Doha Bank hosts ‘Qatar — Land of opportunities’ event

 DOHA: Doha Bank, one of the largest commercial banks in Qatar, held a knowledge sharing session titled “Qatar – Land of opportunities” at Sheraton Hotel, Doha on Sunday.

The event was organised under the patronage of Sheikh Fahad bin Mohammad bin Jabor Al Thani, Chairman and Sheikh Abdul Rehman bin Mohammad bin Jabor Al Thani, Managing Director of Doha Bank. The Board of directors, several diplomats, dignitaries and prominent members of the Qatari and expat community attended the event.

The main speakers at the event included Yousuf Mohamed Al Jaida, CEO of Qatar Financial Centre(QFC) Authority; Rashid Ali Al Mansoori, CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE); Nasser Al-Ansari, Chairman of Just Real Estate and Dr. Yousef Alhorr, Founding Chairman of GORD (Gulf Organisation of Research and Development).

The event was kicked off by a keynote speech delivered by Dr Seetharaman,CEO of Doha Bank. In his speech, Dr Seetharaman shared his insights on Qatar and global economy. He pointed out the growing trade tension between the two largest economies US and China, which has contributed to volatility in financial markets. The risk of recession has also increased, he said.

Dr Seetharaman showcased various developments in Qatar since the beginning of the blockade and how Qatar had managed the current situation. He stated “Qatar’s overall GDP growth is projected to reach 2.6 percent in 2019. Qatar’s banking sector remains sound. Foreign liabilities withdrawn in the immediate aftermath of the diplomatic rift have been partially replaced with greater attention being paid to the diversity of funding sources and deposit maturity structure.”

Rashid Ali Al-Mansoori, CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) outlined four key points of QSE’s strategic focus. The bourse will strive to increase its offering in the stock market (more listings etc), enhance smarter regulation to make Qatar a more desirable place for international investment; and ensure local asset management industry is more active, he said.

Speaking on the real estate sector ,Nassar Al Ansari, Chairman, Just Real Estate noted while many people are speculating and have doubts in the market, the opportunities are getting greater and greater. Post blockade, the country has taken many measures to become more resilient to avoid any potential crisis. These policy changes have demonstrated a greater appetite for foreign ownership, where the Qatari government r has opened up the market for international companies to own their offices and real estate.

Dr Yousef Alhorr, founding chairman of GORD (Gulf Organization of Research and Development) delivered a groundbreaking presentation on the Climate actions and the Carbon markets in Qatar, the opportunities and its impacts. Dr Yousef started by sharing the mission and agenda of GORD, a non-profit subsidiary of Qatari Diar.

He said that the state of Qatar has become an active partner in the international community for climate change. It is doing so by seeking to regulate carbon pricing as a means of reducing emissions and driving investments towards cleaner options. It is also organizing an environment-friendly tournament and the first “carbon neutral” tournament.

Dr Yousef said Qatar Sovereign Wealth Fund will promote and encourage green investments activities and adopt low-carbon economic growth. Furthermore, a contribution of $100m has been pledged to deal with the impacts of climate change.

Dr Yousef, also talked about GSAS (Global Sustainability Assessment System) which GORD has developed, based on extensive research. GSAS is a performance-based rating system to assess the sustainability merits of buildings and infrastructure projects taking into consideration the region’s specific environment and ecological aspects.