals envisioned in the Qatar National Vision 2030

c s R t o d a y


fficials from the Green Programme for Schools (GPS) visited the Doha Modern In-dian School (DMIS) and Gharnata School for Girls to monitor the GPS execution

in each school. Launched on June 5, 2011, GPS is the first environmental initiative for students in Qatar, with around 25,000 students joining the campaign to date. The year-long programme aims to ‘Reach, In-spire and Reward’ students and schools by meaningfully engaging young people and inculcating in their minds the importance of building green equity.

The visit was part of the ongoing moni-toring stage among participating schools for the GPS initiative led by Msheireb Properties in association with Qatar Today magazine and supported by the Supreme Education Council. Officials included Jawa-her Al-Khuzaei (Communications Manager of Msheireb Properties), Nawal Al-Kowary (from the Supreme Education Council’s Communications and Information Office), Ravi Raman (Vice-President of Oryx Ad-vertising Company) and Amanat Solanki (CEO of Mission 20).

The GPS officials appreciated and en-couraged students and the faculty for their active participation in the programme. Cer-tificates were also awarded to students who

put their suggestions in the GPS idea boxes placed in the campus.

Addressing the students, Al-Khuzaei said: “Your passion for environmental conservation deserves a big thank you and sets a wonderful example to fellow students in Qatar. Your suggestions are very impor-tant, as new ideas are essential to enhance our efforts toward building a better planet. It is amazing to see so many young people take on this responsibility through our GPS campaign.”

Meanwhile Raman added: “I see among you the kind of enthusiasm and initiative that I wouldn’t find in anyone else, which is an amazing testament to your capabil-ity and awareness. The GPS cannot work without your support. We encourage you to make this environmental initiative a habit and a responsibility.”

Commenting on the school visits, Al-Kowary said: “Both schools have success-fully contributed in achieving the objectives of the GPS. I am pleased that the Gharnata School, despite being an old building, has taken efforts to deploy eco-friendly technol-ogy. This programme has encouraged not just students but also school staff and other GPS members to be more eco-conscious. I

wish the programme continued success for the future.”

Based on pre-determined criteria, the participating schools will be monitored and evaluated for a year on water and electric-ity conservation, paper recycling and reuse initiatives by GPS, involving officials from Msheireb Properties, Qatar Today maga-zine, Qatar Green Building Council and oth-er technical members. The best-performing schools in these categories will be awarded the title of Eco School of the Year. In addi-tion, each school will also have strategically placed pledge boards, suggestion boxes and creative stickers inside the college that would constantly remind and encourage students to utilise resources carefully

to knoW More aBout gPs,

contact 44550983to knoW More aBout the PrograMMe,

visit the gps page at http://www.facebook.com/gpsqatar.

O

25,000SChOOL STUDENTS bECOME GREEN AMbASSADORS

g R e e n s c e n e

BRakingnews


34Riding high with islamic investments

lfardan Automobiles, the official importer of BMW Group in Qatar, recently announced the arrival of the all-new BMW 320i in its showrooms to complete the 3 Series model range with BMW 328i and BMW 335i.

Having sold 12.5 million cars since its launch in 1975, the BMW 3 Series continues to be BMW Group’s worldwide best-selling model series, consistently accounting for more than a quarter of the company’s global sales. With the addi-tion of the BMW 320i, BMW Group is expanding its 3 Series product offering and making the world’s best-selling premi-um car even more accessible to a wider customer audience across the region.

Commenting on the BMW 320i’s arrival, Dr Joerg Breuer, Managing Director, BMW Group Middle East, said: “The BMW 3 Series has been riding the wave of success ever since its launch 37 years ago – in fact, every third BMW sold in 2011 was a 3 Series.”

Performance and technology have always been key areas of ex-pertise for the BMW brand, and agility and driving dynamics re-main outstanding attributes of the new BMW 3 Series. Customers

can now choose from two powerful TwinPower Turbo four-cylin-der engines – 320i and 328i – and the six-cylinder 335i that all come with an eight-speed automatic gearbox and TwinPower Turbo en-gine technology, offering more EfficientDynamics technology to make the new 3 Series more powerful and fuel-efficient.

alfaRdan automoBiles welcomes the all-new Bmw 320i

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l-Gharafa Sports Club won the Volkswagen Junior Masters Middle East Championship at the third annual soccer competition, which took place in Dubai over the weekend.

Held at the Jebel Ali International Shooting Club and Centre of Excellence, 160 players in 10 teams from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE took part in the soccer tournament with Al-Gharafa progressing to the Volkswagen Junior World Masters finals to be held in Poland at the beginning of June.

Commenting on this year’s competition, Karsten Jankowski, Mar-keting Director, Volkswagen Middle East, said: “The Junior Masters tournament, now in its third year, brings together the best teams in youth soccer from around the region. All teams displayed great sports-manship, as well as demonstrating excellent soccer skills on the pitch. Congratulations to Al-Gharafa Sports Club; I look forward to charting your progress at the World Masters in Poland.”

al-ghaRafa cRowned volkswagen JunioR masteRs champions

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B R a k i n g n e w s

bestseller is now even more attractive. The new Audi A4 has a new drivetrain, chassis and infotainment solutions, with an even more attractive

design, which attest the “Vorsprung durch Technik”. Now in its eighth generation, the A4 is the worldwide best-selling Audi mod-el, while over the past 39 years Audi has sold roughly 10 million units of the A4 and its

predecessor, the Audi 80.The design is even cleaner and more dis-

tinctive with pronounced horizontal lines at the front and a revised engine hood, bumpers and single-frame grille. The xe-non plus headlights, LED daytime running lights and tail lights with LED strips have also been updated. The interior of the Audi A4 is now more elegant than ever. Many control elements are framed in chrome; the

steering column stalks, ignition key and the ergonomics of the optional MMI navigation plus infotainment system have been rede-signed. Further improvements have been made in the operation of the automatic transmission, the air conditioning system, Audi drive select and the leather multifunc-tion steering wheel as well as the interior colours and upholstery range.

The Audi A4 update has reduced fuel consumption levels by 11%, despite the in-creased power and torque. In the Middle East, it’s available with a 1.8 TFSI entry lev-el engine with 120 hp and a higher-powered 1.8 TFSI which produces 170 hp. A 2.0 TFSI with 211 hp and quattro four-wheel drive, as well as a top-of-the-line 3.0 TFSI quat-tro, which has a supercharged V6 producing 272 hp, are also available. All engines fea-ture forced induction and direct injection for tremendous pulling power, and come standard with the start-stop system.

The two front-wheel drive models of the Audi A4 family feature the constantly vari-able multitronic transmission as a stan-dard, while the quattro versions have the seven-speed S tronic on board.

new audi a4 launched at saad BuzwaiR automotive

audi q3 added to middle east suv Rangeudi’s new compact SUV, the Q3, has arrived in the Qatari market. Following the success of the com-pany’s Q5 and Q7 SUV models, which made up 30% of total Middle East sales in the first four months of 2012, Audi is placing high hopes on its first SUV in

the compact segment. Jeff Mannering, Managing Director of Audi Middle East, said:

“The demand for both the Audi Q5 and the Q7 still outstrips supply. We are constantly negotiating with the factory for higher alloca-tions for the Middle East markets, even though the new generations of the Q5 and Q7 are expected only in 2013 and early 2015 respec-tively. We are positive that the new Audi Q3 will fare equally well.”

The Q3 is immediately recognisable as the youngest member of the large Audi family. Every aspect of it showcases Audi technology – the body, the drivetrain, the chassis and the assistance and multi-media systems. The coupe-like lines are an expression of its sporty character.

The Audi Q3 offers ample room for all five passengers and sets new standards for ergonomics and workmanship as well as count-less possibilities for customers to express their own personal style. The luggage compartment of the compact SUV has a capacity of 460 litres, which can be increased to 1,365 litres. Many useful options, including a pass-through hatch, make the Q3 even more versatile and convenient in everyday use.

The Audi Q3 comes with a generously long list of standard equip-

ment, including 17-inch alloy wheels, the concert audio system as well as ISOFIX child seat mounting. Audi also offers a choice of op-tional equipment taken directly from the luxury class, including the adaptive light system, the high-beam assistant, the panoramic glass roof and the comfort key. For the Middle East, the standard settings also include heat-insulating glass and a deluxe automatic air condi-tioning that considers the position of the sun and humidity.

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Road safety campaign launched

abdullah Abdulghani & Bros Co. (AAB), sole agents for Toyota and Lexus vehicles in Qatar, in associ-ation with the Traffic Department

and the Ministry of Interior, is launch-ing a traffic safety campaign aimed at educating drivers on safe driving and strictly following the traffic rules and regulations.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Nasser Abdulghani Abdulghani, Managing Di-rector, AAB, said: “AAB is happy to join hands with the Traffic Department to launch this unique campaign as part of its corporate social responsibility pro-gramme.”

