Author: OBG Admin

The Qatar Financial Centre offers wide-ranging incentives for investors

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) was established in 2005 with the ambitious aim to attract financial institutions and multinationals to establish businesses in international banking, financial services, insurance, corporate head office functions and related services. Consistent with Qatar’s drive to diversify its economy, the QFC has now opened its doors to include a range of professional business-to-business services. The QFC Authority is the commercial and strategic arm of the QFC that processes licence applications for entities seeking to carry out permitted non-regulated activities in and from the QFC. Its counterpart, the QFC Regulatory Authority is the independent regulator responsible for authorising businesses that are

Tax regulations in Qatar

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  The current tax rules in Qatar are governed by Law No. 21 of 2009, which came into force with effect from January 1, 2010. The executive regulations, effective from July 1, 2011, contain the detailed rules related to the administration of the tax regime. The Public Revenues and Taxes Department (PRTD) also issues circulars from time to time to provide guidance on the interpretation of provisions in the Qatar tax law and its application in practice. ELECTRONIC TAX ADMINISTRATION: The Qatar Ministry of Finance has launched a new online tax administration system (TAS) to “modernise and transform tax administration functions”. TAS is accessible through

Sheikh Ahmad Duaij Jaber Al Sabah-Chairman-Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Qatar passes laws regarding procurement of building materials

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  Buoyed by strategic government investment and a stable business environment, Qatar is perhaps the fastestgrowing construction and infrastructure market in the GCC. For example, it is estimated that Qatar’s infrastructure spend alone will reach $150bn over the next decade through investments in roads, railways, stadiums, hotels, a deep-water seaport – and even a new, ambitious planned city, Lusail. With so many different projects anticipated in the run-up to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, as well as associated with Qatar National Vision 2030, building material availability and the potential for inflation of key commodities is a concern. The country’s local procurement policies ensure contractors source

Nhon Luc Ly-CEO-AIA Myanmar; Son Nguyen-Country President-Chubb Life Insurance Myanmar; Daw Zarchi Tin-CEO

New economic zones in Qatar attract investment and develop local talent

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

In line with Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030) goals to boost domestic industry and human capital development, Qatar has ramped up its efforts to attract new domestic and foreign investment, particularly in technology, communications and industry. With QNV 2030 emphasising creation of a diverse, industrialised, knowledge-based economy, stakeholders have noted that, as well as attracting foreign capital, plans to develop new special economic zones (SEZ) are also meant to foster local talent, industry and innovation, while foreign companies hoping to invest will also benefit from tax holidays and other incentives. FUTURE GROWTH: SEZs have been recognised as one of the best ways to encourage

Daniel Asare-Kyei-CEO-Esoko; Curtis Vanderpuije-CEO-ExpressPay; and Daniel Marfo-General Manager-Zipline Ghana

Enhancing facilities and promoting Sarawak as a destination for medical tourism

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  The federal government is eager to see Malaysia unseat Singapore and Thailand to become South-east Asia’s premier health care tourism destination. This holds true not just for Kuala Lumpur and environs, but for Sarawak as well, as the state boasts many natural attractions to offer recuperating patients, at significantly lower costs than its competitors. Health care is of such importance to the economy that it has been deemed a national key economic area (NKEA). The aim of this assignation is to encourage more private investment in the health tourism sector, according to the Performance Management and Delivery Unit, which has announced 40 projects under

President Alassane Dramane Ouattara

Additional towers will bring better service to Sarawak’s rural areas

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

  In his 2015 budget speech, Prime Minister Najib Razak pledged to invest RM2.7bn ($821.34m) over three years to build 1000 new telecoms towers nationwide and lay undersea cables between Peninsular Malaysia and the eastern states. This funding represents the second phase of the High-Speed Broadband project (HSSB), which was first announced a year previously. This phase will see more powerful broadband services rolled out in areas where this will have a high economic impact, such as state capitals and major towns. The HSBB programme is also funded through the Universal Service Provision (USP) Fund, which is administered by the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission

George Richani-CEO-Al Ahli Bank of Kuwait

Sarawak’s education sector gears up for a state-mandated English proficiency test

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

In the autumn of 2014, a learning programme was launched to beef up students’ English-language skills at 31 primary schools and two secondary schools, called the English Literacy Directions Programme for Secondary Schools and English Camp. A joint project of the Department of Education and the Sarawak Foundation, a state body in charge of educational quality, the camp is an early effort by educators to prepare students for an English proficiency test the federal government recently mandated for graduates of public universities. In preparation, universities are being urged to provide more English classes, starting earlier on. (sportslogohistory.com) The move has been hailed by parents, students

Sheikh Ahmad Duaij Jaber Al Sabah-Chairman-Commercial Bank of Kuwait

Birds suddenly appear: Sarawak’s biodiversity has made it an ideal location for ecotourism

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

Sarawak possesses some of the richest biodiversity in the world, turning the state into an ideal location for ecotourism projects. However, a range of factors, including shortcomings in infrastructure and a lack of coordination, means that the full potential of ecotourism in the state has not yet been tapped. By spreading visitors into more isolated parts of the hinterland, revenues generated by ecotourism could help uplift impoverished communities, while providing visitors with an immersive cultural experience. “We are starting to see some material ecotourism initiatives, but further infrastructural investment is needed,” Dr. Henry Chan, the head of conservation for Sarawak at the World Wildlife Fund,

Pham Hong Hai-CEO-HSBC Vietnam

Sarawak a major destination for meetings and conferences

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

Since its establishment in 2006, the Sarawak Convention Bureau (SCB) has put the state on the international meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) map. As a result, in 2013 Malaysia came eighth in the International Congress and Convention Association’s (ICCA’s) rankings for countries in Asia Pacific and the Middle East. Having played host to 117 ICCA-certified conferences that year, it trailed only Singapore (with 175 events) and Thailand (with 136 events) within ASEAN. Kuala Lumpur was the location for 68 – more than half – of the country’s events, with Kuching coming in as the next-most-popular venue with 18. This made it the 28th-most prominent

Chaim Zach-Managing Director and CEO-Agric International Technology and Trade; Kabiru Rabiu-Group Executive Director-BUA Group; and Aliyu Abbati Abdulhameed-Managing Director

Pumping the brakes: The central bank takes steps to prevent a housing bubble

Posted OBG AdminPosted in Uncategorized

Fuelled by attractive yields and soaring property values over the last five years, Malaysia’s real estate market has drawn both foreign and local investors seeking a strong return. While growth in GDP and population are partly responsible, this organic growth does not entirely explain the price escalation seen in the residential sector over the past three years. And although the factors steering Sarawak’s property market differ from those affecting Peninsular Malaysia – the chief target of regulatory changes – the state would not be immune to fallout from a national price correction. Concerned that runaway prices could put home ownership out of reach for many