This program is brought to you by the the Cornerstone Regional Partnership, Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce and the International Visitor Corps Jacksonville (IVC Jax). The Bilateral US Arab Chamber of Commerce is also a contributing organization. See details below.
When and Where
Fri, Dec. 11, 12:00 pm - 2 pm, River Club, Jacksonville, Florida
What
Roundtable Discussion with Qatari Infrastructure Leaders
Please click this link to register.
Event Background
The Qatari delegates are executives and principals of key real estate funds, government agencies, and premiere firms driving the megaprojects and integrated infrastructure in Qatar. At this roundtable, you will hear briefly from each delegate about his organization's future plans and initiatives.
The roundtable is meant to be a conversation between key industry leaders from the public and private sector, alongside local/state elected officials who have expertise in transportation, logistics, and international business.
The broader mission of the delegation is to learn about the United States' Smart Infrastructure system, to take away U.S. best practices from industry and government organizations, and to link up with prospective US suppliers, i.e., design, build, construction and engineering firms, as well as manufacturers of building products, ICT, and construction equipment.
Agenda
11:30 am Welcome and Introduction of Qatar
delegation
------- am Brief overview by Qataris highlighting
challenges and opportunities
------- pm Individuals on US panel will share
their experiences
------- pm Open forum for Qatar delegation to
ask questions and vice versa
02:00 pm Close
Please click this link to register.
Qatari Delegation
Mr. Abdul Rahman Sorour, Director of Planning, Ministry of
Municipality and Urban Planning
Mr. Mohammed Masoud Al Marri, Projects Director, Dohaland
Mr. Khalid Al Mannai, Director and acting CEO, BARWA Building
Materials
Mr. Saad Al Misnad, Director of Road Affairs, Public Works
Mr. Jamal Al Kaabi, Manager, Design and Infrastructure Division,
Public Works
Mr. Yassin Askar, Manager, Doha Expressway, Public Works
US Embassy Representative
Mr. Dao M. Le, Senior Commercial Officer, US Embassy in Qatar
Additional Background on the Organizations
Ashghal (Public Works Authority) is one of Qatar’s key executive agencies that supervises infrastructure development for major project expansions across all segments of physical infrastructure, including roads and drainage projects. Ashghal is responsible for the massive drive in construction in the last few years, during which major ventures have been set in motion, such as the Olympic Village, which hosted the Asian Games in Doha in 2006. For perspective, Ashghal is handling over two dozen road projects worth $4 billion, and has approved a dozen more worth $13 billion. In terms of drainage / environmental projects, Ashghal is overseeing several drainage projects worth $4 billion, and has approved a several more environmental projects worth $6 billion.
Dohaland is a GREEN company of Qatar Foundation. Dohaland is a developer that has unveiled plans for its first project known as the Heart of Doha, a 75 acre site located in Inner Doha, which is the historic origin of the city. Comprising 225 buildings (apartments, shops, schools, offices, and hotels), Dohaland will create a dynamic local economy that will be self-sufficient in basic amenities and will achieve gold status in LEED (Leadership in Engineering and Design). It will revive the lost language of local architecture with a new blueprint for urban planning, focusing on the heritage and tradition that has almost been lost in the country’s economic boom.
Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning is the Ministry responsible for preparing urban master plans of the country. MMUP designs master plans, conducts economic feasibility studies, and promotes large-scale urban development projects in the country which would be executed by renowned international companies in the future.
Qatari Diar was created in 2005 and is fully owned by the Qatar Investment Authority. The company was founded to support Qatar’s rapidly expanding economy and to provide structure and quality control for the country’s real estate development priorities. Capitalized at $1 billion, Qatari Diar is building signature projects and facilitating new communities, from the Lusail project in Qatar to the Doha Convention Center and Chiva-Som resort. The company has 18 mega projects underway.
Barwa was created in 2005 by Qatari Diar with the mission of “Building Qatar”, handling major projects and developing mini-cities all around the country. In its large scale mega projects, Barwa’s activities span across the entire real estate spectrum from residential to commercial to hospitality. Barwa’s speciality is that its projects are large, complex, varied and cater to the entire spectrum of Qatar’s socio-economy and business.
Qatar Projects Management (QPM) is an independent subsidiary of Barwa Real Estate that provides expertise in Project Management, Design Management, Construction Management and Contract Administration together with all other associated management functions. Established in June 2008, QPM’s mission to become the dominant supplier of Project Management services in the region, and by 2020, to be among the top five organizations specializing in such services globally. QPM selected Hill International and The Louis Berger Group to form a joint venture to assist and support QPM to manage a program which may reach $100 billion covering projects in more than 30 countries.