Located on a dry, flat peninsulaprojecting into the Arabian Gulf,

the State of Qatar has a populationof less than one million. Measured byincome per head, it is one of the rich-est countries on earth.

Ruled since the mid-19th centuryby the Al-Thani family, the indepen-dent State of Qatar owes its wealthto the vast reserves of oil and gas thatlie beneath its desert sands and thewaters of the Gulf. The reigning emir,Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani,has a very clear vision of his coun-try’s future. And, thanks to high glob-al energy prices, his oil-and-gas-richcountry has the financial resources tostart turning that vision into reality.

Massive economic and social de-velopment is underway in a drive todiversify and transform 21st centuryQatar into a knowledge-based econ-omy. The State of Qatar’s hydrocar-bon wealth is being used to build in-novative education institutions, state-of-the-art health facilities and tourisminfrastructure.

Billions of dollars are being pouredinto massive infrastructure projects—city enclaves focused on education,energy, healthcare, science and tech-nology, a new airport for the capitalcity, Doha, and a causeway linkingQatar with Bahain.

New stadiums, roads and hospitalsare being built, and hugely ambitiousreal estate developments are takingshape, such as the Pearl-Qatar, a man-made island that will provide luxurywaterside living to 40,000 inhabi-tants, or the massive Lusail project,which will accommodate 200,000people. Demand for residential ac-commodation, retail space and com-mercial property is outpacing supply.

Qatar produces 800,000 barrels ofoil per day and possesses the thirdlargest natural gas reserves in theworld. The economy is booming, in-creasing by an annual average of 15percent. Per capita GDP is more than$72,634, according to the IMF. Thatcompares with $46,000 in the Unit-ed States, or $20,700 in its immedi-ate neighbor, Saudi Arabia. By 2013,the size of the economy is projectedto reach $100 billion.

As a member of the World TradeOrganization since 1996, Qatar hasliberalized its trade and investmentclimate. Tariffs and restrictions, aswell as barriers to trade have been re-duced, and opportunities for foreigninvestment increased; up to 100 per-

cent of foreign ownership is permit-ted in some sectors. Over the next sixyears, an estimated $142 billion willbe spent on projects aimed at diver-sifying the economy. Non-hydrocar-bon sectors that the State of Qatar iseager to develop include manufac-turing, trade, transport, financial ser-vices and tourism.

Science and technology are regardedas key drivers of future prosperity.Research is to serve as a cat-alyst for expansion and di-versification. The emir haspledged to invest 2.8 per-cent of Qatar’s GDP in re-search and development(R&D), comparing favorablywith 2.6 percent in the Unit-ed States.

Spearheading the drive to create aknowledge-based economy is theQatar Foundation for Education, Sci-ence and Community Development,a non-profit private institution es-tablished by the emir in 1995. Underthe foundation’s umbrella, state-of-the-art facilities have been built toencourage academic institutions, com-panies and entrepreneurs to come to

Qatar and work together to developand commercialize their technology.

At the same time, steps are beingtaken to develop national potentialby enhancing the education and wellbeing of Qatari citizens, and the de-velopment of a highly skilled work-force.

The education system is being de-centralized and upgraded, and topU.S. universities have been brought

in to produce top-notchgraduates. Meanwhile,splendid new medical fa-cilities are being openedthat, in addition to pro-viding top-class healthcare,are intended to put Qatarat the cutting edge of med-

ical research.As if all that were not enough, the

State of Qatar is raising its interna-tional profile through the medium ofsport, emerging as a venue for a va-riety of world-class sporting events.Having already successfully stagedthe 2006 Asian Games, the world’ssecond largest sports tournament, itis now a serious contender to host the2016 Olympic Games.

SPECIAL REPORT

INSIDER VIEW

THIS REPORT IS PRODUCED BY SUMMIT COMMUNICATIONS

OUR TEAMProject Director:

Nathalie Martin-BeaEditorial Research:

Matthew Carroll and Katrien Hermans

For further informationcontact:

Summit Communications 1040 First Avenue,

Suite 395, New York, NY 10022-2902

Tel: 1 (212) 286-0034, Fax: 1 (212) 286-8376,

E-mail:info@summitreports.com

Energy wealth fuels the drive towardsa knowledge-based economy

The emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani

QatarCompeting for theultimate prizeQatar’s capital city, Doha, is aserious contender to host the2016 Olympic Games Page 4

Real estate isboomingProperties in developmentslike the Pearl-Qatar are in high demand Page 5

A FOUNDATION FORTHE FUTUREPage 2

Made rich by vast reserves of oil and gas, the State of Qatar is looking

to its future. Its ruler, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, sees science

and technology as the engines of prosperity and has shifted the nation-

al focus to education, healthcare, and research and development

Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Location: Middle East, peninsula border-ing the Persian Gulf and SaudiArabia

Capital: Doha

Area - comparative:slightly smaller than Connecticut

GDP (purchasing powerparity): $26.37 billion (2006 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:7.1% (2006 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:agriculture: 0.1%industry: 75.8%services: 24.1% (2006 est.)

Industries: crude oil production and refin-ing, ammonia, fertilizers, petro-chemicals, steel reinforcingbars, cement, commercial shiprepair

Exports - commodities:liquefied natural gas (LNG),petroleum products, fertilizers,steel

Imports - partners:France 13.4%, Japan 10.2%,US 9.3%, Italy 8.9%, Germany7.8%, UK 6.3%, Saudi Arabia5.8%, South Korea 4.7% (2006)

Flag description: maroon with a broad whiteserrated band (nine whitepoints) on the hoist side

Labor force:508,000 (2006 est.)

While the Qatari governmentis keenly aware of the need

to strengthen its economy bydiversifying from oil and gas ex-traction, the sector is currentlystill responsible for 85 percentof export earnings, and will re-main of paramount importanceto the country for the foresee-able future.

It is true that Qatar is a rela-tively small player in oil produc-tion—its proven oil reserves of 15billion barrels are dwarfed by Sau-di Arabia’s 260 billion barrels andare less than half those of Nige-ria—but the discovery of the world'slargest non-associated offshoregas field in its territory has pro-pelled it to third place in terms ofglobal natural gas reserves.

This has thrust the State ofQatar into the international spot-light, and a flurry of deals havebeen signed in the past year orso to exploit its renewed ener-gy-rich status. The result shouldbe for gas to overtake crude oilas the main contributor to Qatar’sGDP by 2010.

Projects include the Qatar Pe-troleum/ConocoPhillips joint-ven-ture QatarGas III, which will startproducing gas for the U.S. mar-ket from 2010, and QatarGas IV,a joint project between RoyalDutch/Shell and state-owned oilgiant Qatar Petroleum, which willcome on stream a year later, withproduction aimed at both NorthAmerica and Europe.

The crucial importance of oiland gas to the economy is re-

flected in the immense servicesinfrastructure investment beingmade for the sector. Most notableis the construction of Energy City—a $3.5 billion development in thegiant Lusail real estate investmentproject located north of Doha thatis pitched to be a single hub forthe energy business in the MiddleEast.

The developers of Energy Cityhave gone to great lengths to at-tract key energy players. Its free-trade zone status will allow com-panies to sidestep the normal con-ditions of Qatar sponsorship andenjoy full autonomy, while high-tech infrastructure, such as anelectronic energy-trading plat-form, promises to cut costs andimprove efficiencies. “It’s likelythat this form of trading will, with-in the next few years, become thefourth ‘super-asset’ class for glob-al investors, alongside conven-tional debt, equity and foreignexchange,” says Energy City CEOHesham AbdulRahman Al-Emadi.

In addition, Energy City’s so-phisticated IT infrastructure—whichhas been supplied by contractorsincluding Cisco Systems and Mi-crosoft—will allow full control ofevery building and will link work-places to homes and data centres.“The hydrocarbon industries useIT extensively, for instance in vi-sualisations, so this high-end tech-nology will have value immedi-ately,” adds Mr. Al-Emadi.

Qatar Petroleum(QP) is an early

Gas set to overtake oil asmain contributor to GDP

The economy is booming and

has beenprojected to

reach US$100billion by 2013

The oil and gas sector accounts for 85 percent of export earnings.

Continued on page 6

We thank you for attending the3rd biennial U.S.-Arab

Economic Forum, May 7-9 inWashington D.C. We hope that youwill take part in the USAEF and thatyou will engage with yourcolleagues from around the worldto address political, economic andsocial issues related to both the U.S.and the Arab world. It is a criticaltime in history and it is necessaryfor us to forge long-lasting bondswhich positively impact the Western

world and the Arab world together. Building on the success of previous

Forums, the USAEF will again uniteover 1,000 high level corporateleaders, heads of state, ministers,academicians, politicians, policymakers, and concerned citizens fromthe United States and the ArabWorld. We will discuss opportunitiesin industries ranging from: energy,financial services and healthcare, toinformation technology, trade andtourism. Our hope is to find solutionsto some of the region’s mostconcerning and pressing issues, whileenhancing the role of women,improving the access to educationand building regional peace.

