Survey: Qatar best place in the region for jobs, but rising cost of living a concern

Qatar’s residents tend to be more optimistic than the majority of people in the MENA region, a survey conducted by Bayt.com and YouGov has found.

Around half of people surveyed in Qatar said they believe that their own financial situation and that of the country’s will improve over the next 12 months, the May 2012 Middle East Consumer Confidence Index said.

And almost a third (32 percent) said they believe that there are “plenty of jobs available,” compared to the regional average of 12 percent.

But 57 percent said they believed their salaries have not kept pace with the rising cost of living, and nearly half (46 percent) say their compensation is inadequate.

Still, more than half described their job satisfaction as “neutral” or “high.” And 67 percent said the same thing about perceived job security.

One of the most indicators of confidence in the economy is consumer spending. 

Gulf Times reports:

More than a third of residents are expecting to purchase a vehicle in 2012, and more than a quarter are considering investing in the real estate sector. The most popular anticipated purchases in terms of household items are laptop and desktop computers, furniture and LCD or plasma televisions.

The index states the sample size for Qatar was low, which means results could be indicative as opposed to representative of sentiment in the country.

But the figures collected by Bayt.com over the past five years support the sentiment that things are perceived to be better here compared to many countries in the region.

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo by kandyjaxx

Has the heat brought out the hot pants? A question of Qatar’s dress code, part II

As Qatar’s temperature rises, so too are hemlines at Qatar’s malls, according to a story in local Arabic newspaper Al Raya.

In an article published last week, author Aisha Buhadi asserts that more expat women are wearing short shorts and miniskirts - in violation of expectations of modest dress - and are creating friction with locals.

Here’s a translated excerpt from the story: 

(Qatari women) confirm that the scene has become provocative towards the feelings of many shoppers, and has often pushed some of them to directly criticise the women who don’t respect the customs and traditions of the conservative Gulf society.

And sometimes, the discussion turns into a heated dialogue, that ends up with the Qatari woman insisting that the naked (skimpily dressed) foreign women leave the shopping mall for violating the instructions that call for modest dressing.

This forces the mall security to take the indecent foreigner outside the shopping mall.

Al Raya’s English-language sister publication Gulf Times touches on that story again today, with a salesperson telling the newspaper that “displaying mini skirts and shorts and matching blouses is a must because they are very much in demand.”

Sheikh Tariq al-Kubaisi, referred to as a cleric, is meanwhile insisting that such attire “is a sign of loose morals and it must be checked by the authorities.”

It certainly isn’t the first time the issue of what constitutes appropriate dress in Qatar have been raised.

Just three months ago, a user posted on popular community forum Qatar Living that she was harassed at Villggio Mall for the way she was dressed.

What do you make of all this? Has what’s considered “appropriate” to wear become a bigger issue in Qatar? 

Credit: Photo by Omar Chatriwala

Join us! We’re holding our first community meeting on Monday at the Grand Hyatt

Hi all,

We’ve finalized plans for Monday’s community meeting. Please join us at 6:30pm at the Grand Hyatt Doha, which has been kind enough to sponsor us and yes, provide some snacks!

Please spread the word and RSVP here if you’re coming.

We look forward to meeting you and discussing how to take Doha News to the next level!

-Shabina & Omar


PS: What would you like to talk about? 

In the future, no doubt, there will be a great, breakout Arab comedian who will make jokes about emirs & Muslims & sex & newspaper-reading Qataris… He won’t be tempted by Qatar Petroleum, & he won’t count the number of F-words in his routine.

Peter Savadnik, journalist, in a New York Times magazine article about Qatar’s emerging comedy scene and its future potential.

The piece, which discusses the founding and growth of Standup Comedy in Qatar, is truly an enjoyable and entertaining read about the struggles the group has endured - and the sleep it loses over potentially offending someone with their jokes.

It spotlights on Mohammed Fahad Kamal, described in the story as “the funniest comedian in SUCQ,” and one of only two Qataris in the group. 

NYT reports:

As a Qatari, (Kamal) can say things — about Qatari girls, Qatari drivers or Qataris who are being too Qatari — that other comedians avoid. “My classic joke is ‘I cancel your visa,’ and it basically makes fun of locals who think that they can put foreigners in trouble by getting them out of the country,” he said.

(Non-Qataris fret constantly about having their papers seized and being forced to return to their homelands; Qataris do little to assuage these fears.)

Though Kamal has a potential career in comedy, he likely won’t be pursuing it. But perhaps in the future, another SUCQ member will.

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo courtesy of SUCQ’s Facebook page

Doha News community meeting next week

Dear loyal Doha News readers,

It’s been over a year since we’ve launched our news site, and your response has been truly amazing.

As our eyes and ears, we’d like to meet you and get to know you a little better, as well as help you get to know us better too.

So, we’re planning a community meeting to exchange ideas, concerns, and just hear your thoughts about what we do (and what we could improve on).

