Qatar’s real estate lead urged attendees at the ‘Taking Cities to the Next Level’ panel to keep an eye on his country’s upcoming “amazing” infrastructure developments still yet to come.
The President of the Qatari Public Authority for Regulating Real Estate hailed his country’s emphasis on transparency and establishing a strong legal framework for Doha’s rapid development.
During a panel discussion at the Qatar Economic Forum about real estate, infrastructure and sustainability, Khalid Ahmad Al Obaidli said that transparency was a “big topic” that Qatar strives to uphold.
“[Especially] in terms of availability of information for investors and utilising a digital platform where [people] can access the available, reliable information for investors or stakeholders, to make a very accurate decision for investments.”
Al Obaidli’s fellow panellist, Steven Witkoff, the chairman and co-CEO of Witkoff, added Qatar’s leadership has been pivotal to national infrastructure and real estate development.
“Here, you almost begin to sense that there’s this really strong leadership that wants to see this city become on top of the list,” he said.
Other panel members included Jonathan Goldstein, the CEO of Cain International, who said that a vibrant economy is needed for development – a strong asset which Qatar and the region as a whole possess.
In 2023, the national real estate authority in Qatar was established by the Amir, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, after issuing Amiri Decision No. 28 to oversee the sector nationally.
“The leadership of this country is the key enabler for business – for what we see right now,” in terms of infrastructure development, Al Obaidli said. He also described Doha as transforming into a “new city” compared to the past.
However, both Al Obaidli and Witkoff agreed that over-regulation can stifle national infrastructure developments.
“You need the rules of the road, but [over-regulation] can kill the industry,” Witkoff said.
Al Obaidli also said that Qatar has big ambitions to lead in the real estate market.
Speaking ahead into the future, the real estate official invited all attendees to keep an eye on the country’s progress 15 years into the future. He said that if people who have been to Qatar in 2009 and observed the city’s transformation since then till now, by 2039, they will be “amazed,” he concluded.