The U.S.-Arab Economic Forum,sponsored by The American Middle

East Economic Affairs Committee(AMEEAC) is dedicated to engagingpublic and private partnerships

between the U.S. and Arab World, tostimulate and promote sustainableeconomic growth, while fostering theemergence of knowledge-basedsocieties. Through initiatives such asthe U.S. Arab Economic Forum,AMEEAC provides one of theworld’s premier platforms forpartners and participants tohighlight their commitment andvision of a strengthened civil societyand improved economicenvironment between the U.S. andthe Arab World.

Focusing on business andeconomics builds mutually beneficialpartnerships to promote economicgrowth and integration, free trade,entrepreneurship, public/privatepartnerships and a modern,

innovative and more competitiveMiddle-Eastern society. We at theUSAEF will provide each participantthe opportunity to network withglobal colleagues and attendthought-provoking lectures anddiscussions of today’s businesseconomy. We hope you will takemaximum advantage of the USAEF.

To date, there have been over 430corporate leaders present, 170government officials, 30 ministers, 90speakers, and over 120 organizationsfrom 35 countries at each Forum. Inaddition, the USAEF will reachapproximately 50 million peopleworldwide through global mediaoutlets including CNN, MSNBC, FOX,Al-Jazeera, BBC, LBC, and Al Arabiya.

We thank you for being with us in

Washington, D.C. Lastingpartnerships will be forged here andit is these relationships that willpropel the exchange of ideas andbolster commercial development.What we do today will make all thedifference in the world tomorrow.

We invite you to visit our websiteat http://usaef.ameeac.org foradditional event information.

Regards,

A letter from the Chairman of the AMEEACInternational forum bringstogether American andMiddle Eastern leaders tobuild business relations in avariety of industries

Ahmad Chebbani Chairman and CEO of AMEEAC

Wednesday, May 7, 2008 SPECIAL REPORT 2

Qatar

Building a regionalcenter of excellence

Change is thought to comeslowly in Arab societies,but powerful women arestarting to emerge and toplay an active role in pro-

moting social and economic devel-opment. One of the most prominentis Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned, ranked by Forbes magazinethe 79th most powerful woman in theworld, and second in the Arab World.

Sheikha Mozah’s vision for the fu-ture of Qatar parallels that of the emir,her husband. Education, scientific ad-vance and healthcare are her primeconcerns, and in particular the futureof young people. With her high pro-file, she is becoming an increasinglyinfluential figure not just in Qatar,but also in the wider Gulf region andinternationally.

In the State of Qatar, she is a dri-ving force for change. As chairpersonof the Qatar Foundation for Educa-tion, Science and Community Devel-opment, the private, non-profit or-ganization behind major initiativescurrently under way in the State ofQatar, she has overseen the realization

of major pilot projects, such as Edu-cation City and Qatar Science andTechnology Park (see articles below andon page 3).

She also serves as Vice-President ofthe Supreme Education Council, whereshe is directly involved in setting na-tional policies, and has been the dri-ving force behind reforms aimed at im-proving learning and school perfor-mance at elementary, middle, and highschool level. As President of theSupreme Council for Family Affairs,she is in a position to promote edu-cation for children with special needs,learning for the disabled and train-ing for the underprivileged.

Sheikha Mozah says, “The accent ofthe Qatar Foundation and the coun-try’s education sector as a whole is toprovide quality education by adopt-ing an excellent syllabus and by giv-ing teachers the best training.” Thesharing of knowledge, ideas and val-ues is the noblest way to transcend bar-riers, she adds.

Far more than a mere figurehead,Qatar’s First Lady initiates ideas and getsinvolved in the detailed research and

planning required to implement them.And she maintains a continuing inter-est in projects post launch, paying reg-ular visits to monitor and promote

progress, and acting as a vital link be-tween initiatives.

She is increasingly active interna-tionally. Appointed UNESCO Special

Envoy for Basic and Higher Educationin 2003, she promotes internationalprojects to improve the quality and ac-cessibility of education worldwide.

Four years ago, she established theInternational Fund for Higher Edu-cation in Iraq, dedicated to the re-construction of institutions of ad-vanced learning in Iraq. Last year, witha US$10 million endowment from theemir, she established the Arab Foun-dation for Democracy in Doha, whichis mandated to promote democracyand equal opportunity throughoutthe Middle East and North Africa.

Last year, she toured the U.S. giv-ing speeches on Western misconcep-tions of Muslim women and the needto combat violence by eradicatingpoverty and hopelessness. In Octoberlast year, she was awarded the presti-gious Chatham House Prize by theDuke of York in a ceremony held atthe Drapers’ Hall in London. The awardis made annually to a leading inter-national statesperson for the most sig-nificant contribution to the improve-ment of international relations. SheikhaMozah was chosen for her commit-ment to progressive education andcommunity welfare in Qatar and herstrong advocacy of closer relations be-tween Islamic countries and the West.

At the first Alliance of CivilizationForum held in Madrid in January, sheannounced a new global initiative toaddress the need to create new jobs

and opportunities for young people—starting in the Middle East and NorthAfrica (MENA) region, where rates ofyouth unemployment and under-em-ployment are at their highest.

The aim of the Silatech initiative—the word translates from Arabic as“Your Connection”—is to support aunique and comprehensive strategythat includes providing links to jobsand placements, a call center, market-related training, access to businessdevelopment services and capital foraspiring entrepreneurs, and employ-ment attachments such as internshipsand apprenticeships.

A wide range of partners will be in-volved, ranging from governments,regional and international organiza-tions, donors and nongovernmentalorganizations (NGOs) to employers’associations, trade unions, small andmedium-sized businesses, and com-mercial banks. A sum of US$100 mil-lion has been donated by the emir andSheikha Mozah as an endowment tosupport the initiative.

Sheikha Mozah said the initiativewas aimed at “connecting youngpeople to each other, to capital, toindustry, to opportunity.” She told theconference, “By investing in ouryouth, we are investing in the secu-rity of our nations, and only secureand confident nations can build al-liances based on mutual respect andcommon objectives.”

Far more than a figurehead, Sheikha Mozah Bint

Nasser Al-Missned takes an active role in building

a better society and has inspired a generation of Qatari

men and women

Sheikha Mozah Bint Nasser Al-Missned

Empowering future generations

Qatar realized early on that if it was toprovide high quality education and

research, it could not do so alone. Alliancesand partnerships with elite internationalinstitutions would need to play a key role.

The purpose of building the 2,500-acrecampus of state-of-the-art facilities on theoutskirts of Doha that is Education Citywas to attract some of the world’s leadingacademic institutions to set up shop there—to create a kind of Ivy League of the Mid-dle East. And it has succeeded. EducationCity is home to a growing community ofeducational and research institutions,including the largest cluster of Americanuniversities outside the United States.

Already established are outposts of WeillCornell Medical College, Carnegie MellonUniversity, Virginia Commonwealth Univer-sity, Texas A&M University and GeorgetownUniversity. As close collaboration with indus-try is a key aim, the site is also the location ofthe new Qatar Science and Technology Park.

“No sustained change can be achievedwithout the empowerment of educationand research. This is why the Education Cityproject was started,” says Dr. MohamedFathy Saoud, Qatar Foundation’s President.“We wanted to use the best practices andfeatures of what is happening in educationacross the world.”

Education City will be a multi-campuscity that builds synergies and partnerships ina variety of areas, he adds. “We are encour-aging universities to work together. All ourpartner universities are identified in the U.S.as research universities. We are ready to hostinteractions that have never been known inthis region, and which are unknown even inthe host countries.”

A high level of reassurance and long-termcommitment has been provided to get someof the world’s leading universities to opencampuses on the site. Says Dr. Saoud, “Wehave made them feel confident that theirfull autonomy and governance of their pro-grams, and their independent decisionsrelated to admissions, faculty and staffrecruitment can never be undermined.”

Carnegie Mellon University opened itscampus in Education City in 2004, teachingcomputer science and business. ChuckTorpe, the Dean, says, “There is a very strongsense that you can get an education herethat you can’t get anywhere else in theworld. We’ve opened up all our courses forcross-registration, so a student can comehere and major in computer science fromCMU, the world’s number one ranked com-puter science school, and go downstairs andlisten to a distinguished lecturer on foreignaffairs from Georgetown, go over to VCUand take a course in jewelry making and goplay soccer with their buddies at TexasA&M. So this is a chance to mix togetherhigh-ranked majors and programs fromhighly ranked universities around the world,and that’s a wonderful opportunity.”

At Virginia Commonwealth Universitycampus, where art and design are taught,Dean Allyson Vanstone says, “Students inDoha have to compete to get in just as inRichmond; so when they graduate they arevery proud.”