Dr Nasser added that it is the corpo-rate policy of AAB to contribute to soci-ety, especially when it comes to subjects related to traffic safety, as they always believe education is the best means to save valuable human lives.

Dr Nasser lauded the efforts of the Traffic Department in educating the public on safe driving and following traffic rules and regulations which have really brought down the accidents in the country.

The campaign is jointly organised by AAB and the Traffic Department wherein the Traffic Patrol team will spot five safe drivers every week who drive their vehicles safely by obeying all traffic rules and regulations. The safe drivers will be awarded a gift voucher by AAB and a certificate of appreciation jointly signed by the Traffic Depart-ment and AAB. This campaign will run for six months.

aidah Automotive – a sub-sidiary of the long-estab-lished and influential con-glomerate Jaidah Group – has announced the arrival

of Chevrolet’s all-new 2013 Chevrolet Mali-bu in Qatar. The Malibu provides customers with expressive design, advanced technolo-gies, ride performance and fuel-efficient powertrains.

More than 8.5 million Malibus have been produced since its debut in 1964, and the all-new eighth-generation 2013 Malibu re-tains the ‘DNA’ of the award-laden seventh generation, but made even better with im-provements across the board.

The sedan reveals a bold new look with aggressive, sporty design cues sitting atop a range of 16-, 17- or 18-inch wheels. The new bodystyle not only looks good, but its aero-dynamic qualities – honed by more than 400 hours of wind tunnel testing – produce a drag coefficient of .29 cd – the same figure as the very sleek Corvette sports car.

Interior volume is increased by 113 litres, the quality of cabin materials has been up-rated throughout, and it offers the quiet-est ride in its segment through the use of components that prevent tyre, wind and road noise from entering the cabin. A richer complement of interior details – including high-tech lighting elements – and high-

quality materials support the Malibu’s more sophisticated presence.

In Europe, the Malibu has already received the highest-possible rating (five stars) in European New Car As-sessment Programme (Euro NCAP) testing. In South Korea, the Malibu received the highest safety evaluation in the Research Council for Automobile Repairs (RCAR) test conducted by the world-

renowned Korea Insurance Development Institute.

Waleed Al Sayed, General Sales Manager of Jaidah Automotive, hailed the arrival of the 2013 Malibu, saying: “It’s a superb automobile – available from this month exclusively in Jaidah’s showrooms. With expressive styling, a comfortable cabin, outstanding ride and handling, and top-notch safety, we are certain that the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu will meet – and exceed – our customers’ expectations.”

he fourth-generation CR-V made its debut at a func-tion hosted by Doha Mar-keting Services Company WLL (Domasco), exclusive

agents of Honda in Qatar. The new CR-V will be available for customers in three dif-ferent grades – LX, EX and EX-Leather.

Globally, the CR-V has been recognised as a pioneer of compact SUV. Since its first launch in 1996, over five million CR-Vs have been sold, which implies it has global ap-

peal in terms of design, quality, refinement and popularity. Building on this solid repu-tation, the all-new CR-V now enters into its fourth generation with enhanced exterior aesthetics, car-like interior comfort, inno-vative features and a smoother and quieter ride. It’s designed to offer urban sophistica-tion and exceed customer expectations of a five-seater compact SUV.

“We are delighted with the local response to the all-new CR-V as its pending arrival became known some weeks back,” said

Greig Roffey, Sales and Mar-keting Manager for Domasco-Honda. “The all-new CR-V was launched earlier in some international markets with rave reviews, and it has already received a number of presti-gious awards. We immediately started getting enquiries from local customers, and as early as six weeks ago we started tak-ing orders for this fabulous new SUV,” he revealed.

honda intRoduces the 2012 cR-v

new chevRolet maliBu makes its doha deBut

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the invite simply said: “we will take you on a JouRney to help you undeRstand what makes haRley-davidson unique, with an insight into what we mean when we say ‘fReedom of the open

Road’” – and how tRue it was! the Blissful open Road fRom duBai to oman was the peRfect medium to expeRience my maiden adventuRe on a haRley-davidson motoRcycle,

wRites qataR today’s motoRing coRRespondent.

Harleyingall THe way




rubber-mounted, liquid-cooled, 1250cc revolution engine with electronic sequential port fuel injection (espfi); 125 hp @ 8,250 rpm; 82 ft.lbs (111 nm) @ 7,250 rpm. the new features incluide:

black, split five-spoke cast aluminium wheels are 1.4 kg lighter than previous wheels.

tapered tail section with flush-mount led tail light.

pullback handlebar places controls three inches (7.62cm) closer to the rider.

reduced-reach, forward-mounted rider footpegs.

inverted front forks.

two-up seat with custom stitching.

graphics, including v-rod 10th anniversary emblem.

240mm-wide rear tyre

tech sPec

lthough I physically only hopped onto a Harley when I got to Dubai, the excitement of riding one from Dubai to Oman began a week before, and I still hadn’t got over it a week later! A fish out of water is how I’d describe myself as I walked into the Har-ley-Davidson office in Dubai. There I was, amongst all these HOGs – not the animal kind, but the die-hard Harley bikers - and my eyes were immediately attracted to their jackets that were slapped with badges en-dorsing their riding convoys and road trips around the world. Mine was a sheen leather jacket which I borrowed from a friend of mine and the only badge was the brand of the jacket. Anyway, the welcome was warm and accommodating and after a brisk half-hour we were down at the parking lot ready to take on the road.

Seeing all the bikes parked right beside each other, the V-Rod had an immediate magnetic effect on me, but within minutes I was part of the pack riding towards the breathtaking Musandam peninsula. All the way it was total freedom on the open road – my machine, God and me, nothing else in between.

The V-RodThe look of the V-Rod will dissuade anyone from calling it a ‘Harley’. In fact, one of my co-riders – a die-hard Harley rider – told me that when this model was first intro-duced many did not accept it a part of the Harley family.

I have to agree that the whole design, its look and feel, is very different from a tradi-tional H-D motorcycle, but riding it is just an awesome experience, especially if you are a speed-seeker. Although I would have loved to ride this all the way (selfishly), I could not deprive my co-riders of enjoying this VRSCDX Night Rod Special. Yes, that’s what it’s called!

Dark and sinister, the restyled Night Rod Special features a new tapered tail section, lighter-weight wheels and improved ergo-nomics with reduced reach to both the rider footpegs and the handlebar. The inverted front forks and retuned rear suspension en-hance the whole riding and handling. This is a blacked-out, dead-on power cruiser in every sense. The matt coated paint only adds to its look and personality.



Dyna Fat BobThe Harley-Davidson Dyna FXDF Fat Bob comes with a pretty unique name, but what’s more unique is the bike itself. This custom cruising machine is made of stuff that riders of all shapes and sizes absolutely love to sit on.

With its drag-style handlebar, forward-mounted foot controls and its two-up seat, this machine creates an aggressive riding experience and surely commands respect. The Dyna Fat Bob’s characteristics em-phasise character aggression, balanced by a 130mm-wide front tyre with a gnarly, ro-bust tread pattern. The new model presents a sporty front fender with painted brace supports, a one-up, two-piece Dyna classic seat, a chrome “Tommy Gun” 2-1-2 collec-tor exhaust system with dual mufflers – although you may still want to have your ear-plugs in during a long journey, as I did.

Right at the belly of the engine is a new rubber-mounted 1690cc Twin Cam 103 V-Twin engine with Electronic Sequential Port Fuel Injection (ESPFI). The engine is capable of delivering 92 ft.lbs of torque, providing enough muscle power to make other bikes of its class simply envious.

Making it more impressive for the Dyna Fat Bob is that its engine has been mated to a six-speed Cruise Drive transmission, making it an extremely comfortable cruise in comparison to the V-Rod.

I guess when Harley-Davidson designed the 2012 Dyna FXDF Fat Bob, they had one clear-cut mission in mind: to make the bike as fat and meaty as possible. I would think that with this machine they have managed to exceed even their own lofty expectations.

Fat Boy The Harley-Davidson Fat Boy is one of the original heavyweight boulevard cruisers, providing motorcyclists with all the “fat” essentials – 200mm rear tyre, low-profile wide bars and super-fat fenders.

The legendary Fat Boy motorcycle that defined the “fat custom” category was a thrill to ride. Everything of this machine can be coined as “fat” – the tyres, bars, fender and the big, powerful, black powder-coated, counter-balanced Twin Cam 96B engine. This model is the very definition

of a heavyweight motorcycle, with a bold styling statement and a wide, comfortable riding stance.

The 2012 models continue this fat tradi-tion, but with the addition of an even fatter powerplant. Replacing the 96 V-Twin for 2012 is the counter-balanced Twin Cam 103B engine. The 103 V-Twin, which pushes

98.7 ft.lbs of torque, is hooked to a six-speed Cruise Drive transmission, which provides optimal gearing. It also offers a larger read-out on the odometer with more informa-tion, such as gear and rpm data, plus the internally-wired 1.25-inch low handlebar, with the option of a security package and ABS. All this technology works seamlessly into the exquisite styling in a way that only Harley-Davidson can deliver.