So, please join us on Monday, May 28 (that’s next week!) around 6:30pm in a meeting of the minds.

We’re still deciding on the venue, but are open to suggestions (and sponsors!).

Suggestions so far are Katara’s Chapati & Karak, either of the Farggi locations (at The Gate in Dafna or Al Emadi Plaza on C-Ring), or somewhere at Education City.

Thoughts?

Hope to see you then!

- Omar & Shabina

Credit: Illustration by Aidan Jones

A 17-year-old teenager was killed and another teen severely injured when their vehicle flipped over near Barwa Village late last week, Gulf Times reports. A third teen escaped with minor injuries.

While driving his father’s Toyota Prado late Thursday night, Mohammed Muzzammil, 17, reportedly tried to overtake another vehicle at 150-160km on Wakra Highway, sources told Doha News.

The car lost control, skidding off the road and flipping over.

Passenger Jasil Fiyaz, an Indian expat, was reportedly killed on the spot, while Muzzammil remains in intensive care.

Friends of the teens say they hope the tragedy will serve as a cautionary tale for young drivers in Qatar to slow down while on the road.

Road safety has been the topic du jour over the past few months, as reports of deaths related to reckless driving continue to pile up.

Thoughts?

Credit: Photos courtesy of Alzaeem17 and Faseel Aj

MET: Yesterday hottest day of the year so far, small relief to follow this week

Doha residents who were brave enough to go out yesterday experienced the hottest day of the year so far, with the temperature hitting 47C (117F) by noon, the Qatar Meteorology Department has said.

Saturday was also apparently one of the hottest days in May in over a quarter-century, just shy of the record in 1986, when the mercury reached 47.7C, the MET said.

The Peninsula reports:

However, the temperature is expected to drop by two to three degrees today, hovering between 30 to 45 degrees Celsius, thanks to a change in the wind direction. A similar pattern would follow in the next three days, a forecaster at the Department said last evening.

An unseasonably long and pleasant winter has made the sudden and extreme heat especially hard to take for many.

And for outdoor workers, unless the mercury hits 50C, they’ll have to continue working during the afternoon hours for almost another month.

How are you dealing with the heat?

Australian gourmet grocer jones the grocer is due to open its doors to the public this afternoon (Sunday, May 20) at The Gate opposite City Center Mall.

We peeked in during last week’s media day and their offerings appeared pretty impressive:  handmade ice cream, pastries, speciality coffee, burgers, pasta, fancy cheeses, chutneys, extracts, chocolates…the list went on and on.

Jones, kind of like Dean & Deluca, brands its food as “fresh and uncomplicated,” using natural ingredients. 

Especially after PQ closed (and will be replaced by a Shake Shack), we’re happy to hear that there’s another tasty, fresh food outlet opening in Qatar.

How about you guys?

Credit: Photos by Shabina S. Khatri & courtesy of jones the grocer

Food Revolution Doha is today from 1-5pm at Education City’s Rec Center (2nd floor)! Expect workshops, hands-on healthy cooking, a green market and a potluck, among other things. Who’s going? foodrevolutiondoha: If you are attending Food Revolution Doha on May 19, then we have a surprise for you. As our goal is to help remind people the importance of home-cooked food and using fresh natural items in any way possible, we want to take this further & give you an opportunity to get involved and share your knowledge with the wider Doha community. We are hosting a potluck (Read more about it here). Do you have an amazing dish that you always cook at home, either passed down from family or you learned it from someone and improved it above & beyond? Bring a dish of food (whether it’s something you have for lunch and/or dinner, or even a dessert item) that you have made at home. There are a few rules: MINIMAL TO NO PROCESSED ITEMS! (The whole point is about using fresh items to make it. It can be challenging to find a lot of natural items, so we’re giving you a little bit of flexibility) CUT BACK ON OILY & TRANS FAT items.  Should be able to serve at least 10 people (Don’t plan to make so much that you’re catering an event). If it’s something part of your cultural heritage (Asian, Indian Subcontinent, Middle Eastern, etc.), we want to see that as well. If you’ve also made it healthier, that’s even better as others would be curious to learn. We’d love it if you can write up the ingredients you have used to making it, print it and put it next to your dish for others to learn and see. It’s a chance for others to learn as well. We have a table for you where you can place it. Plus, we have plates for you so that other people can get a chance to sample your home-cooked dish. If you have taken another dish and really helped to make it even more nutritious & healthy, we’re welcome to see that as well. Bring on your best mouth-watering recipes (whether it’s by your mother or even by you) & let’s remind each other of the significance of home-cooked food! [Image source: http://potluckexchange.blogspot.com/]

Food Revolution Doha is today from 1-5pm at Education City’s Rec Center (2nd floor)!

Expect workshops, hands-on healthy cooking, a green market and a potluck, among other things.