At Weill Cornell Medical College, Dean

Daniel Alonso says, “We have studentexchanges. In NYC, our third year studentsdo full time at the hospital. Here in Doha wehave an agreement with Hamad Corporationand some are selected to go to NYC. InMarch this year, main campus students arecoming to Doha.”

As a relatively small number of studentswill be able to study at Education City, it isseen as essential that the high standardsthere have a knock-on effect in order toprovide critical mass. Using the universitiesof Education City as a benchmark, moveshave been made to raise standards at QatarUniversity and to engender an atmosphereof positive competition.

Since she became President of the univer-sity in 2003, Sheikha Abdullah Al-Misnadhas undertaken a root and branch program ofreform. She says, “We are expanding andaccepting more applications every year. Theopportunities for higher education are on therise. It is still a manageable increase because thisnumber is being distributed among all of theother universities and colleges, namely theEducational City and the region.”

Education City opens doors to aworld of learning

Reforms will drive up standards in schools

Qatar Foundation. Developing potential through education, science and health initiatives

A community of elite international campuses will set new standards, extending knowledge across the region and the globe

The new three-in-one Hamad Medical City will combine high-qualityhealthcare, education and research

Health. Development boomEducation. Emphasis on quality and innovation

Under construction in Doha at what usedto be the athletes’ village during the

2006 Asian Games is one of the largesthealthcare developments in the Middle East.Scheduled to open within the next twoyears, the US$1.5 billion Hamad MedicalCity is intended to become a regional leaderin all aspects of medical care.

The city will house three specialized hos-pitals—a 320-bed children’s hospital, a 220-bed center for bone diseases and a 350-bedcenter for medical rehabilitation—togetherwith therapeutic facilities, residential build-ings for medical staff and the offices of theNational Health Authority.

Masterminding the scheme is Hamad Med-ical Corporation (HMC), the state health careprovider, which is undertaking a major ex-pansion of the State of Qatar’s health ser-vice infrastructure. “The vision of His High-ness and Her Highness for healthcare inQatar is extremely ambitious,” says HananAl Kuwari, HMC Managing Director. “Theywould like it to be the best in the region,and on a par with the best in the world.”

Demand for healthcare has increasedhighly in Qatar and the Gulf region over thelast couple of decades. The building ofHamad Medical City is part of a drive todevelop Qatar’s healthcare infrastructure,integrate treatment and research, and pro-vide training for health sector workers sothat the State of Qatar is less reliant onimported foreign staff.

Other major developments include thenew Sidra Medical and Research Center,scheduled for 2010, and local hospitals atDukhan and Al-Wakrah. Due to open laterthis year is HMC’s new $33 million 100-bedheart hospital within the Rumailah Hospitalcomplex. Total hospital capacity is expectedto double over the next five years.

HMC operates a network of hospitals pro-viding free services to Qatari citizens, in-cluding the largest hospital in the State ofQatar, Hamad General, Rumailah Hospital,

the Women’s Hospital and the PsychiatricHospital, as well as the primary health carecenters. The global standards achieved atHMC institutions were acknowledged lastyear, when the corporation gained accred-itation from Joint Commission Internation-al (JCI), the international body that assess-es medical centers across the world.

Latifa Al Houty, Chairperson of HMC’sBoard of Directors says, “We have always op-erated with the aim of being an interna-tionally recognized medical center of ex-cellence, particularly in an age when med-ical care is no longer limited by geography.”

Partnerships with some of the world’sleading medical institutions and specialistsenables HMC to offer specialized services,such as radiation oncology for cancer, neona-tal metabolic screening and bone marrowtransplants.

HMC has close ties with Weill CornellMedical College, its main educational part-ner, and with Canada’s Calgary Universityand the College of North Atlantic, all ofwhich have campuses in the State of Qatar.The new pediatric hospital at Hamad Med-ical City will be operated in conjunctionwith the Hospital for Sick Children of Toron-to.

The University of Pittsburgh provides ed-ucation, training and services to Qatar’semergency medical system, and recently an-nounced with HMC the creation of a trau-ma service at Hamad General Hospital mod-eled after the most sophisticated traumacenters in the United States. A bone mar-row transplant service is being developed incollaboration with Germany’s University Clin-ics of Heidelberg (UCH), which also collab-orates with HMC on screening for early de-tection of disorders in newborns.

“We are only the fourth country in theworld to have established universal screen-ing for newborns,” says Dr. Hanan. “Everybaby that is born is screened for metabolicdisorders and other types of diseases.”

Hamad Medical City will house three new specialized hospitals.

Education City will serve as a benchmark for quality across the sector.

In recent years, the Qatari education systemhas been undergoing a process of reform.

Starting with primary and secondary edu-cation, K-12, the aim is to improve quality,encourage critical thinking among studentsand build a knowledge economy.

A centralized system of education isbeing replaced with one where each schoolhas its own independence, budget andauthority under a national curriculum stan-dard. Within the next few years, the Ministryof Education is expected to be phased out.

Large numbers of new independentschools are being established by theSupreme Education Council. Fifteen are due

to open in the current education year,bringing the total of independent schools to87, and more are planned to follow. Newkindergartens are being opened at primaryschools. An evaluation system will ensurethat schools are reaching their targets.

The institutions in Education City, suchas the international private Qatar Acad-emy, will set a gold standard for the rest ofthe sector to follow, providing world-classeducational facilities from kindergartenthrough junior and secondary levels to grad-uate and post-graduate studies and researchprograms.

Sheikha Abdullah Al-Misnad, President

of Qatar University, says the new educationmodel is designed to create a generation ofproblem-solvers who are skilled at facingthe new economic realities.

The emphasis now is on encouraginginnovation and parental involvement, onbuilding skills, critical thinking, team work-ing and self-assertiveness alongside basicskills such as mathematics and science.

“There is an Arab culture of not askingquestions and we must begin by training ageneration to ask questions, analyze andexpress themselves. Democracy is not justabout parliaments and protests, but howwe think as individuals,” she says.

One of the unique characteristics of QSTP isthat it will allow companies who would not

normally collaborate to work together to solveproblems. Collaboration is the theme of all in-novation, says QSTP Chairman Tidu Maini, whosees one of the science park’s most recent ar-rivals, global networking giant Cisco, as play-ing a key role.

“QSTP plans to see it’s IT, energy and uni-versity partners working together, rather thancompeting while under its roof,” he says. “Andwe want Cisco to provide them with the op-portunities to know what the other is doing andto get to know each other.”

In 2006, Cisco signed its largest ever consul-tancy deal when it agreed to design advancedtechnology solutions to create the infrastruc-ture required to support Energy City Qatar, theState of Qatar’s regional energy hub.In January, the company announcedthat over the next three years it plansto invest $40 million in a research andtechnology center on QSTP.

Cisco will work with the Qatar Foun-dation on a series of projects to buildthe State of Qatar’s knowledge-basedeconomy. These will include Project iQ, a techo-logical initiative that will allow the Foundationto engage in global collaboration on research,education, health and youth employment.

The networking giant is already one of thefirst global strategic technology providers forthe Youth Employment Initiative, Silitech,that was recently announced by HH SheikhaMozah. It has also established two Network-ing Academies in Doha to developing the ICTskills of Qatari youth.

Being located in QSTP will enable Cisco toshare its knowledge and expertise, and workwith local partners and customers to introduceconnected education, connected healthcare,connected tourism and real estate industry so-lutions throughout the State of Qatar.

“We are going to have a significant con-sulting and services division to bring intel-lectual capital to clients, a training venue andwe are going to build an entrepreneur insti-tute,” says Wayne Hull, Cisco’s South GulfCountry Manager.

According to Mr. Hull, it was the State ofQatar’s focus on becoming a knowledged-based society and an ICT world leader that at-tracted Cisco to set up operations in Qatar. “Westarted to notice a couple of very unique thingsabout this country,” he says. “The first was that

its size is very tight geographicallyand the other was that the vision ofthe leaders, particularly the emir andHer Highness, was very focusedaround the knowledge-based soci-ety and on becoming an ICT leaderin the world. We found a direct linkbetween what Qatar is trying to do

and what Cisco is all about.” Qatar has always been a key market for Cis-

co and it customers there have deployed someof the most advanced network environmentsin the region, adds Mr. Hull.

"We see a massive opportunity for growthand Cisco is investing heavily in terms of re-sources to provide strategic consultancy, di-rect support and smart business solutions topublic and private establishments operatingin Qatar.”

3 SPECIAL REPORT Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Qatar

With its spacious atrium, palatialinterior and five-star comforts the

Al-Ahli Hospital, Qatar’s first major pri-vate hospital, is more like a hotel thanmost people’s idea of a medical cen-ter. Patient-centered care is the mantrahere, but as Abdulwahed Al-Mawlawiexplains, “We don’t call our visitorspatients, we call them guests.”