I have to say the Fat Boy is extremely heavy to push around when it’s stationed, but on the move it’s as if you are gliding through the wind with utmost ease.

Musandam – the “Norway of Arabia” Our final destination was Musandam, an exclave of Oman, which is the smallest and most northerly region of Oman. The entire Musandam road (the climb) is basically flanked by the magnificent mountain range that dominates the landscape. To the other side of the road are breathtaking snapshots of the beach that display shades of green and blue water. The route was never short of long narrow gorges and ear touching round hairpin bends, which made the ride that much more adventurous and exhilarating. For those who have been to the Grand Can-yon or seen its pictures (like I have), well, I have to say that some points of the gorgeous Musandam road are no different.

A post on my Facebook page by a friend who watches far too many action movies summed this whole experience of mine most perfectly (or maybe a bit too far): “A lone rider, a renegade, a man of law seek-ing outlaws, with a licence to ride the ulti-mate two-wheel machine in total freedom.” Doesn’t that sound like an intro line out of an action movie to you?

the haRley-davidson dyna fxdf fat BoB comes with a pRetty

unique name, But what’s moRe unique is the Bike itself. this custom cRuising machine is

made of stuff that RideRs of all shapes and sizes aBsolutely

cRave.

qataR today j u n e 2 0 1 210 0


PACkING IT ALL IN

rory Coen tries to justify tHe additional ‘a’s in tHe new nissan sunny caaaaar, and He succeeds

“It’ s not just a car, it s a caaaaar,” say Nissan. I thought their marketing department were aiming their all-new Sunny at the pirates of the Gulf. I wasn’t quite sure what else this slogan could have been about, so I did some further investigation.

“The Sunny is the latest generation of a great tradition, and as reliable as ever. But the world has changed and life is getting grander. It is more comfortable, more spa-

j u n e 2 0 1 2 qataR today 10 1


cious, than ever, which makes your journey all the more enjoyable. It’s more than just a car, it s a caaaaar....,” explained the manual.

Well, I took the caaaaar out for a spin around the chewed-up roads of Doha not so long ago, starting out at their premises on the Al Sadd road with a mind to take it out towards the Aquapark. I was in two minds about taking a dip once I was out there, such was the intense heat of the afternoon, but the air conditioner, which really is the most important aspect of a car’s make-up in Qatar, worked a treat and cooled me off in a matter of seconds. Maybe that’s what one of the extra ‘a’s stood for, I immediately thought.

It wasn’t long before I understood what another one of the ‘a’s stood for: anti-lock braking system. If people’s lives weren’t in danger, you’d have to applaud the cre-ative driving you see on the roads of Doha. A manoeuvre, which I’m sure I saw on Too Fast Too Furious last month triggered a chain of reactions from a series of drivers which forced me into a sudden stop. Yep, the brakes work, I noted. No need for any further testing here.

A quick look at the manual later told me: An advanced system reads how quickly the brakes are engaged, immediately apply-ing the maximum available power boost for optimum braking. The Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) shortens braking distance by adjusting brake proportioning to compensate for added weight from pas-

sengers or cargo . Yeah, right, I said. Any closer and I would have got a paragraph on the airbags.

So, with my heart in my mouth for the next few minutes, I made my way out of town by the durable Al Sadd road. The stop-ping and starting, and the waiting and won-dering, gave me a chance to fiddle around with some of the controls and buttons that decorated the dash and steering wheel.

I think what impressed me the most was the Bluetooth Hands-free Phone System, which I hadn’t time to initiate there and then, but I garnered an impression of its ef-ficacy. The steering wheel has a couple of small buttons for answering and hanging up on a call, which makes using your phone whilst driving as complicated as making a simple indication (although even that’s too complicated for some people).

Any modern car has a drive computer, so I imagined a caaaaar would definitely have one integrated. I noticed most of the key information was available, such as service interval information, distance to empty and the average and instantaneous kilometres per litre.

I eventually got it out on the open road, bound for Saudi Arabia. Such was the length of time it took me to get to this point that I decided against the Aquapark, so I began to give the Sunny some gas to see what it was capable of speed-wise. The 1.5-litre, 99 horsepower, 13.7 kg-m@4000 rpm, four-cylinder DOHC engine powered gracefully

s u n n y 1 . 5 s s p e c

1.5l i t r e D o h c

4c y l i n D e r e n g i n e

5s p e e D m A n u A l t r A n s m i s s i o n o r

4s p e e D A u t o m A t i c

A m / f m / c D / m p 3 A u D i o s y s t e m w i t h A u x i l i A r y A u D i o i n p u t j A c k

D r i v e c o m p u t e r : f u e l e c o n o m y , o D D t r i p , c r u i s i n g r A n g e

A i r c o n D i t i o n i n g

s r s A i r b A g s y s t e m f o r D r i v e r A n D f r o n t p A s s e n g e r

A n t i - l o c k b r A k i n g s y s t e m w i t h e l e c t r o n i c b r A k e f o r c e D i s t r i b u t i o n A n D b r A k e A s s i s t

175/70 r 1 4 t y r e s

and efficiently to the speed-limit – no doubt acceleration is another ‘a’ – and it allowed me to coast along at my ease for a couple of kilometres. The new design really seems to slip effortlessly through the air, providing for a slicker journey.

I brought the car back to the Nissan ga-rage before checking out some of the ex-tra features which are present in the new caaaaar. For back-seat passengers, there’s a rear cooling fan, and an arm-rest and cup-holder, which means your children might well be fighting for the back seat in the fu-ture. And the boot is huge, with 490 litres of space in there

maRketwatch


68aRt foR the masses at qataR museums authoRity

arwish Technology, the tech-nological arm of Darwish Holding, recently launched the new Bang & Olufsen store at Lagoona Mall, under

the auspices of Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammad Al Thani, Chairman of the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and in the presence of Bader Abdullah Al-Darwish, Chairman and Managing Director of Darwish Holding, Saoud Abdullah Al-Darwish, Vice-Chairman of Darwish Hold-ing; and Peter Skak Olufsen, board member of Bang & Olufsen, who came especially from Denmark heading a group of senior managers in order to attend the opening.

The new B&O showroom introduces a distinctive range of high-quality audio and video products to this vibrant mar-ket. Founded in 1925 in Struer, Denmark, Bang & Olufsen is world-renowned for its distinctive range of quality consumer electronic products.

On this occasion, Peter Skak Olufsen,

commented: “We believe there is a substan-tial pool of existing and potential clients here who have the taste and discernment to truly enjoy Bang & Olufsen products with their unique design and quality.

“Over the years, many audio and visual enthusiasts in the country have acquainted themselves with our products and brand from their travels overseas. Many of them have also purchased our products outside Qatar. We are delighted that they will finally get to experience Bang & Olufsen products right here on their home ground and we feel there is a strong basis for solid growth in this part of the world,” added Olufsen.

In Qatar, Bang & Olufsen products will be sold exclusively through the company’s ap-pointed representative, Darwish Technol-ogy, which will take on full retail operations for the store.

Darwish Holding has more than 80 years of luxury retail experience. Bader Al-Dar-wish, Chairman and Managing Director of Darwish Holding, said: “What we like about

Bang & Olufsen is that the company chal-lenges the ordinary. Our task is, together with the customer, to tailor-make his/her home entertainment solution, and let his/her dreams come true.

Bang & Olufsen offers a large range of integrated solutions of televisions, music systems, lighting and other electrical instal-lations to make the experience complete. For Bang & Olufsen the user is the centre of experiencs.”

Located at the Lagoona Mall, the store is of premium retail space with a fine display of all Bang & Olufsen products. The new store promises to bring its customers a true Danish experience based on the Bang & Olufsen blueprint evolution shop concept, characterised by understated Scandinavian quality and design.

All the individual elements that make up the blueprint evolution shop concept have been designed with an attention to detail and to a level of quality that matches Bang & Olufsen’s minimalistic design.

As a design-conscious company, Bang & Olufsen harbours an inherent respect for the architecture and originality of a build-ing. When developing new shops it respects traditional local building methods and always tries to retain and emphasise the special characteristics of a given building, street or area.

Each element of a Bang & Olufsen shop is created to ensure that the customer re-ceives the best possible impression of the brand. From the discreet, sleek facade with its fibre-optic lettering through to the sim-ple yet stylish shop layout, every visit to a Bang & Olufsen shop will be an experience.

