Ayse Valentin, CEO of The Business Year
Doha: The Business Year (TBY) has been conducting research on the Qatari economy for over six years, sitting down with the country’s top business and political leaders to provide investors with a concise picture of the local investment environment.
The latest research, which will be published in The Business Year: Qatar 2021, is taking place against the backdrop of a global health pandemic, which changed the way information is gathered. The Business Year is used to sitting down with hundreds of executives over the course of a year, but during the peak of the outbreak, the conversation moved online and was rooted firmly in the local response and expectations for recovery.
The Business Year: Qatar 2021 will include interviews with figures from across the economy, including Chairman of Al Faisal Holding, Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani; CEO of Qatar Stock Exchange, Rashid Bin Ali Al Mansoori; CEO of Vodafone Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Abdulla Jassim Al Thani, and many more. The publication will also feature articles and analysis on a range of topics, including banking sector resilience, the localisation of supply chains, and diversification.
The Business Year also remained dynamic and close to the market during the height of the lockdown via a series of digital roundtable events. One of these events, “Qatar at the Crossroads of the World”, co-hosted by the Qatar Free Zones Authority and also summarised in a special digital report, The Debrief: Qatar at the Crossroads of the World, is a prime example since the event shone a spotlight on the importance of international trade, investment, and cooperation to overcome the impact of the global health crisis. Discussions also centred on Qatar’s ambitions to become a key global logistics hub through its network of newly opened free zones. This last topic will also form one of the most relevant editorial lines of the upcoming publication, The Business Year: Qatar 2021.
“A story of resilience and growth, Qatar will continue to remain a key focus of The Business Year’s research activities in the region. Having overcome other external shocks in recent years, including fluctuating oil prices and an economic blockade, we are keen to continue telling Qatar’s story as it looks beyond lockdown and to a brighter future,” said Ayşe Valentin, CEO of The Business Year.