Mr. Al-Mawlawi, who is the Manag-ing Director of both the hospital andits parent company, Medicare Group,admires and shares the emir’s visionfor a brighter Qatar through advancesin health and education. “We have aleader who is thinking laterally andgoing for quality socio-economicdevelopment,” he says. “He is point-ing the way for Qatar to become theCamelot of the Arab world.”

As Mr. Al-Mawlawi sees it, the Al-Ahli Hospital contributes to the emir’svision by providing services that aresecond to none. He says he wants thehospital to become the Camelot ofhealthcare.“My vision is for it to be thebest-run hospital in the Gulf areawithin the next 3-5 years.”

Providing a wide range of medicaland surgical services, the 250-bed hos-pital, which opened in 2004, is one ofthe largest private medical centers inthe Gulf. The complex consists of threebuildings: the main hospital buildingthat supports all in-patient and out-patient activities, another buildinghousing administration, ophthalmol-ogy, and an ear, nose and throat center,and a nurses' residence.

Since Mr. Al-Mawlawi took up hispost in 2006, he has pushed for morestaff. The number of nurses hasincreased from 35 to 210, while thenumber of doctors has risen from 14 to75; all the doctors are Western qualifiedand almost 90 percent are at consultantlevel. The number of departments isalso growing, together with clinicalsupport services and administrativesupport services.

Mr. Al-Mawlawi emphasizes thatgood doctors and nurses are notenough to make a great hospital.“Obviously, we have to take care of theclinical aspects, but what is important isthe underlying core philosophy,” hesays. Ultimately, he would like to see theAl-Ahli become a teaching hospital.

Since he returned to the State ofQatar from Dubai, Mr. Al-Mawlawi hasnoticed a fundamental change in theapproach to medical services. “Therehas been a paradigm shift,” he says.“Everyone is moving towards excel-lence and the best services. The aim isto serve the people who live in Qatar byproviding the highest levels of healthcare.”

Recognition of the progress made bythe Al-Ahli itself came recently whenthe hospital was presented with theInternational Gold Star award for Qual-ity in Geneva by the international orga-nization Business Initiative Decisions.

Mr. Al-Mawlawi’s ambitions for thehospital extend beyond the borders ofthe State of Qatar. The aim is to becomea regional center of excellence, deliv-ering the best care in the best envi-ronment. “If you want to be a tophospital, it is not enough to serve amillion and a half residents in Qatar.One has to think regional and thenglobal.” The establishment of relation-ships with medical centers in othercountries is already being explored.

“We are concentrating on the hospitalstrategically because it is at present thecore of Medicare Group, but Medicarehas many other plans for the future,”adds Mr. Al-Mawlawi.

Architecturally distinctive, with anundulating canopy that traversesthe site, Qatar Science and Tech-nology Park (QSTP) is intended toproduce waves of technological

development and enterprise that ripple throughthe national economy.

Established as part of Qatar Foundation, thepark has been designed as a home for inter-national technology companies and an incu-

bator of start-up technology businesses. Lo-cated at Doha’s Education City, with easy ac-cess to leading academic research institutions,and declared a free trade zone—one of theState of Qatar’s first—QSTP offers an ideal en-vironment for companies to develop and com-mercialize their technology.

The research that takes place there will befocused on areas of key importance to the econ-omy, such as gas and petrochemicals, health-

Science & technology. On the cutting edge

New Qatari technology park seeks tobecome the laboratory of the GulfBecoming operational this year, the Qatar Science and Technology Park will advance development of a knowledge economy,

and offer local and international companies an ideal environment for research, innovation and entrepreneurship

Making waves The distinctive undulating shape of the canopy at the entrance to the emerging technology center, QSTP’s incubator for start-up technology businesses.

Center to supportmultiple disciplines

Due to open on the Education City cam-pus towards the end of 2010, the brand

new Sidra Medical and Research Center hasbeen designed by the world-renowned firm ofPelli Clarke Pelli as an architectural landmark,a strikingly modern combination of steel,glass and white ceramic tile.

Natural light will flood through three tow-ering atriums, and, when not in their spa-cious and comfortable rooms, patients will beable to get some air in indoor “healing gar-dens”. A comprehensive art collection willadorn the walls.

But there will be much more to Sidra thana unique and beautiful building. The hugelyambitious project–launched in 2004 with amega US$7.9 billion endowment from theQatar Foundation—is intended as a flagshipfor the State of Qatar’s health sector.

Based on the North American model, it willbe the first academic, medical and researchcenter in the region. In addition to providingthe highest international standards of health-care both for Qataris and for people from theregion, it will build scientific expertise in areassuch as stem cells and genomics. Within fiveyears it is expected to be competing with thebest research centers in the world.

Daniel Bergin, Executive Project Director ofSidra Medical and Research Center, describesthe facility as “an integrated mix of research,top-quality medical education and top qual-ity clinical care together”. He says, “We will bea strong research-based organization. Thisis what will make us different from mostother hospitals in the region, in that we willhave a process of continuous improvementthat is strongly backed by research programswhich will ultimately improve the clinicaloutcomes for the people in our care.”

Housed within the remarkable buildingwill be hospital sections for mixed adults,women and children, and a biomedical re-search center. The initial 380 beds will laterbe increased to 550 beds. The 2,000 staffwill include top physicians and scientists

from around the world. The technology andequipment at the all-digital facility will bestate-of-the-art.

Location within Qatar’s Education Citywill give Sidra proximity to a range of pres-tigious medical teaching and research insti-tutions, as well as to Qatar Science and Tech-nology Park. Sidra will be affiliated with WeillCornell Medical College, which has a branchcampus there, and will be responsible for theclinical teaching. The college, which has al-ready started training students in EducationCity, will be closely involved in the researchat the center. Sidra will also work on researchprograms with Hamad Medical Corporation,Qatar’s chief healthcare provider.

Care will be taken to complement servicesat other hospitals, although there will besome overlap. Sidra aims to handle half thebirths in the country, for example.

Healthcare will be provided for people fromneighboring countries, as well as Qataris. “Itwas always envisaged that Sidra would be es-tablished for the benefit of the whole region,”says Mr. Bergin. Indeed, he explains, the hos-pital will need to have referrals from outsideQatar’s borders so that it receives enough pa-tients to justify providing high-end complexservices, such as organ transplants. “We willneed those patient volumes to ensure we havea comprehensive quality service.”

Cisco emerges as key IT partner

The Camelot of the ArabWorldThe Managing Director of oneof the State of Qatar’s bestprivate hospitals tells how hisinstitution shares the emir’svision of regional excellence

Sidar Medical and Research Center will be a flagship for the health sector.

Cisco will investUS$40 million ina research and

technologycenter over thenext three years

care, information and communication technolo-gies, water technologies, the environment andaircraft operations.

Some $300 million has been spent on the firstphase, which comes into operation this year, andwhich includes an emerging technology center tofoster small firms and start-ups, and two inno-vation and technology transfer centers, designedto accommodate medium and large companies.Next year will see the establishment of a nation-al data center, the first of its kind outside the Unit-ed States.

QSTP’s world-class, purpose-built offices andlaboratories are in close proximity to the region’sleading universities, including the campuses of ma-jor international institutions such asCarnegie Mellon University, Texas A&MUniversity and Weill Cornell MedicalCollege.

Intended to become an internation-al hub for cutting edge technologicaldevelopment, QSTP aims to attract in-ternational research and developmentcompanies, and to promote exchanges of infor-mation to boost local and regional healthcaretechnology, life sciences and research and devel-opment.

The 300-acre free zone is open to 100 percentforeign-owned companies, who are able to op-erate on the site without paying tax or duties. Al-ready signed as tenants are EADS, ExxonMobil,GE, Microsoft, Rolls-Royce, Shell and Total, all ofwhich have been committed to the project fromits inception.

“The science park has achieved much over thepast few years, growing from just an idea into afirst-class facility with commitment from some ofthe world’s top companies,” says QSTP ChairmanTidu Maini. “Now, we face a fresh set of chal-lenges: connecting QSTP with the global sciencecommunity, ramping up corporate research pro-jects and growing local technology enterprises. Weare proud of the opportunity to contribute to Qatar’svision for a knowledge economy. And with theongoing support of our partners and colleagues,we are confident of success.”

Success will depend on QSTP attracting fur-ther companies to lease facilities or commissiontheir own buildings there. Dr. Maini says this willrequire more than incentives and infrastructure,but believes Qatar’s clear vision of what it wantsto achieve gives it an advantage over similar pro-jects elsewhere. “We have a very clearly articulat-ed strategy, stating the things that we want todo,” he says.