The environment inside the shop is acces-sible and welcoming. It projects excellence through the carefully researched colour schemes and the selective use of quality ma-terials. The materials used include bright maple wood, natural aluminum, white Co-rian and glass. These combine to create a fresh, bright and well-lit Scandinavian set-ting in which the Bang & Olufsen products are presented.

d

Bang & olufsen makes qataR deBut

m a R k e t w a t c h


G Electronics (LG) launched its latest 2012 Cinema 3D Smart TV line-up in Qatar for smoother and more im-mersive 3D viewing. With a

size of almost zero mm, it sets a new world record for the narrowest bezel 3D TV.

The 3D Smart TV is composed of an im-pressive cinema screen, wireless display, premium content services, over 1,200 glob-al Smart TV apps and a Magic Remote. Ad-ditional features include a dual play func-tion for gamers and a wide selection of 3D movies, sports and games.

President of LG Electronics, Gulf FZE D. Y. Kim said: “We have avidly explored the Smart TV model to create a product that of-fers a superlative TV viewing experience; useful, easy-to-use TV apps and premium content. LG’s quality innovations and growing market share have ensured its po-sition as number one across the premium 3D Smart TV segment. With the new Smart TV line-up, we are certain that our growth will continue on the upward trend, further strengthening our already established lead-ership position in this segment globally.”

Jumbo Electronics Director and Gen-eral Manager, C.V. Rappai added that the launch’s success reiterated LG s unrivalled position as a leader in the TV segment and

would allow the company to increase its overall market share in Qatar.

LG Cinema 3D meets a wider and ever-expanding world of 3D entertainment at the tip of your remote. Offering simple con-trol over your home entertainment experi-ence, the main features of the LG Cinema 3D Smart TV include:

Cinema Screen: Leveraging LG’s state-of-the-art display technology, LG has reduced the width of the bezel to in-significant levels, to almost zero bezel. By doing so, physical obstructions have been removed to deliver ultimate sim-plicity and the most immersive Cinema 3D viewing experience, reminiscent of an actual movie cinema.

Magic Remote: LG’s Smart TV remains easy to use, thanks to the enhance-ments in the Magic Remote, an all-in-one device that combines the functions of Pointing, Gesture and Wheel, the most conventional and advanced TV re-mote of its kind.

3D World: provides access to a con-stantly growing library of 3D movies, games, sports and TV shows at the tip of one’s remote.

3D Depth Control: A new 3D visual technology that lets users adjust the depth, or the distance between the on-screen objects, of a 3D movie or TV show they are watching.

3D Sound Zooming: The immersive 3D experience is accompanied by 3D Sound Zooming, which generates a 3D sound that is synchronised with the displayed 3D content, allowing users not only to see but also hear in 3D.

Dual Play function: for gamers, LG al-lows dual-player games to be played on a Cinema 3D Smart TV without having to split the screen.

Wireless Display: The new Cinema 3D Smart TVs offer a variety of connectiv-ity features. The newest among them is Wireless Display, which enables easy and quick connection between TV and personal computer (PC) with Intel’s WiDi Technology.

2D to 3D conversion engine: Con-verts all existing 2D movies and TV shows into 3D

l

lg launches 3d smaRt tv seRies



he all-day stylish restaurant Aroma in Kempinski Residences & Suites, Doha won the “Best Contemporary Euro-pean Restaurant” award and was highly commended in the category “Best Busi-

ness Lunch” at the Time Out Doha Restaurant Awards 2012. The stylish contemporary European restaurant on the ground floor of the hotel is well known in the city for its “Rushed for Time” business lunch and the a la carte dinner.

“We are very proud of our Executive Chef, Jonathan Spiteri, and all our Food and Beverage team who with passion and dedication brought Aroma with these suc-cessful results to the top. A combination of selected genuine ingredients prepared in the open kitchen makes Aroma offer the guests a dining experience unparalleled in today’s busy world,” said Wissam Suleiman, General Manager of Kempinski Residences & Suites, Doha.

asean gala dinneR 2012

aSEAN Committee in Doha (ACD) Chairman and Ambassador of Malaysia Ahmad Jazri Mohamed Johar, along with his counterparts from other ASEAN resident embassies in Qatar, announced

the first ACD Gala Dinner to be held on June 14, 2012 at Katara Halls, with the theme of One Vision, One Identity and One Community .

“We recognise the importance of speaking with one voice and promoting our common interests. This is why we have pooled our resources to make the Gala Dinner happen. Through this event we hope to bring ASEAN to Qatar and promote greater mutual under-standing and cooperation,” said Ambassador Johar.

Tickets for the event will be made available soon across all respective embassies and other selling points. For sponsorship opportunities, visit www.aseanqatar.com.

douBletRee By hilton pRopeRties to open soon

ilton Worldwide and Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company (ARTIC), part of Al Faisal Holding Company LLC, announced the signing of a management agreement for two new Double-Tree by Hilton properties in Doha. Both developments, the 145-room DoubleTree by Hilton Doha Al Sadd and the 240-

room DoubleTree Suites by Hilton Doha, are expected to open in 2014.Chairman of Al Faisal Holding, HE Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, said:

“As the city continues to attract international investment and visitors, Hilton offers the quality experience and first-class hospitality standards and service that is expected of a major business hub. The addition of the DoubleTree by Hilton to our portfolio reflects our clear investment focus on high-quality as-sets as we continue to grow the business both locally and internationally.”

President of Hilton Worldwide, Middle East and Africa Rudi Jagersbacher said: “We are pleased to be part of Qatar’s long-term ambitious growth and development which reflects the bold expansion plans we also have to provide exceptional hospitality service for the country. Our commitment in Doha over the next three years will see the opening of five new properties and the launch of three Hilton Worldwide brands including Hilton Hotels & Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton and Hilton Garden Inn.

h

t

RestauRant awaRd foR kempinski



he Wyndham Grand Regency Doha bagged Qatar’s Lead-ing Meetings and Conference Hotel title for the second consecutive year at the an-

nual World Travel Awards (WTA) in Dubai, owing to the extensive meetings and events facilities offered at the property. The WTA is held annually to celebrate those brands that are pushing the boundaries of industry excellence.

“This is a great honour for our hotel and I’m delighted to accept this award on behalf of our entire team,” said Ayman Lotfy, Gen-eral Manager, Wyndham Grand Regency

Doha. “Their unwavering commitment and dedication, combined with our best-in-class facilities, really set us apart in a highly competitive marketplace. We’re proud to be able to offer our guests a true five-star expe-rience and, in doing so, aim to remain one of the region’s leading hotels for many years to come.”

The Wyndham Grand Regency Doha of-fers 600-sq.m Al Qasr Ballroom, which can host up to 550 guests at a cocktail party or 650 theatre-style, as well as 246 luxuri-ous guest rooms, including single, double and suite accommodations. The hotel also features three restaurants, an Angsana

Spa, gym and swimming pool, in addition to the 36 suites and penthouses and the Al Asmakh Royal Suite.

wyndham gRand Regency doha wins tRavel awaRd

t

alfardan Prop-erties has an-nounced the launch of a new

website – www.my-dohahome.com – that enables people to browse through all the available Alfar-dan Properties-man-aged residential and

commercial properties in Qatar.Alfardan Properties COO Muhiballah Mani

said: “This website is being launched at a time when Qatar is increasingly gaining global atten-tion and is emerging as a major Middle Eastern hub. We believe that this web solution, which features unique residential and commercial real estate options, will benefit people from across the region planning to live and work in Qatar.

The concept and object of the website is to facilitate searching for real estate options in Doha and to present all those who plan to move to Doha or change their current residences unique luxury options provided by Alfardan and Alfardan Properties.

The website offers visitors who register their inquiry an instant 360-degree solution for their requirement, covering availability of units, spe-cific services and facilities, for both residential and commercial properties of the company. The units featured include Alfardan Towers, One Porto Arabia, Laguna Beach, Kempinski Residences & Suites, Alfardan Gardens and the recently-opened Al Gassar Resort.

alfaRdan pRopeRties launches innovative weBsite

he newest dining and lounge experience in Qa-tar, Strata at InterConti-nental Doha The City, is enabling both tourists and

residents of Doha to reach new gastro-nomic heights through a seafood-centric menu enjoyed on the 55th and 56th floors of the West Bay tower.

Offering a selection of three caviar and four oyster options, as well as chilled in-dulgence platters of hand-chosen seafood served alongside chef’s sauces, salad and bread, Strata’s menu encourages guests to share their choices while enjoying the country’s striking views in all directions.

Contemporary Asian flavours round out Strata’s offering, with sashimi, slow-

cooked lobster and smoked cod proving to be early favourites. The Strata Compi-lation – an adventurous dessert platter for two – plus mango carpaccio, warm apple tartin and homemade ice cream are among Strata’s final course choices, pro-viding a fitting end to the meal for guests.

