File photo used for representation only.
Qatar has maintained strong fiscal position during the pandemic and the country has a world-class climate for business and investment, said a senior official during a virtual event.
Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) in association with Ministry of Finance organised a virtual event titled ‘Qatar and AIIB: Advancing Public Private Partnership (PPP) for the Sustainable Development’, yesterday.
Officials discussed the increasing role of PPP in Qatar and Middle East region and how to improve the partnership through future AIIB engagements.
Sheikh Ali Alwaleed Al Thani, CEO of Investment Promotion Agency (IPA), said the IPA was formed in 2019 as a main gateway for foreign investors to access the Qatari market. During the pandemic Qatar maintained the strong fiscal position and projected GDP growth of the economy in 2021 is stated to be 2.4 percent and 3.6 percent in 2022 according to IMF. “Qatar is a stable and resilient economy powered by a rigorous diversification agenda, a vibrant environment for innovation, and a business-friendly eco-system,” he said.
He shed light on Qatar’s value proposition. In terms of innovation and entrepreneurship, he said Qatar is first in Arab world in the Global Entrepreneurship Index, and has world leading digital infrastructure – 4th in 5G Leadership Index with 99 percent Internet penetration. Investors can benefit from Qatar’s strategic location within 3000km Qatar has access to 2 billion people and $6 trillion in combined GDP.
Al Thani noted, being one of the most stable, resilient and competitive economies in the world, Qatar boasts a world-class climate for business and investment, highlighting there is up to 100 percent foreign ownership in all sectors, 10 percent corporate tax rate, zero tax on personal income, there is no restrictions on profit repatriation
Saud Abdulla Al Attiyah, Deputy Undersecretary for Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Finance said, “Qatar has built a strong and resilient economy underpinned by strong financial, economic and trade policies and developed a world class infrastructure project in energy, transport, sports, education, and healthcare. We also have developed a comprehensive program for institutional building by undertaking policies and regulatory reforms through working with international organisations to setup a stage for private sector growth.
“Setting up Investment Promotion Agency, PPP unit at Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and building inhouse PPP experts at the central contractor authority – Ashghal are some of the initiatives taken by the government. We can pioneer the new partnership with AIIB that could lead the way for strengthening and building cooperation in the region,” Al Attiyah added.
Dongik Lee, Director General Banking Department at AIIB said, “We strongly believe that Qatar and AIIB will continue to explore mutual cooperation and investment opportunities in the region. Since its establishment in 2016, AIIB has been actively engaging in Asian developing countries infrastructure development. Our thematic priorities are green energy, cross border connectivity, climate resilience and private capital mobilisation. During the past few years AIIB has implemented corporate strategy, and to set private sector financing target. Our key sectors are energy, transportation, water, digital and social infrastructure.”
He said, “PPP has become one of the key elements in the regions infrastructure development and we see many countries are keen to implement their own PPP program. The key element of PPP program is how to attract private sector sponsors to the project and how to make it bankable including factors such as project preparations, local regulation, legal and tax implication, procurement, and allocation. AIIB has been involved in number of PPP projects in the last few years and we are fully committed to its expansion to this area in our member countries,” he added.
Saleh bin Majed Al Khulaifi, Assistant Undersecretary for Trade Affairs, Ministry of Commerce and Industry discussed about the past projects and the projects in the pipeline going forward. “We started with four key objectives of PPP law which include to increase private sector participation in development of public assets, to enhance quality and efficiency of public services, to develop the local economy, and to provide transparency that is to streamline and accelerate the conception of design of PPP projects,” he added.
Asim Rana, Head of Digital Infrastructure and Industry, Banking Department, AIIB said discussed about the Indonesian Satellite PPP project which was awarded by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics in April 2019 to build, own and operate a telecom satellite providing broadband connectivity.
Speaking about how AIIB and Qatar can work together he said, Qatar’s strong macro-economic position and its political stability allows this international investment and to undertake the PPP projects.