Research is key to advance in all three primeareas of importance to the future of Qatar andthe building of a knowledge-based economy. Inthe field of energy, focus will be on oil and gastechnologies and the development of renewablesources of energy such as solar power. Qatar Pe-

troleum (QP), the national oil and gascorporation, is establishing a researchcentre at QSTP later this year. Initial-ly, it will address upstream oil and gasoperations, carbonate reservoir researchand the environment.

In the environmental field, chal-lenges that will be addressed at QSTP

will include CO2 emissions and desalination. Inthe area of health, there is particular interest ingenerating research and technology to combatprevalent regional diseases such as diabetes, car-diovascular problems, high blood pressure andgenetic blood disorders.

In January, the Scientific Medical Applied Re-search and Development Company (Smard) an-nounced its launch at QSTP as Qatar’s firstbiotechnology and medical research company.Smard will be investing several million dollarsin developing diagnostic tools and treatmentsfor diseases. Also due to open this year is a ro-botic surgery training center, set up with Im-perial College, London, which will demonstratelimited-invasive surgical techniques.

“We are pushing the frontiers and encour-aging people to work in those areas by pro-viding adequate funding and setting up thebest facilities in the world,” says Dr. Maini.“We are creating a bio bank and a genomicsinstitute. We will also be providing for thestudy of proteins.”

Al-Ahli Hospital where treatment iscombined with five-star comfort.

Research will be focused

on areas that are of key

importance tothe economy

A bedroom in the new Sidra Medical andResearch Center.

Beijing in 2008. London in2012. Doha in 2016? If theInternational OlympicCommittee (IOC) were tochoose Qatar to host the

Games of the XXXI Olympiad, it wouldset the seal on the emir’s strategy topush the State of Qatar to the fore-front of the sporting world.

The capital of the tiny Arab state isone of seven cities bidding to stagethe Games, and finds itself up againstsome formidable opposition candi-dates: Chicago (U.S.), Prague (CzechRepublic), Tokyo (Japan), Rio de Janeiro(Brazil), Baku (Azerbaijan) and Madrid(Spain). The first hurdle comes in Junewhen a shortlist will be issued, withthe final selection being made by thefull IOC membership in Copenhagen,Denmark, in October 2009.

Qatar's heir apparent, Sheikh Tamimbin Hamad Al Thani, officially launchedthe bid for the 2016 Olympic and Par-alympic Games in a spectacular cer-emony on Doha Corniche street lastOctober.

Leading the bid is businessman Has-san Ali Bin Ali, supported by a team ofinternational consultants.He believes there is everychance of success, not leastbecause it would bring theOlympic flame to the Arabspeaking world for the firsttime. “We are confident thatwe can present the grand-est Olympic Games till now,”he says. “Awarding the Games to Do-ha could, through sport, create hope,understanding and produce a changethat would unite the entire region withthe rest of the world.”

Doha has already demonstrated itsability to host big-ticket sportingevents with its staging of the highlysuccessful 2006 Asian Games, the sec-ond largest multi-sport event in theworld. The Games were described bysome commentators as the best ever.

Doha has also been chosen as thevenue for the 2011 Indoor Asian Gamesand to host the 2011Asia Cup soccertournament.

Doha spent $2.8 billion on the2006 Asian Games, providing a sportsinfrastructure capable of staging al-most any international event. As aresult, it has been left with a legacyof state-of-the-art sporting venues.Its Sports City complex, distinguishedby Qatar’s tallest building, the AspireTower, includes the Khalifa Interna-tional Stadium, with seating for50,000 spectators, the Aspire Acad-emy (see article, below) and theHamad Aquatic Center. “Our stadi-ums are among the best in the world—two of them ranked among the topthree in a global contest organized bythe International Association for SportsLeisure Facilities, sponsored by theIOC,” says Mr. Hassan.

If the Games were to come to thecity, they would be held mostly in ex-isting venues. However, as part of itsbid, Doha proposes to build the world’smost advanced paralympic sport sta-dium. A velodrome (for cycling) and astadium for baseball will be built, andthe capacity of the Khalifa Stadium in-creased to 60,000. A new 12,000-seatcenter court will be created for the Khal-ifa Tennis Center, and other venues willalso be upgraded. A 67-hectareOlympic Village is to be built, formedin the shape of a dove, and capableof housing 18,000 people. Work onthese schemes will go ahead regard-

less of whether Doha isawarded the Games.

Indeed, construction hasalready started on work onan all-weather undergroundstadium—the world’s first—which will be used formatches during the 2011Asian Cup soccer tourna-

ment. The cost is put at more thanUS$20 million.

The bid organizers say a DohaOlympics would be highly compact,and carbon neutral. The Games wouldbe held in the second half of October2016, when temperatures and humid-ity are lower, and before the high touristseason when hotels would be better ableto cope with the influx of spectators.

Qatar is already firmly establishedon the international sporting map as

the venue for a wide-ranging selec-tion of world-class events, from golf,tennis, fencing and equestrianism tomotorcycle and powerboat racing.

Now in its 11th year, the Commer-cialbank Qatar Masters Golf Tourna-ment is part of the European PGA Tour,attracting some of the world’s leadingplayers and some 20,000 spectators. Thespectacular course, set against a desertbackdrop, is one of the longest on thetour. Australian Adam Scott, who wonthe event in January, walked away witha cool $450,000 of this year’s record$2.5 million prize money.

The Khalifa Tennis Complex is thevenue for the ATP and WTA tour event,also held in January. British tennis starAndy Murray triumphed in the QatarExxonMobil Open this year, while MariaSharapova won the Qatar Total Open.Previous winners have included RogerFederer, Boris Becker and Stefan Ed-berg in the men’s competition, andJustine Henin, Monica Selles and AmelieMaresmo in the women’s contest.

International motorcycle racing isin its fifth year in Qatar. The Com-mercialbank Grand Prix, held in Marchon Qatar’s 5.3 kilometer Losail Inter-

Qatar has committed itself to becoming a world-

class sporting venue. As preparations are already under

way to host the 2016 Olympic Games,the dream could

soon become reality

Doha: bidding for sporting glorySports. Already a top sporting destination, Doha is competing to host the Olympics

The Khalifa International Stadim was the main venue for the 2006 Asian Games and Qatari officials hope it will host the 2016 Olympic Games.

Amilestone in Qatar’s evolution intoa sporting nation was the opening

in 2005 of the visionary Academy forSports Excellence (Aspire) in Doha. TheAspire stadium in Doha is the largestindoor facility of its kind in the world.

Designed by French architect RogerTaillibert, who built the Olympic Stadi-um in Montreal, Canada, the state-of-the-art domed steel structure housesan Olympic-sized swimming pool anddiving area, a 200-meter athletics track,a gymnastics hall, a games hall, a full-sized soccer field and a five-a-side pitch,11 tennis courts, 13 table tennis courts,eight fencing strips, two squash courtsand a judo and karate studio.

Built in time to be used as a venuefor the 2006 Asian games, its purposeis to serve as an elite institute for thedevelopment of sporting excellence.In a relatively short time, it has be-come recognized as a world-classsporting academy.

Through its comprehensive sports ed-ucation program, it offers advancedtraining in sports ranging from athlet-ics and soccer to sailing, squash and tabletennis. The aim is to discover and de-velop the sporting talent of the futureand to instill sport as a way of life forQataris.

The academy provides a comprehen-sive learning environment. In additionto the sporting facilities, there are lec-ture halls, classrooms, science labora-tories, dormitories, a library, an am-phitheater and a medical center.

“Our vision is to discover the bestyoung sporting talent from the region,and transform them into world-renowned champions. This will in turngenerate a sports culture in Qatar, whereeach generation of athletes inspires the

next,” says Thomas Flock, Aspire’s for-mer Director General.

Aspire conducts an annual search forstudents with strong athletic potential,visiting schools across the state of Qatarwith its Talent Identification Program.The academy has also opened talentcenters run with the cooperation of lo-cal schools outside the capital city.

Hazam Anabtawi, Aspire’s Sports Co-ordinator, says, “Our approach to max-imizing the health and fitness of chil-dren in Qatar is all-inclusive. By creat-ing talent centers outside of Doha wehope to bring sporting activity to theheart of even more young people’s lives.”

Nor is Aspire’s mission to developsporting ability limited to Qataris. Theacademy attracts young athletes fromall corners of the world, with scholar-ships and grants available to athletes indeveloping countries.

Last year, 430,000 young soccer play-ers competed in seven African countriesfor a chance to train at the academy.The ASPIRE Africa Football Dreams pro-ject, the world’s largest soccer talentsearch, which is being repeated this year,is backed by Bonus Sports Marketing andNike and is supported by the UnitedNations Office of Sport for Develop-ment and Peace.

A starting block for a newgeneration of athletes

When the 8-year-old racing stallion Dahesswas put up for auction at the Arqana Arab

Sale in France last September, the result wasa runaway winner for the Prime Minister ofQatar, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Khalifa Al-Thani.The champion horse, owned by the Sheikh, soldfor the equivalent in euros of a record $1.4million.