Strata provides a dining experience unlike any other in Doha: market-fresh, delicious seafood, drinks, and desserts served at the country’s highest vantage point. “InterContinental Doha The City is encouraging its guests to share their selections and experiment with new fla-vours, while the cityscape and skyline provide the ideal backdrop,” said Renzo Cavagliotti, General Manager of Inter-Continental Doha The City.

stRata is high on eveRything

t



n recognition of Consolidated Gulf Co. (CGC)’s achievement of Gold Certification from Cisco, Mazen Raad, Regional Manager at Cisco Qatar, presented a plaque to Anil Mahajan, COO, CGC, at a ceremony held recently at CGC’s corporate

office premises in Doha. Thanking Cisco for distinguishing CGC as a valued partner,

Mahajan said: “We are pleased to realise the next level of Cisco Gold partnership. The certification falls in line with our stra-tegic goal of being the best technological and engineering re-source to our customers. The combination of Cisco’s solutions and our proven expertise and value added service portfolio uniquely positions us as a tried and trusted local provider.”

Meanwhile Raad added: “To earn this prestigious certifica-tion, CGC has met rigorous standards for networking compe-tency, service, support and customer satisfaction among other specialisation requirements set forth by Cisco. We value the commitment and expertise that CGC has established and look forward to a continued successful partnership.”

cgc achieves gold ceRtification fRom cisco

ithe roundtable event was held at the armani hotel in the burj khalifa, dubai, and saw, from left, mansour hajjar (managing director, allied enterprises), terry daly (divisional svp service delivery, emirates airline), sylvie freund-pickavance (business director, value retail management). has-san al hashemi (external relations director, dubai chamber of commerce and industry) and piers schmidt (chairman of luxury branding) discuss the topic of international shopping.

he Arabian Travel Market (ATM) in Dubai provided the perfect setting for Chic Outlet Shopping to host the third roundtable discussion raising awareness of the in-ternational shopping tourism sector.

In 2011, the collection of nine Chic Outlet Shopping Villages attracted more than 29 million visitors, up by 12% on 2010. Tax-refunded sales generated by non-EU visitors to the collection grew by 58% year-on-year, with China, the Middle East and Russia representing the three largest markets for the collection respectively. Fast forward to the first three months of 2012, and tax-refunded sales generated by visi-tors from the Middle East were up by 84% versus Q1 2011.

Sylvie Freund-Pickavance (Business Director, Value Retail Manage-ment) said that serving the international luxury shopper involved more than shopping alone. The experience of the Chic Outlet Shopping Vil-lages is based on the offer within each village, which is not only about shopping. It’s exactly like when you travel – it is not only about flying, it’s about going somewhere and finding ways to really pepper the shopping experience with unexpected things: the quality of the food, art exhibi-tions and new brands.

chic outlet shopping hosts RoundtaBle at atm

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nando’s oPens on c-ring nando’s opened a new outlet at al emadi financial square on the c-ring road in doha. the new restaurant marks the fifth addition to the nando’s chain in qatar. oryx group for food services reiterated that the opening of the outlet is all the more significant since it is the first nando’s restaurant in qatar to roll out the chain’s new-generation design.



njoying an exclusive sea-front position at the iconic The Pearl-Qatar, Sormani is set to take centre stage in Qatar’s restaurant scene by

offering a distinctive new dining experience with the very best in modern French and Italian cuisine. And the unparalleled view of the inland waters lends a perfect backdrop to the chic and modern decor of the restau-rant, designed by Arredaesse of Milan.

General Manager of Ali Bin Ali Hospital-ity Hashem Melhem promises a world-class dining indulgence at Sormani, where ser-vice is impeccable and truly special. Com-mitted and passionate professional chefs, led by world-famous Pascal Fayet, interact with guests to create a highly personal ex-perience, complementing a full-of-flavour menu of inventive Italian cuisine.

On bringing Sormani to Qatar, Chef Pas-cal said: “Qataris are connoisseurs of good taste. They love something unique, some-thing exceptional. Guests in Qatar will be treated to the same excellent food and ser-vice that we are known for in Paris.” The secret to the flavoursome, inventive cuisine that Sormani offers is ‘imagination’, which Chef Pascal personally visits mar-kets to seek. “Like when a mother goes to

the market and sees veg-etables, she immediately knows what dish to prepare for her children. It’s the colours and smell of fresh fruits, vegetables and meat in the market that inspires me to create a new dish.

“At Sormani, we keep in-venting and re-inventing,” says the chef. “We offer a new menu every season, but what is consistent is quality. We en-sure we do it right each time.”

And for Qatar, the chef has already chart-ed out a spectacular menu of mouth-water-ing dishes that include the famous carpac-cio, lasagne, ravioli, risotto and a variety of fresh seafood, each prepared with the very best of ingredients – from the white truffles of Alba and Bugata mozzarella to Italy’s best

bresaola and risotto con fageoli with sausage from Naples.

The restaurant’s speciality, however, is the white and black truffles.

“It’s important to know the preferences of my guests. When I talk to them, I cre-ate in my head a piece of art. Just tell me what you like, and I will prepare something magical from it,” promises the chef

ali bin ali’s Hospitality arm opens paris’s renowned sormani at tHe pearl-Qatar. Cassey oliveira was tHere to let Her imagination guide Her.

soRmani: italian delight

e



f you think this is too far-fetched a dream, you have to attend the Back2Business networking event this year on October 3. Last year saw

close to 800 representatives of the busi-ness community and this year with an an-ticipated 1,000 attendees, the International Business Councils have taken an additional step, and included CSR into their portfolio.

“As a collection of International Busi-

ness councils we are collectively aware of Corporate Social Responsibility and this year Back2Business is in discussions with several charities with a view to providing a donation from any surplus following the event to the chosen charity,” say Jane Ash-ford, Qatar British Business Forum (QBBF) External Liaison Committee Member.

The Steering Committee is continually looking at ways of improving sponsorship opportunities to ensure maximum expo-

launched in 2004 By the geRman Business council, Back2Business qataRis now in its eighth yeaR and is expected to open dooRs foR maJoR oppoRtunities in Both local and inteRnational Businesses as qataR is poised to continue in its tRaJectoRy of economic gRowth.

Building Business THrougH neTworking

i

standing: jarMo kihlstroM and erlend ingeBrigtsen, scandinavian bc; Paulina vahaMaa, german bc; elsBeth Blekkenhorst, dutch bc; ignacio galañena, spanish bc; and carlos Maldonado, dutch bc.

front row: PaMela McdoWell, b2b general secretary; katherine McadaM anZBiQ; and jane ashford, qbbf,



sure and return on investment for all spon-soring companies involved.

“In 2012, our sponsors will have increased visibility through a magazine, event video and an anticipated 1,000 attendees with on-site marketing exposure,” says Kath-erine McAdam, ANZBIQ External Liaison Committee Member.

But what is the ultimate goal of such a networking event?

“The Back 2 Business Steering Com-mittee is delighted to once again host this popular networking event that takes place after the summer break to allow leaders and decision-makers of the Doha business community to catch up on the Qatari mar-ket scene and exchange ideas. Back 2 Busi-ness has become the most highly awaited business event of the year for all those in-terested in gaining access to leaders of in-dustry. Up to 1,000 representatives of the local and international business leaders and decision-makers in Qatar, Asia Pacific and Europe are expected to come together at the event this year.”

International Bank of Qatar (IBQ) is the diamond sponsor and is “a committed long term partner” with the event.

Back 2 Business is currently working with seven business councils. “The cur-rent Steering Committee is comprised of the following business councils in Qatar: Australian-New Zealand (ANZBIQ), British (QFFB), Dutch (DBCQ), German (GBCQ), Italian (IBCQ), Scandinavian Business Council (SBCQ) and Spanish (SBC).”

Each year, two different business coun-cils have the opportunity to be the main organisers of the Back2Business event and this year’s organisers are: ANZBIQ (Austra-lian and New Zealand Business in Qatar) represented by Katherine McAdam and Jane Ashford representing the QBBF.

Talking about the concept and how it came together, the Organising Committee says, “Back2Business is a business-net-working event which was launched by the German Business Council Qatar (GBCQ) in 2004. The event was an immediate success and lead to other Business Councils joining and assisting in the organising of the event.

“The main objective of the event is to cre-ate opportunities for businesses to meet and network, to exchange news of hap-penings in the business sector in Qatar as well as to provide opportunities for foreign companies to access the Qatari market.”

Business Councils taking the cueTalking about the benefits of Back2Business event, the members of the Spanish Busi-ness says, “The benefits to participate in the Back2Business event are the exposure and networking given to all our members, and the option for them to participate even as a sponsor reaching a huge number of high profile people in Qatar.

“We intend to capitalise on the event by strengthening relations with the other Business Councils organising the event, and upgrading the image of our companies, our members and our country.

As the number of companies landing in Qatar and the number of projects launched in the country will attract more and more companies and participants in the upcom-ing years, so will the popularity of the event grow, they feel.

Palma Libotte, Chairperson of the Italian Business Council feels that the event is the best occasion to share information and also to know more about the projects in Qatar.