Who’s going?

foodrevolutiondoha:

If you are attending Food Revolution Doha on May 19, then we have a surprise for you. As our goal is to help remind people the importance of home-cooked food and using fresh natural items in any way possible, we want to take this further & give you an opportunity to get involved and share your knowledge with the wider Doha community.

We are hosting a potluck (Read more about it here).
Do you have an amazing dish that you always cook at home, either passed down from family or you learned it from someone and improved it above & beyond? Bring a dish of food (whether it’s something you have for lunch and/or dinner, or even a dessert item) that you have made at home. There are a few rules:
  1. MINIMAL TO NO PROCESSED ITEMS! (The whole point is about using fresh items to make it. It can be challenging to find a lot of natural items, so we’re giving you a little bit of flexibility)
  2. CUT BACK ON OILY & TRANS FAT items. 
  3. Should be able to serve at least 10 people (Don’t plan to make so much that you’re catering an event).
  4. If it’s something part of your cultural heritage (Asian, Indian Subcontinent, Middle Eastern, etc.), we want to see that as well. If you’ve also made it healthier, that’s even better as others would be curious to learn.
  5. We’d love it if you can write up the ingredients you have used to making it, print it and put it next to your dish for others to learn and see. It’s a chance for others to learn as well.
We have a table for you where you can place it. Plus, we have plates for you so that other people can get a chance to sample your home-cooked dish. If you have taken another dish and really helped to make it even more nutritious & healthy, we’re welcome to see that as well.

Bring on your best mouth-watering recipes (whether it’s by your mother or even by you) & let’s remind each other of the significance of home-cooked food!

[Image source: http://potluckexchange.blogspot.com/]

To tip or not to tip? Driver’s training students at odds over unspoken policy

Doling out small gifts and cash tips to driver’s training instructors in Qatar is now becoming a “necessary evil” to get a quality education, Gulf Times reports.

Expats are at odds over the practice, which most training schools say is prohibited, despite solicitations from instructors.

Some learners complained that tipping trainers constitute an extra burden on them, and added to the already costly training fees…

However, as some see it as a sort of exploitation and abuse, some others have quite a different view.

“If you do not have to and it is up to you, giving your trainer something would be a good token of gratitude for his assistance to you and there is nothing wrong about this,” said a western expatriate.

Tipping is a sensitive issue in Qatar.

Many residents do it to make up for what seems like the unfairly low wages of gas station attendants, cleaners, waiters and other service people.

But others say the practice sets high expectations on workers and puts undue influence on the kind of service all customers get.

And when the issue may be one of life or death, as may be the case with driver’s training, where does one draw the line?

Credit: Photo by Omar Chatriwala

Don’t try this at home: Man picnics on Emiri Diwan, escapes unscathed

The seat of Qatar’s government is an imposing building, surrounded by a vast green lawn and several pointy steel rods.

In that sense, the Emiri Diwan is not unlike the American White House, notes Leon Kaye, founder of sustainability website GreenGoPost.com.

Except, of course, strolling across the White House lawn - or even giving the president’s home a funny look - could land someone in deep trouble.

Not so in Qatar, says Kaye, who ambled up to the Diwan after dinner at Souq Waqif on his first night in Doha, mistaking it for a popular picnicking spot:

I had not bothered with a guidebook, so I figured I would check out the building, see what the museum hours were, or explore the shops and restaurants that surely were hidden underground. I walked up to the buildings, tried to look through the windows’ blinds, sat down and munched on some snacks, polished off a drink yogurt, and sneered at my camera as I tried to take photos of myself.

I had no idea this imposing structure was the Amiri Diwan. I must have looked most undignified on the security cameras…

Clearly I fit the profile of “this guy’s harmless, let’s just leave him alone and we’ll rewind the security tape at various speeds for fun.”

Kaye, who doesn’t recommend that anyone try to recreate his magical night, adds that he came away with the impression that the Diwan “imparts both imposing power and yet a degree of innocence that is only natural in a society that has experienced rapid economic growth.”

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo by Luqman Mohammad

WWF: Qatar has world’s largest ecological footprint per capita

Long criticized for its environmental record, Qatar has now earned a new dubious distinction - as having the world’s largest ecological footprint, a new report issued by the World Wildlife Fund has found.

The country, which will host the UN Climate Summit this year, has put the biggest demand on the earth’s ecological systems per capita, despite its inability to regenerate resources, the Living Planet Report 2012 said.

According to the report, Qatar’s ecological footprint totaled 11.64 gha, representing the amount of biologically productive land and sea area needed to supply the resources consumed by the population and absorb the waste it produces.

The country was closely followed by Kuwait and the UAE, which had footprints of 9.68 gha and 8.4 gha, respectively.

Arabian Business reports:

“We are living as if we have an extra planet at our disposal,” said Jim Leape, director general of WWF International.

“We are using 50 percent more resources that the earth can sustainably produce and unless we change course, that number will grow fast – by 2030, even two planets will not be enough.”

Thoughts?

Credit: Photo by Wosom

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