The Gulf region has a strong tradition ofequestrianism and Arabian horses are, of course,famous all over the world for their strength andbeauty. Qatar is a major center of internation-al Arabian breeding, so it comes as no greatsurprise to find that the ruling family are pas-sionate about horses. The emir himself ownsthe Al Shaqab Stable, which is home to someof the finest Arabian horses in the world, whileSheikh Abdulaziz Bin Khalifa Al-Thani ownsthe premier Umm Qarn and Al Rayyan studfarms, and combines his prime ministerial du-ties with being president of Qatar Racing andEquestrian Club.

In addition to national and regional eques-trian events, Qatar hosts a number of impor-tant international competitions, including con-tests sponsored by the Federation EquestreInternational (FEI), the worldwide governingbody for equestrian sports recognized by theInternational Olympic Committee. Doha evenheld one of the Olympic qualifying events forBeijing 2008. The State of Qatar is also puttingitself in the spotlight by sponsoring premierracing events in Europe.

Already recognized for the quality of its Ara-bian horseracing, Qatar is implementing an am-bitious development for thoroughbred racing.New equestrian venues are being built to hostlarge-scale events and encourage local talent.

The biggest events of the equestrian yearare hosted by the Qatar Racing and Eques-

trian Club (QREC), which has successfully pop-ularized and raised the quality of racing andequestrian events. The Qatar InternationalEquestrian Festival, which is staged annuallyby the QREC, under the patronage of the emir,has grown in size and prestige over the yearsand attracts spectators and trainers from allover the world. More than 150 horses wereon show at the three-day event in February.

The emir´s Trophies and Sword Festival, heldin the last week of March every year, is a show-case for the best thoroughbreds and pure Ara-bian horses from the leading stud farms inQatar and the UAE. No gambling is allowed,but the emir’s Sword Race is the highest prizemoney race in the world, with a purse of QR2million ($550,000).

In February it was announced that Qatar willsponsor the prestigious Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe,the highlight of the European equestrian cal-endar, for five years, starting this year. Thepartnership between QREC and France Galopwill see the prize money doubled to 4 million

euros, ($6.3 million), making the Arc the world’srichest race on turf. There will be four racesopen to Arabian horses, including the 350,000euro ($550,000) Qatar Arabian World Cup,which will be the richest Arabian race in theworld.

“This partnership provides us with an op-portunity to associate the most prestigiousrace in the world with Qatar, which is the mostdynamic country in the Gulf for sport com-petitions,” says Sami Jassim Al-Boenain, QREC’sGeneral Manager. Qatar will also be sponsor-ing a full day’s racing at Lingfield racecoursein the U.K. in August. Last year QREC spon-sored a race for Arabian horses in Hamburg.

Meanwhile, QREC is expanding its facilitiesin Doha. It already has a new racetrack, in usesince 2003. Now it is building new stables tocater to the increasing numbers of new own-ers, and considering building another racetrack.Says Mr. Al-Boenain, “We are looking at pro-moting more races for thoroughbreds, as wellas for Arabian horses.”

Coming up fast to lead the fieldHigh profile, high prize competitionsare putting Qatar in the spotlight as the host and sponsor of world-classequestrian events

The capital hasdemonstrated its ability tostage major

events, includingthe 2006 Asian

Games

A passion for horses is shared by the royal family, which owns several stud farms.

Aspire helps soccer players succeed.

Wednesday, May 7, 2008 SPECIAL REPORT 4

Qatar

national Circuit, was the openinground of the 2008 FIM World Mo-torcycle Speedway Grand Prix series.It was also a landmark event as, in or-der to suit European television sched-ules, it was the first to be staged atnight, requiring the biggest-ever light-ing project for a sporting event.

Inevitably, the next world sportingattraction that Qatar has its eye on isFormula One. Steps are already beingtaken to massively upgrade the Losailtrack so that it meets the requiredstandard for the likes of last year’s win-ners, Kimi Räikkönen, Lewis Hamilton

and Fernando Alonso, to race on. In March, Doha hosted the Gym-

nastics World Cup Series for the firsttime, staging the Artistic GymnasticsWorld Cup Series at the Aspire Acad-emy. Other sports for which interna-tional sporting events are staged inQatar include table tennis, powerboatracing, fencing and bowling.

Soccer is a growing national pas-sion and Qatar boasts state-of-the-art stadiums and training facilities.National pride surged when the Qatariteam won the gold medal in the 2006Asian Games.

Turmoil in the troubled U.S. real es-tate markets promises a bonanza

for one well-capitalized and ambitiousdevelopment company in Qatar.

Qatari Diar, a government-ownedreal estate investment company setup in 2004 to coordinate the coun-try’s burgeoning real estate devel-opments, is eyeing opportunities inthe U.S. as fallout from the sub-prime crisis pushes prices down totempting levels. Already present in18 countries, the company expectsto make its move in the U.S. mar-ket within “six to eight months”,according to Chief Financial OfficerPatrick Chenel.

Qatari Diar is no stranger to big

real estate deals in the West. It is al-ready part of a consortium financ-ing the $2.5 billion acquisition ofChelsea Barracks in London, andplans more purchases in the UK asthe market drops further. It is alsoa weighty regional player, spear-heading a five-year, $12 billion Qataripush into Syria with a $350 milliontourist development on the coastand a $3-4 billion plan for down-town Damascus, the capital.

In the State of Qatar itself, QatariDiar is behind the giant Lusail pro-ject, being constructed just north ofDoha. The development will coveran area of 13.5 square miles and,when it is complete, will become a

city in its own right—accommodat-ing up to 200,000 people in a high-ly planned, multi-zoned area.

Made up of 18 different areas,Lusail will include an entertainmentdistrict with themed attractions basedon world resorts such as Las Vegas;a natural reserve and parkland, theultra high-end Lusail Boulevard shop-ping district; a district devoted togolf, and two separate waterfront dis-tricts, split between residential andcommercial use. A large blue waterlagoon will feature two marinas.

“One of the main goals of gov-ernment is to establish long-termstrategies to help Qatar’s economyto diversify,” notes Sheikh Hamad bin

Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani, Qatari Di-ar’s Chairman.

Nonetheless, the Lusail projectmust cater for the sector that stillprovides 60 percent of the nation’sGDP and more than 70 percent ofgovernment revenues–oil and gas.To this end, one of the key districtsof the development will be EnergyCity—a business hub that will caterto the commercial, technical andhuman resources needs of the oil andgas industry operating in the re-gion. The city’s free-trade zone sta-tus will allow companies to sidestepthe normal conditions of Qatar spon-sorship and enjoy full autonomy,while high-tech infrastructure, suchas an electronic energy-trading plat-form, promises to cut costs and im-prove efficiencies.

But it is the luxury residential mar-ket that will make Lusail a success.Demand for real estate is such thatthe marina district—which was puton the market at the same time asthe Lusail project was announced—sold out within four days. Betterstill, the first day of the sale of thedevelopment’s Fox Hill district, whichis designed to resemble parts of SanFrancisco, saw $1 billion worth ofrealty sell out within four hours, withprices for plots ranging from $1.65million to $6.87 million.

“Fox Hills will compete on a glob-al scale through its commitment toquality delivery of world-class designand best practice professional man-agement that will ensure its value andviability as an investment over thelong term,” says Nasser Hassan Al-Ansari, Chairman of Qatari Diar Syr-ia. “The scope and mix of Lusail can-not be found anywhere else in Qatar.”

A city of the future

As one of Qatar’s foremost, in-novative real estate conglomer-

ates, the Barwa Real Estate Compa-ny is involved in the creation, devel-opment and management of majorreal estate projects and investmentsboth in Qatar and abroad.

On-going developments currentlybeing undertaken by the company in-clude the Al Khor development on

Qatar’s northeastern coast, the Bar-wa City residential scheme and theBarwa Financial District, a new re-gional and financial hub for Doha.

The Al Khor project will comprise24,000 residential units, 700,000square meters of commercial andretail complex, civic buildings, publicplazas, green space, a beachfront,and extensive high-end hotels.

In addition to high-profile projectssuch as these, Barwa also provideshousing that caters to the needs oflow-income earners including publichousing and compounds for work-ers. One of the company’s latest pro-jects is the Al Baraha developmentin Doha’s industrial area, which willinclude residences and recreationalfacilities.

The project, designed to improveliving conditions for Qatar’s massivetemporary foreign labor force, willinclude a number of amenities unseenin the so-called “man camps” that dotthe Gulf. Used car showrooms, shop-ping malls, multiplex movie theatres,cricket and soccer fields, medical cen-ters and a mosque have all beenincorporated into the master plan.

"Barwa's vision for the manpowerof this economy is to construct livingquarters which are not only com-fortable but also make you feel athome… we genuinely believe that it'sthe least we can do to help thosewho are building our nation to restand relax,” said Barwa ChairmanGhanim Saad Al Saad.