“We hope the local companies will learn more of our activities. We are mainly busi-ness orientated working to support the en-trepreneurs who wish to access the Qatari market. Our companies based in Qatar can broaden their networking horizons through such networking events.”

German Business Council (GBCQ) had a Doha presence as early as 2002 and was more of a networking platform for Qataris, Germans and other nationals to meet and exchange views and ideas.

“The GBCQ’s membership has grown sig-nificantly since its foundation up to about 160 members currently. The GBCQ is man-aged by the German Industry and Com-merce Office Qatar (AHK), which is the of-ficial institution authorised by the German Federal Government and the Association of German Chambers of Industry and Com-merce. We organise monthly members’ meetings and invite guest speakers from ministries, various authorities and repre-sentatives from local or foreign companies to update the GBCQ members with latest industrial developments and new projects,” says Anna-Kristin Kronert, Head of corpo-rate Communication, German Industry and Commerce Office Qatar.

Back2Business was launched by the German Business Council Qatar and since then every year the number of participants has increased. “We take great pride in the

success of Back2Business as one of the big-gest events of the international business community in Doha. As one of the largest business councils in Qatar we plan to stay involved with the Back2Business - we view it as our responsibility to actively partici-pate in signature events for the internation-al business community in Doha,” she says.

On the revenue generated by this event, GBCQ is quite categorical saying they are a non-governmental and non-profit association.

“This means we do not seek to capitalise on Back2Business. This is an event made by and for the businessmen and businesswom-en in Qatar. There is no strategy to earn money with this get-together. The income from the entrance fees and sponsorships are meant to just cover the expenses,” she reiterates.

The Qatar British Business Council is equally excited with this networking event.

“It affords the QBBF the ability to inter-act, not only with other Business Councils in the B2B event, but also with members of those groups in networking and the ensuing exchange of information and ideas,” says Emad Turkman MBE, Chairman of Qatar British Business Forum

The Dutch Business Council (DBCQ) has grown steadily over the past five years.

“Our aim is to provide good networking opportunities to our Dutch and non-Dutch members. The Back2Business event is the ultimate platform to collaborate with other Business Councils and their members and enhance communication between them. For the DBCQ members the event repre-sents a means to reach a wide audience of the business Community in Qatar. The DBCQ plans to be part of this ever growing event for many years to come,” says Elsbeth Blekkenhorst, Vice-Chairperson of the Dutch Business Council.

The Scandinavian Business Council is also excited with the networking opportu-nity while the Australian and New Zealand Business in Qatar (ANZBIQ) anticipate that the event will continue to grow in coming years.

“It is already the premier networking event in Qatar and we are proud to be as-sociated with it,” Garry Friend, Chairman of ANZBIQ echoes. Australia and New Zea-land Business in Qatar (ANZBIQ) aims to promote relations between the two coun-tries and Qatar



hirty-six years ago, Raymond Weil founded the eponymous brand with a goal to create timepieces which conceptua-lised his unique vision of in-

novative designs and unique craftsmanship at affordable prices. Today, 66 years after he first dabbled in horology, he is the oldest watch creator alive and is an icon in the glob-al watchmaking industry. Although he has passed the reins of control to his son-in-law Olivier Bernheim, the brand still revolves around his original vision.

Bernheim, Raymond Weil’s son-in-law and the brand’s CEO, was in Doha to open its sec-ond outlet. It has had a presence here since 2002 and there are plans to open a third out-let in the near future. It certainly seems to have a strong focus on Qatar.

“The Qatari market is fast growing,” said Bernheim. “We do a lot of business with the locals of course, but also with visitors on business trips. There has been a great influx of expatriates who are keen on our brand. Ten years ago, City Center was the hot point for shopping – but other shopping malls quickly opened up. We anticipate the country’s economy is going to grow a lot – such are the events we are seeing on the horizon – so Qatar is going to become an important market in the region and we want to have a strong presence here.”

Range of watchesRaymond Weil launched the Maestro collection in 2010, which dem-onstrates the profound attachment of the Weil-Bernheim family to their horological roots and their desire to offer the final consumer classical pieces. The various models soberly explore the many ways of interpreting harmony, discretion and classicism. With a new moon phase, a chronograph and a calendar version, Maestro plays its part in today’s passage of time.

“The Maestro collection represents everything of what Raymond Weil is,” says Bernheim. “It’s an original piece – it’s emblematic of craftsmanship. The men’s model extends the ability to discover ev-erything that is complicated in a watch. We also have some casual wear pieces, which are more oversized, and fits what the region is asking for.”

The Nabucco range, renowned for its sleek, powerful and elegant

design, boasts a new version in titanium and stainless steel: Nabucco Inverso. With its “12” in Roman numerals and yellow hands to illuminate the dial, the Nabucco welcomes a new design in its line, while remaining true to the collection’s creative values and mythical forms.

Raymond Weil launched a brand new fe-male line in 2011: the Jasmine collection. In the brand’s purest tradition, the new Jas-mine collection combines all the elements of Raymond Weil’s feminine watches. With its voluptuously rounded, curved case, exud-ing modernity, classicism and exclusivity, it’s the perfect reflection of the Raymond Weil woman.

“We are quite unique in the sense that we do sell a lot to women,” says Bernheim. “The Jasmine collection, which is very boldly designed, fits perfectly on the wrist of

a lady. I think every lady likes this collection. It’s very important, once we are established in the ladies segment, to continuously create and develop.”

When tested, Bernheim was very hesitant to choose which collection was his personal favourite, such was the dedication he afforded each one.

“That’s a very difficult question for me,” he chuckled. “Being be-hind the creativity, every new piece is like a baby for me, but I sup-pose I like the Nabucco casual wear watch to wear over the week-end. However, I also have a Maestro, which is a dedication to the original art and to my father-in-law.”

Although the brand has expanded substantially over the past twenty years, it remains a family affair through and through. Ol-ivier’s two sons, Elie and Pierre – the third generation – have joined the company and are innovating just like their grandfather did. They will be the ones who will carry the brand when their father feels it’s time to hang up his watch. But he has more years in him yet.

“My dream is to demonstrate that family owned businesses – when they are innovative, assertive and well managed – can contin-ue and thrive for a long time,” said Bernheim. “Within the watch-making industry creativity is the essence, and the fact that the same family guided the destiny of the brand says a lot in terms of crafts-manship and design. I see it being capable of demonstrating that small can be beautiful and family values are so important now.”

eveR since william tell was foRced to sling an aRRow thRough an apple on his son’s head, the swiss have Been synonymous with pRecision. the faBled 15th-centuRy tale details how tell’s son tRusted his fatheR to do the needful. Raymond weil caRRies similaR values, wheRe thRee geneRations have Been cReating and innovating quality time pieces since 1976.

iT’s a FaMily aFFair aT rayMond weil

tb y r o r y c o e n


enior officials from Qatar Golf Association (QGA), Network Advertising & Events and the exclusive media partners Qatar Today and T-Qatar Magazines officially launched “Corporate League Qatar – Golf Champion-ship” in May.

Doha Golf Club will host the event next November 23 and 24. It’s designed to be a fun weekend for all, whether you take part in the championship or are watching from the rough. Doha Golf Club is home to the Qatar Masters, a tournament which has been attracting some of the world’s top pro-

fessionals every February for the past 15 years. It will now play a gracious host to the top corporate golfers in Qatar. Details of the format of the event have yet to be released, but Qatar Today, as the exclusive media partner, will keep its readers uptodate on procedures and deadlines in this regard.

QGA Executive Director Mohamed Faisal Al-Naimi expressed his delight at staging such an event for the first time in the coun-try, saying: “We are happy to bring such a unique event to the businesses of Qatar. As we know, sport is an essential component of Qatar’s National Vision 2030.”

Fahd Nasser Al-Naimi, QGA General Secretary, added: “Qatar Golf Association, since its establishment, is focusing on the development of Qatari golf by hosting many events such as this. We believe this kind of event will definitely linger in the minds of corporate professionals for a long time and motivate them to be a part of it every year.”

Shabrawi Khater, Managing Director of Network Advertising and Events, said: “Behind ‘Corporate League Qatar’ is a team

with years of experience who sat together to plan for such an eve108nt. Our aim is to have over 320 players, playing for two days, who can bring along their families to enjoy the fun. We are going to do our best to make Corporate League Qatar recognised as a power for team-building and networking, thereby forming a base for mutually ben-eficial relationships both in business and in personal satisfaction. We also are support-ing the event with a special website, www.clqatar.com; a Facebook page, www.face-book.com/clqatar, and a Twitter account: www.twitter.com/clqatar.”

