The MENA market for sukuk,or sharia-compliant bonds, has seen an impressive recovery since the onset of the global financial crisis led to a sharp dip in Islamic debt issuance. After peaking at $19bn in 2007, the value of the region’s annual sukuk offerings settled at about half that in the following three years, according to KIPCO Asset Management Company, but then recaptured its pre-crisis…
While the large investments in infrastructure anticipated over the coming years represent the most significant growth driver for the insurance industry, changes in the way that Qataris access health care are also expected to have a large impact on the sector. In April 2014 the National Health Insurance Scheme, known as Seha, was extended to all citizens. This development is the most recent…
Hosting the world’s largest gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant, while also being a global centre for GTL research and development, Qatar today is at the forefront of this high-tech hydrocarbons sub-sector. Indeed, the success of GTL in the state has acted as a catalyst for development elsewhere, with the global sector expanding in 2014. Yet, as with other segments of the hydrocarbons industry, recent…
A key part of Qatar’s long-term development plan, Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030), is the transformation of the state from a resource-based economy to one that is knowledge-based. Aimed at unhooking the country from hydrocarbons dependency and diversifying its economy, this bold strategy has entailed major investment in human, social, environmental and economic development, with a big…
The global market is far more competitive these days, and 2014 saw a dramatic decline in oil prices, which continued into 2015. In March 2015 Brent Crude was retailing at $57 per barrel. Behind this is a global oversupply – Bloomberg reported that the UAE and Qatar estimated this to be in the region of 2m barrels per day (bpd) in mid-January 2015. This is primarily the result of surging US…
While rapid progress is being made on a major campaign to expand the country’s power and water infrastructure, Doha is also at the centre of research and development (R&D) efforts in the utilities field. Programmes currently under way in the state are investigating ways to improve desalination techniques, reverse the salination of Qatar’s groundwater, and power future water plants with…
Qatar is globally known for its vast natural gas reserves and extensive oil reservoirs, with these powering the country’s economy, as well as its electricity and water sector. Yet now, the government and private companies are giving the time of day to a different – and abundant – energy source: sunshine. Indeed, with one of the world’s highest annual irradiation levels at 2190 KWh/sq…
Located at the heart of a region that has seen double-digit growth in fertiliser production capacity in recent years, Qatar is now one of the international leaders in exports of these products, which remain vital to global food security. According to the figures from the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA), the GCC accounted for approximately one-quarter of global urea trade…
Under the aegis of Qatar National Vision 2030 (QNV 2030), the government has pledged to generate 2% of energy needs via renewable sources by 2020, with innovation and proposed projects extending all the way to the expansive Qatar Rail Development Programme (QDRP), a multibillion-dollar effort comprising construction of a light rail transit (LRT) system in Lusail City, the Doha Metro, and a…
As it moves forward on major transportation and infrastructure projects mandated by Qatar National Vision 2030, the state is seeking to boost domestic and regional connectivity, enhance links to major residential and transport hubs within Qatar, and boost the flow of goods and services to the wider GCC. While road upgrades represent the most important facet through which to boost intra-regional…