While the developments for therich are inevitably the most presti-gious, the company insists on qualityaccommodation and facilities at alllevels. “By catering to the wholespectrum, we feel we are building forthe nation,” says Yousef Alhorr,deputy CEO at Barwa group.

The restructuring of Barwa’s in-ternational arm as an independentcompany has led to a clear devel-opment strategy, combining real es-tate ownership and mega develop-ment projects, such as the proposed

$3.88 billion Shard of Glass, one ofLondon’s most high profile schemes,and the Paris Convention Center,which it sold in a reported $710 mil-lion deal last year.

The company operates in Easternas well as Western Europe, Russia,North Africa and the Middle East.India is next on its list and it is alsolooking at China. According to Ghas-san Al-Binali, CEO of Barwa Inter-national, the company is ‘keeping aneye’ on the U.S., and might consid-er a project there in two or threeyears time.

Barwa has been maintianing itsinternational profile by investing inmotor sport, sponsoring the AdrianCampos Grand Prix team for the 2008GP2 Asia Series. “The coverage in thesports media was great,” says Mr. Al-horr. “We have signed a three-yearcontract in the car racing business.”

Barwa Real Estate Company’s projects add innovation and quality at both ends of the housing market

Luisail. Developer Qatari Diar’s biggest project will be a city in its own right, housing 200,000 people

Developing across the boardBarwa Real Estate Company´s

Barwa Internationalspreads development

expertise oveseas

The Lusail development will comprise 18 different districts.

Barwa’s U® Street, designed by Phillipe Starck, representsa new concept in shopping.

Barwa AL Doha will cater to high net worth individuals, offering a rage ofbenefits—from cinemas to immaculate landscaping.

The master plan for Barwa Al Baraha includes lifestyle amenities such as the shopping center pictured above

5 SPECIAL REPORT Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Qatar

Barwa International, the group’s over-seas entity, has embarked on a num-

ber of headline grabbing projects inEurope and beyond. While glamorouslocations like London, Paris and Switzer-land garner media attention, smaller,lower-profile projects dot Eastern Eu-rope, the Mediterranean and emergingAsia and Africa.

“When we look for a new market,we mainly look for a project that wecan really deliver… projects that wecan develop on the long-term,” saysGhassan Albinali, Barwa Interna-tional’s CEO. “We are in the long-term business, which for us meansmore than five years.”

Barwa Interna-tional’s reputationas a long-termplayer in fact spansfour decades—enough time forthe group toamass over $20billion in assetsboth insider andoutside Qatar—and the groupprides itself on areputation for ex-celling in the post-delivery phase.

One recent pro-ject of note in-cludes a flagshipLondon property.Barwa Interna-tional leads a con-sortium of backers developing LondonBridge Tower, also known as “The Shardof Glass,” a super-tall skyscraper slat-ed to be the tallest high-rise in the Eu-ropean Union and, once completed,the British capital’s most recognizablecommercial property. Although no of-ficial announcements have been made,the London skyscraper will most likelybe the one of many future UK invest-ments.

Barwa’s expansive business model,with roots that spread from Sudan tothe Alps, remains part of a broader vi-sion—that of the State of Qatar itself.

In Egypt, Barwa International willbuild shopping malls and residencesas part of the New Cairo City project.The company has celebrated ground-breakings in Sudan and Algeria. Ex-ploratory meetings have taken placein Montenegro and Bulgaria. The sale

of its Paris Convention Center pro-ject netted over $700 million and lastyear it completed purchase agree-ments on seven luxury hotels in Bel-gium and Switzerland.

“I think we are taking measures topromoting the real value of Qatar andthe real vision of Qatar as a country,”says Al Binali, adding that whereverBarwa goes, they bring Qatari businessvalues with them. “It’s a vision thatlooks at peace and growth beyond itsborders. We believe in the humanity,growth and development.”

That vision is not limited to the east-ern hemisphere. Although the US mar-ket sits distant on the horizon, Barwa

International re-mains active inlooking for Ameri-can partners.

“We are keepingan eye on the USand we’ve come upwith a new struc-ture in Barwa In-ternational,” says AlBinali, referringBarwa Europe andNorth America, anoffice the compa-ny maintains inLondon. The com-ing years could seethat office replicat-ed in New York,Washington DC or“any city where webelieve that having

an office is a must.” As they sprout from the group’s plan-

ning offices around the world, every newproject and partnership further vali-dates Brawa International’s fast mov-ing, global growth. It seems fitting then,that the marketing vehicle chosen torepresent the Barwa International brandwas a racecar. Traveling the Formula OneGP2 circuit, the Barwa International-Campos racing team has delivered pos-itive results, almost matching the speedof their sponsor.

“The coverage from the internation-al sports media has been great, and thesame was achieved here in Qatar. A lotof young guys came here to register forbecoming the Qatari drivers. This wasvery big for us.”

As the racing team circumnavigatesthe globe, so too does Barwa Interna-tional’s development potential.

The past decade has seen tremen-dous growth in air traffic at Doha

International Airport, with a rise fromtwo million to 10 million passengersa year using the overstretched ter-minal. Despite a recent $240 millionrefurbishment project and extensionto ease overcrowding, travelers canstill find some amenities crowdedand a limited choice of catering fa-cilities.

The projected growth in the re-gion’s air traffic means that Dohaneeds a brand new facility with avastly expanded capacity.

Clearly there is a lot is riding onthe New Doha International Airportproject, currently under constructiona few miles away from the existingsite. It will be 12 times the size ofthe old airport—and a massive two-

thirds the size of Doha itself—andcurrently has a total budget estimateof $10 billion.

The first phase, which is due toopen in 2010, is designed to handle24 million passengers a year, as wellas 750,000 metric tons of cargo,while planned later expansion shouldsee capacity rise to more than 50million passengers by 2020. It is al-so the first airport designed specifi-cally to cater to the giant AirbusA380 passenger plane.

It’s a considerable engineering chal-lenge for U.S. construction giantBechtel, which won the contract tobuild the airport, not least because40 percent of the site will be builton land reclaimed from the ArabianGulf. Bechtel is no stranger to giantMiddle East construction projects—

it built Saudi Arabia's King Khalid In-ternational Airport and created the70,000-inhabitant city of Jubail outof a small Gulf fishing village.

Technically, the new terminal willbe state-of-the-art. To conserve en-ergy the curtain walls will be coatedto reduce solar exposure, the roof

Doha’s new international airport slated to be a global hub As the number of visitors and travelers continues to rise,the capital city is to get a brand new gateway

Houston-based energy major Cono-coPhillips has announced plans to

establish a Global Water SustainabilityCenter (WSC) at the Qatar Science andTechnology Park (QSTP) that will ex-amine ways of treating and using by-product water from oil production andrefining operations. The WSC will be ajoint venture with General Electric’sWater and Process Technologies unit.

Water wastage is a big concern inthe oil industry—each barrel of oil cre-ates about three times as much cont-aminated water. Impurities make it un-usable without costly treatment and itis normally re-injected underground, asafe disposal method that that puts itbeyond use. But in the aridGulf region, water is in shortsupply and remains vital togrowth. By investing $25million, ConocoPhillips andGE aim to develop more ef-ficient and cost-effectivetreatment technologies.While the research will di-rectly benefit Qatar's stressed munici-pal, agricultural and industrial water sup-ply, a ripple effect could result in glob-al water sustainability solutions.

“ConocoPhillips has a strong, long-standing relationship with Qatar, andwe have been looking to expand thatrelationship in ways that benefit bothour own operations and the Qatari com-munity,” said J. Mike Stice, presidentof ConocoPhillips Qatar. “The WaterSustainability Center is a landmark fa-cility. We are confident that it will de-velop valuable innovations and willmake a genuine contribution to Qatar’sfuture and water treatment science.”

Proposed uses for water treated at

the center include crop irrigation, live-stock watering, wildlife habitats and in-dustrial cooling, leaving more fresh-water available for domestic use.

Testing technologies as well as pro-duction and management techniqueswill be developed at the new facility,which will become the energy giant'sworldwide hub for water expertise. Thefindings will flow into commercial usethroughout the company's global op-erations network, with additional ben-efits for local government and indus-trial partners. About 75 percent of theWSC’s work will focus on the petrole-um sector and the remaining capabil-ities will directly target local needs.

“GE’s leading-edge tech-nologies in chemicals, equip-ment and advanced mem-branes, coupled with Cono-coPhillips’ industrial applica-tions, will help us achieve thisgoal,” Stice added.

“Water sustainability is vi-tal for Qatar and the Middle

East, and central to QSTP’s strategy ofdeveloping key technologies demand-ed by the local community,” said Dr.Tidu Maini, executive chairman at QSTP.“I am very pleased to see ConocoPhillipsand GE join forces to advance researchin this field. This is a great example ofthe vibrant collaboration that QTSP isdesigned to foster.”