Ravi Raman, Vice President, Oryx Adver-tising Co., said: “We are pleased to be asso-ciated with this first-of-its-kind event. Golf is certainly a great sport for networking and we found Corporate League Qatar to be in perfect sync with our titles Qatar Today and T Qatar. The readers of both these maga-zines are affluent and at senior levels. I am sure both the participants and spectators will thoroughly enjoy all that the weekend has to offer”

s p o R t f i l e

S

CORPORATE LEAGUE

GOLF ChAMPIONShIP AT DOhA GOLF CLUb

ravi raMan, vice president – oryx advertising co, fahd nasser al-naiMi, qatar golf association general secretary, MohaMed faisal al-naiMi, qatar golf association executive director, shaBraWi khater, the managing director of network advertising &

events, rehaB Moustafa, network advertising & events, sports events manager at the offical launch of the corporate golf championship.


s p o R t f i l e

he decisive fourth round of AFC qualifiers for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil gets underway this month. Two nations from each of the two groups will proceed by right to the finals, with the third team in each group hav-ing to qualify through a brace of play-offs to progress.

Qatar, who failed at this stage in their efforts to qualify for South Afri-ca 2010, will want to go one step further this time around, and to do this they’ll need a solid start. Their opening three games fall in the open-ing two weeks of June, with the opener against Lebanon in Beirut on June 3. The group’s highest seed will be no push-overs, though, having beaten South Korea 2-1 in Beirut in a Round 3 qualifier last November.

Qatar meet top seeds South Korea in their second game in Doha just five days later. Avoiding defeat would be seen as a positive result in most circles, but the high temperatures and humidity which Doha experiences at this time of the year might not sit well with the Koreans. It could be a telling factor as the game progresses. They won’t be quite finished yet, though, because they have their second trip to Tehran this year on June 12, having already drawn with Iran in the third round.

he Emir, HH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, watched Al Gharafa goalkeeper, Qasim Burhan block two penalty kicks as Al Gharafa beat Al Sadd on pen-alties to become Emir Cup champions for the seventh time. At the end of the presentation ceremony, the

Emir handed over the trophy to their captain, Othman El Assas.Coached by Paulo Silas, Al Gharafa hasve now sealed their place in

the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League, the con-tinent’s top club event.

El Assas, Diego Tardelli, Ze Roberto and Fahad Al Shammari scored from their spot kicks for Al Gharafa, with only defender Lawrence Quaye failing.

Al Sadd – who dominated the match in normal time – scored off their first three penalties, taken by Mamadouh Niang, Abdul Qader Keita and Wisam Rizq. However, they were undone by their final two spot kicks by Hassan Al Haydos and Nadir Belhadj.

Hamed Shami of Al Gharafa said: “It was a tense penalty shoot-out. I would say luck favoured us in the shoot-out and we won. But I think we deserved to win this title. It was an important football event in Qatar. It was a tiring match. The hot weather was not that easy to deal with. Both teams performed well, but we got the big trophy.”

ormer Real Madrid forward Raul has signed a one-year deal with Emir Cup finalists Al Sadd.

The 34-year-old, who played with German club Schalke 04 this season, said: “I am happy to have signed for one of the top clubs in Qatar.

I know Al Sadd has a huge fan following and that it is aiming at trophies next season. I think I have enough experience to fulfill the wishes of our fans.”

Al Sadd Secretary-General Jassim Al Rumaihi said they weren’t in a position to reveal how much Raul would be paid for his craft and experience, but he did confirm that the Spaniard had agreed to a one-year deal.

“We will see how things work out in the coming season. If both parties feel we can extend the contract, then we could do that,” Al Rumaihi said. “Our expectations never stop. When we win something, a title or a trophy, we want to do it again. The only title we won last year was the AFC Champions League, but now we want to win in Doha too. We firmly believe that his experience will help us win trophies and get back to the top in Qatar.”

Raul, who watched the Emir Cup final between Al Gharafa and his new employers, said he talked with former Barcelona coach Pep Guardiola before deciding to play in Qatar.

“I sat down with Pep and we talked about football in Qatar,” Raul said. “He told me that football is on the move here and that he enjoyed his football during his time,” he added.

Al Sadd, who lost the Emir Cup final to Al Gharafa, failed to win a title in Qatar last season. They did win the AFC Champi-ons League title last November, however.

Midfielder Wisam Rizq welcomed Raul’s move. “I think he’s a fabulous addition to our club. I am delighted with this move. He has a lot of experience and I hope with him in the side we can start winning trophies once again.”

al ghaRafa win emiR cup Raul signs one-yeaR deal with al sadd

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tqataR pRepaRe foR cRucial woRld cup openeR


achel Petero, Founder and CEO of Genviva and the brains behind the Women leading Change Qatar (WLC Qatar) team, has numer-

ous ideas running through her mind at any given moment. And she cashes in on each one of them with equal dedication. Now she has an innovative project which is already under way called Women Leading Change, where successful Qatari women come under this umbrella and work together to motivate and inspire other Qatari women forward to realise their true potential.

“WLC Qatar will create a platform for Qatari women to lead projects and initia-tives aligned to Qatar’s National Vision 2030,” says Petero.

Buthaina Al-Ansari is the keynote speak-er and ambassador of the Women Lead-ing Change Qatar series, and the launch event in late April had many Qatari women speaking about their success stories.

“WLC Qatar aims to provide a platform from which Qatari women can realise their dreams and aspirations in line with cultural and family values. The commercial value of nurturing this emerging talent in line with Qatarisation and the development of a knowledge-based society is critical,” she says.

“As Qatari women we need to take the lead in the development of our country in all areas of human, social, environmental and economic development. Qatar now holds the number one position in the world for female enrolment in secondary and ter-tiary education. We should be proud of what we have all achieved as individuals while still maintaining our strong family and cul-tural values,” said Al-Ansari at the keynote address.

So how is WLC Qatar different from other programmes which seem to guide entrepreneurs?

“There is no one place for Qatari

women to go. So WLC Qatar becomes a sort of catalyst for Roudha, Injaz and such pro-grammes and is a holistic guidance in all aspects of business. It is about the emerging talent, and we will connect these women to the right entity,” says Petero.

And what next for WLC Qatar after the launch?

Petero is not one to rest on her lau-rels; she is already busy with the next networking event.

“In association with our strategic alli-ance partners Roudha Centre, we will have a networking event where we will talk about current and future roles of women as lead-ers in Qatar, the importance of maintaining cultural and family values and solutions and the challenges of achieving your aspi-rations.” WLC Qatar will also be celebrat-ing the success story of an emerging talent, Qatari businesswoman of the month Waad Ali, the owner of Waad Designs, an award-winning Qatari fashion brand

d o h a d i a R y

QaTari CHange Makers

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rachel Petero speaking at the women leading change programme

Buthaina al ansari the ambassador for women leading change

doha diaRy


constRuction pRopels qataRi economy 32

elebrating its multicultural community and great out-door lifestyle, The Pearl-Qatar (TPQ) launched its Spring Carnival, providing residents and visitors with a range of musical entertainment and fun-filled activities. Some of the thrilling performances included a jazz saxophonist

and bands showcasing music from the Arab world as well as countries including Russia, Spain and North America. One such brass band troupe enthralled visitors with their infectious music as they performed around Porto Arabia boardwalk every night of the weekend. A children’s area was also set up, keeping kids busy with face painting, balloon animal-making, and other activities including arts, crafts and games.

“The Pearl-Qatar is a true multicultural community, and what better way to reflect that than with musical performers from the Middle East and around the world who appeal to the entire family,” said Fadi El Kik, Chairman of TPQ Executive Board. “The carnival has proven extremely popular with activities for the whole family, but it was the musical acts which have set the fun-filled tone.”

spRing caRnival at the peaRl-qataR

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omar Hussain Alfardan, President of Resorts De-velopment Company and Alfardan Group, and Frits van Paasschen, President and Chief Execu-tive Officer of Starwood Hotels & Resorts World-

wide Inc., officially inaugurated the St Regis Doha with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque on May 5.

“Since its inauguration, the St Regis Doha has suc-cessfully fulfilled its promise to deliver to visitors an ex-clusive and customised luxury staying experience. We are proud to have St Regis Doha added to our portfolio as a unique masterpiece at Al Gassar Resort and the fin-est address in Doha,” said Alfardan.

As one of the first St Regis Hotels to open in the Mid-dle East, the hotel has already created a buzz with the premiere of two new restaurants associated with world-renowned chef and restaurateur Gordon Ramsay, along with the upcoming opening of Jazz at Lincoln Centre, the first-ever venue associated with the New York City-based jazz centre outside America.

Guests can also take advantage of the ongoing open-ing offer, which is valid until June 30, 2012, that has rates starting at QR1,900 per night for a superior room, including a 30-minute spa treatment, a St Regis after-noon tea in Sarab Lounge, Wi-Fi Internet access and a Jazz at Lincoln Centre welcome gift.

the st Regis doha is officially open

arumaila hotel exterior


nited Development Compa-ny (UDC), master developer of The Pearl-Qatar (TPQ), held its third Open Day for residents of the Island.