ConocoPhillips is a major participantin Qatar’s oil and gas industry and isthe key foreign partner in the Qatar-gas 3 project, a 25-year liquefied nat-ural gas (LNG) undertaking to servicethe U.S. market. Expected to come on-line next year, a 7.8 million ton annu-al LNG yield will begin shipping in 2009.

U.S. group tackles globalwater sustainability

Gas set to overtake oilas contributor to GDP

ConocoPhillips is to invest $25million to find

ways of treatingcontaminatedwaste water

Wednesday, May 7, 2008 SPECIAL REPORT 6

Qatar

overhang will provide shade and theroof is insulated. The mechanical sys-tems include CO2 sensors to regulateair intake based on occupancy, whilethe electrical system has daylightmonitoring and occupancy sensors.The external landscaping uses desert-adopted species and irrigation waterfrom recycled waste water.

The architectural style at the newDoha airport will also be ground-breaking. At nearly 3.8 million squarefeet, the main passenger terminalwill be the largest building in Qatarand will feature a striking wave-likeroof structure.

The terminal will be accessed viaroadways through a man-made la-goon that reflects the site’s bay set-ting, while more water features in-side the building, coupled with un-dulating steel supports, extend thetheme. The nautical design extendsto the private emiri terminal within

the main complex, whose exteriorresembles sailboats. In contrast, the275 foot high control tower will becrescent-shaped.

The airport’s facilities will also begreatly enhanced. The first phasewill have 40 passenger gates, and theairport will have two runways, amaintenance hangar, a cargo centerand extensive shopping facilities. Thepassenger terminal is designed sothat all passenger transfers can oc-cur under one roof, with short walk-ing distances between gates andshorter connection times betweenflights.

The terminal will also have a 100-room transit hotel with health andentertainment facilities. Passengers’spiritual needs will be catered to bya 20,000 square foot airport mosque,located in a garden plaza on thesouth side of the main passenger ter-minal.

The first phase of the New Doha International Airport is due to open in 2010.

anchor tenant, National PetroleumServices has purchased a plot to buildits new regional headquarters, andnegotiations are under way with oth-ers. Completion of the first phase ofthe development is scheduled for 2009.

Qatar is also pursuing a policy ofdeveloping global relationships tobreak away from simple extractionand add value to the sector. Qatar Pe-troleum has now created an externalarm, Qatar Petroleum International,whose remit is to invest in both up-stream and downstreamglobal petroleum projectsand forge links with multi-national companies.

Last year saw a deal withOccidental Petroleum to builda $7 billion refinery in Pana-ma, opening up Latin America for thefirst time and providing refining capac-ity of 350,000 barrels per day (bpd).

On the gas side, QP will work withExxonMobil in Qatar’s Barzan gas pro-ject, and has also taken a stake in liq-uefied natural gas (LNG) receiving/re-gasification terminals in Europe andthe U.S. The company plans to raiseits game throughout the supply chain,include shipping and terminals. Qatar’sLNG fleet is considered to be some ofthe most technologically advanced inthe industry.

RasGas, a joint-venture between QPand ExxonMobil is greatly expandingits global LNG supply beginning this

year, with the development of its Train6 production facility to ramp up sup-ply to the U.S. over the next 25 years,and in 2009 to Asia with the start-upof Train 7.

Under the banner ‘The Energy toTransform’, RasGas has committedfunds to a wide range of educational,medical, cultural and environmentalinitiatives, including a long-term part-nership with emergency relief charityQatar Red Crescent.

It is also celebrating a remarkablesafety record. Its RasGas Alpha rig wasdesigned and constructed after the re-

lease of safety recommen-dations from the 1988 PiperAlpha disaster. The rig hasnever had a lost time inci-dent (LTI) through seriousinjury since commencingoperations in 1998.

Other developments include a quan-tum leap in the production of oil in-dustry byproducts in the shape of fer-tilizer. QAFCO, the Qatar FertilizerCompany, was one of the first newindustries in Qatar, utilizing waste gasfrom crude oil production to createfertilizers.

While it is now the world’s largestsingle site producer of urea andammonia, with an annual produc-tion capacity of two million met-ric tons each, the construction ofa fifth production train—QAFCO-5—will boost production to 3,500 met-ric tons a day when it is complet-ed in 2010.

Continued from page 1

Internationallinks are beingsought to addvalue to the

sector

The Venetians started it, es-tablishing one of the mostbeautiful cities in the worldon man-made islands inthe lagoon. Today, oil-rich

Arabian states like Qatar and Dubaiare following their example, reclaim-ing land from the waters of the Ara-bian Gulf to create exclusive Riviera-style island communities defined bywealth and elegance.

The Pearl-Qatar is one of the mostambitious real estate projects in theworld, priced at $20 billion. Cur-rently under construction off thecoast of Doha it will eventually behome to 42,000 people and up to800 visitors.

Those fortunate and wealthyenough to live in the Pearl’s glam-orous penthouses, apartments, townhouses and villas will enjoy a luxu-rious waterfront lifestyle basedaround three marinas, almost half amillion square feet of retail, diningand entertainment space, and mileupon mile of pristine beaches.Schools and medical centers will beprovided, making it quite possibleto live on the island without everleaving it.

One of the most technologicallyadvanced real estate developmentsin the world, the Pearl will be a“smart” island where residents willhave access to everything from smart-card system technology to user-friendly home entertainment sys-tems and broadbandwireless internet acrossthe island. No noisygarbage trucks will dis-turb their early morningslumbers; a fully auto-mated vacuum waste dis-posal system will add tothe convenience.

The island is also intended to be-come a major cultural center, andset out its stall in February by invit-ing world-famous opera star PlacidoDomingo to perform to an audienceof 3,500, including celebrities anddignitaries from the region.

In addition to its manifold at-tractions, the Pearl is Qatar’s firstinternational real estate develop-ment and one of the first in Qatarto offer freehold to international in-vestors. There has been no lack ofinterest. Indeed, investors have beenso eager to snap up property on the

island that one entire district, theQanat Quartier, was sold within anhour when it was launched in Jan-uary, grossing $405 million in just60 minutes.

Among those buying property werethe architects of the precinct, Andre

Lategan and his wife Re-becca Gernon, who flew toQatar specifically for thelaunch.

A hugely challengingproject, the Pearl is com-prised entirely of reclaimedland—a total of 4 million

square meters—and is being built instages. The owner and developer isthe United Development Company(UDC), one of the leading publicshareholding companies in Qatar.UDC raised a total of $600 millionof equity commitments and com-mitted financing to invest in theQanat Quartier, which was launchedunder the banner “Venice is now inQatar”. Guests at the launch weretold that the company aims to build“a precinct akin to the finest Euro-pean cities and to the city of Venicewith its water canals and Italian ar-chitecture.”

Explaining the thinking behindthe Pearl project, Khalil Al-Sholy,UDC’s Managing Director and Pres-ident, explains, “As the country growsits infrastructure has to grow withit. The vision of the emir is to openup the country and to make Qatara destination of choice to come hereand enjoy a vacation, do businessor just for an exploration trip.”

He continues, “These factors, cou-pled with the high-caliber profes-sionals that will be coming to Qatar—whether in education or medical fa-cilities or financial institutions—re-quire that you provide the best fa-cilities for obtaining the highestquality of life. The Pearl Island wasthe product that we thought wouldfit achieving this aspect the most.”

The other projects where non-Qatari nationals are allowed to buyproperties are the West Bay Lagoonand the Al Khor beach developmentbeing developed by Barwa Real Es-tate Company (see article, right), andthe Lagoon Plaza projects.

The real estate sector is boomingin Qatar, as just a glance at the rapid-ly changing skyline of Doha testi-fies. The capital city bristles withcranes as the construction industrystruggles to keep pace with demand.

Rentals have tripled in the past sixyears, and yields are excellent. Themarket for both residential and com-mercial property has been soaringand is expected to remain high forat least the next five years. Demandfor housing is up by 27 percent inthe last year, the vacancy level in theoffice market is just one percent andhotels report high occupancy ratesof 70 percent.

Meanwhile, the construction in-dustry is having a field day. Hugeprojects are in the pipeline, as theState of Qatar seeks to encourageinward foreign investment and cre-ate a knowledge-based economy.

Skyscrapers reach for the clouds, islands rise from the sea and partnerships cross

frontiers as Qatar’s real estate market booms. Demand for commercial and

residential properties remains high thanks to new laws favoring foreign investment

Pearl project:major milestone

Real Estate. High-profile projects abound in the State of Qatar

Glamorous real estate projects like The Pearl-Qatar, above, have caught the eye of international investors as a major luxury destination.

Investors wereso eager that awhole districtwas bought upwithin a hour of

its launch