The Open Day, organised by TPQ’s Cen-tral Authority Directorate (TCAD), was in-augurated by TCAD Director, Abdulrahim Al-Ibrahim, who said: “The Island is now a thriving and continually growing multi-cultural community. TCAD works with all departments not only to ensure the smooth running of the Island, but also to plan new activities and introduce services that make life easier. Our business is to continue to deliver five-star services consistent with TPQ’s glamorous and luxurious image.”

The fun-filled day had a range of activities and entertainment for children including face painting, jumping castles and games, while families interacted with the retailers and service providers at the Island.

atar’s premier hotelier, Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels, launched two new exqui-site, five-star destinations – Arumaila and Musheireb –

located in the heart of Doha’s historic Souq Waqif, alongside the inauguration of The Residences, the group’s luxury residential property inspired by the decor and ambi-ence of traditional Qatari homes.

At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Execu-tive Manager of Al Rayyan Project Man-agement, Abdulla bin Ali Al-Attiyah said: “The Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels brand is

built with distinctiveness and eccentricity being at the heart of each and every one of the properties. Arumaila and Musheireb, as well as The Residences, carry this brand identity across all their offerings, ensur-ing that guests experience every aspect of the brand from the moment they enter the buildings to the moment they leave Souq Waqif Boutique Hotels. We look forward to welcoming guests from Qatar, the Arab region and across the world in the coming months,” he concluded.

Arumaila Boutique Hotel offers a total of 19 rooms – 17 standard rooms and two

suites – while Musheireb features 14 rooms – ten deluxe rooms and four suites. The Res-idences offer four three-bedroom and five one-bedroom residences. In addition to im-pressive fine dining restaurants such as the The Canteen and Al Matbakh-Rooftop Grill in Arumaila, and Al Mataam in Musheireb, both boutique hotels are equipped with a full range of state-of-the-art facilities that include gyms and spas. Currently, Al Na-jada, Al Mirqab, Arumaila and Musheireb Boutique Hotels are operational, while ad-ditional hotels will be revealed to the public in the second quarter of 2012.

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luxuRious Boutique hotels spaRkle at souq waqif

irque du Soleil, the world-famous, Montreal-based artistic entertainment group, will launch its vibrant signature production, Saltimbanco, in Qatar for the first time this summer. The action-packed performance is scheduled to run from July 4 - 7 at Aspire Dome.

The first of seven shows will start at 8:00pm on July 4, for which tickets are now available at Virgin Megastores (Landmark and Villaggio Mall locations) and online at www.cirquedusoleil.qa.

Saltimbanco – from the Italian “saltare in banco”, which literally means “to jump on a bench” – is inspired by the urban fabric of the metropolis and its colourful inhabitants. It is Cirque du Soleil’s longest-running touring show and has performed since 1992, drawing spectators into a fanciful, imaginary city where diversity is a cause for hope.

Synchronising acrobatics and athleticism into artistic expression, Saltimbanco is classic Cirque du Soleil at its best!

legendaRy ciRque du soleil to deBut in qataR

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tcad hosts open day at the island


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hamad Bin khalifa univeRsity convocation 2012

seventeen foundation students at Weill Cornell Medical Col-lege in Qatar (WCMC-Q) received their completion certifi-cates for the WCMC-Q Foundation Programme – a one-year bridging course for Qatari nationals who are keen to pursue a

career in medicine. The programme is aimed mainly at school leav-ers who show interest in the field of medicine, to prepare them to improve their competency in critical areas necessary to be eligible for admission to the preliminary stages of the medical degree of-fered at WCMC-Q.

innovations Unlimited ME (IUME), a Qatar-based event man-agement company, has won an award for the ‘Best Special Event’ of the Middle East 2012. “This award is a great honour for our company and it shows that great attention to detail and creativ-

ity get recognised by our peers in our industry,” said Markus Jor-dan, Managing Partner. “I am very proud of my professional and dedicated team who worked endless hours to stage the Best Spe-cial Event in the Middle East, in Qatar!”

onning their traditional caps and robes, hundreds of graduates received their graduation rings from HE Dr Abdulla bin Ali Al-Thani,

President of Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) and Vice-President of Education at Qatar Foundation (QF), during the fifth convocation ceremony, held for the first time under the auspices of HBKU, which

brings together all of the higher education and related research at QF.

The class of 2012 signifies the highest number of graduates in QF’s history, with 373 students participating in this year’s convocation. The gender gap has also nar-rowed, with 188 women and 185 men mak-ing up the Class of 2012.

HH Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, Chair-person of QF, led the charge to the Class of

2012, saying: “I see in you the blossoming of new futures, which I have worked so long to establish through the providing of qual-ity education. And as we have helped create new futures for you, it is now your responsi-bility to create new futures for the coming generations who follow in your pioneering footsteps.”

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fiRst step towaRds medicine

innovations unlimited me wins awaRd

qatar Foundation (QF) hosted a con-gratulatory dinner at the Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) Student Centre in honour of Bader Abdul-

lah Al-Darwish, who granted the ‘Abdullah Al-Darwish Scholarship’ to eight students from Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar (WCMC-Q) to help finance their tuition.

“I’m convinced it is my duty to serve and support the development of our country,” said Al-Darwish. “By sponsoring education I hope to participate in making Qatar a lead-er in innovative education and research. We will convert Qatar into a knowledge-based society and I’m proud of these students, whom I consider to be like my children.”

qf honouRs student sponsoR


list coMPiled froM:forBes.coM

* the innovation premium is a measure of how much investors have bid up the stock price of a company above the value of its existing business based on expectations of future innovative results (new products, services and markets). members of the list must have qr36.38 billion ($10 billion) in market capitalisation, spend at least 1% of their asset base on research and development, and have seven years of public data

following on fRom last month’s coveR stoRy on entRepReneuRship, and how small Businesses make it Big, qataR today ‘s June top ten list looks at the woRld’s most innovative companies and how they aRe still tRying to make it even BiggeR...

World’s Most InnovatIve CoMpanIes

MarkEt Cap INduStryINNOvatION

prEMIuM*

1QR75.5billion

software and programming 75.1

salesforce is a provider of enterprise cloud computing applica-tions. it provides a customer and collaboration relationship man-agement (crm) service to businesses of all sizes and industries worldwide and provides a technology platform for customers and developers to build and run business applications.

2QR306billion

internet and catalogue

retail58.9

amazon serves consumers through its retail websites and fo-cuses on selection, price and convenience. its four customer sets include consumers, sellers, enterprises and content creators. it also manufactures and sells kindle devices. it offers programmes that enable sellers to sell their products on its websites and their own branded websites and to fulfill orders through it.

3QR76

billion

medical equipment and

supplies57.6

intuitive surgical designs, manufactures and markets da vinci surgical systems, which consist of a surgeon’s console, a patient-side cart and a vision system, as well as other accessories. it translates a surgeon’s natural hand movements, which are per-formed on instrument controls at a console, into corresponding micro-movements of instruments positioned inside the patient through small incisions, or ports.

4QR187billion

computer services 52.3

tencent holdings is an investment holding company, where it and its subsidiaries are principally engaged in the provision of internet value-added services, mobile and telecommunications value-added services and online advertising services to users in the people’s republic of china.

5QR1.98

trillioncomputer hardware

48.2apple, along with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers, and portable digital music players, and sells a range of related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions and third-party digital content and applications.

6QR64

billionconsumer

goods 47.7

hindustan unilever is india’s largest consumer goods company, based in mumbai. it is owned by the british-dutch company unilever, which controls a 52% majority stake in it. its products include foods, beverages, cleaning agents and personal care products.

7QR739billion

computer services 44.9

google is a global technology company focused on improving the ways people connect with information. it generates revenue primarily by delivering online advertising. its business is focused on areas such as search, advertising, operating systems and plat-forms, and enterprise. businesses use its adwords programme to promote their products and services with targeted advertising.

8QR34.7billion

cosmetics 44.5

natura cosmeticos is a brazil-based company that, together with its subsidiaries, is engaged in the manufacture, industrialisa-tion, distribution and commercialisation of cosmetics, fragrances and personal hygiene products under the brand name natura. it operates in chile, peru, argentina, mexico, colombia, spain and the netherlands.

9QR48.5billion

electrical equipment 43.6

Bharat heavy electricals is an india-based engineering and manufacturing company which is engaged in the energy related/infrastructure sector. it caters to sectors including power genera-tion and transmission, industry, transportation, renewable energy and defence. it has a network of 15 manufacturing divisions, four power sector regions, regional offices, and a number of project sites spread all over india and abroad.

10QR154billion

specialised chemicals 42.6

Monsanto, along with its subsidiaries, is a provider of agricultural products for farmers. its seeds, biotechnology trait products and herbicides provide farmers with solutions that improve produc-tivity, reduce the costs of farming, and produce better foods for consumers and better feed for animals. it manages business in two segments: seeds and genomics, and agricultural productivity.

qatar today june 2012

Documents

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c o n t e n t sj u n

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