Booth of Commercial Bank at the Qatar Trade Summit.
Doha: Describing Qatar’s economy post-World Cup 2022, Nasser Al Khater, CEO of FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 said the country’s focus will shift from infrastructure development to tourism, and will likely go in the same direction as Russia post-World Cup 2018.
Al Khater was speaking at a panel discussion during the Qatar Trade Summit which opened yesterday. During the event, he also reiterated the World Cup’s long-term economic return for the country, and how it is going to be unique in terms of innovation and sustainability.
Asked on the country’s economic growth prospects after the World Cup next year, Al Khater said Qatar's expansion of its LNG production will create a new growth spurt in the ecomomy.
“And I think the focus is going to shift from infrastructure development, and will move more to tourism. Entertainment and hospitality offerings are growing in the country. Qatar Tourism and Qatar Airways are doing a good job. And I believe after the World Cup, Qatar will go in the same direction like what we’ve seen with Russia post-2018 World Cup,” added Al Khater.
Organisers of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia have claimed that the World Cup has added $14bn to the Russian economy, and its benefits continue to be felt, including through tourism.
Al Khater added: “We’ll also see more focus on globalising some of Qatar’s industries, and hopefully really propping up the private sector companies and helping them to go global. Beyond that, I think Qatar is going to be looking at new energy sources, as well, and probably expanding globally”.
Also speaking during the event, Lim Meng Hui, CEO of Qatar Free Zones Authority (QFZA), in his keynote speech, highlighted how the QFZA has weathered the COVID-19 pandemic by leveraging its existing infrastructure using digital technologies.
“In the next few years, we will continue to attract global companies to Qatar. Qatar also has great potential in technology sector. The country is able to provide some of the best 5G network coverage and infrastructure in the world, which offers early mover advantages for companies specialising in AI, advanced mobility and other future-oriented technologies,” he added.
Earlier addressing the forum in his keynote speech, H E Andrii Kuzmenko, Ambassador of Ukraine to Qatar said bilateral trade between Qatar and Ukraine has grown to $146m. Trade volume between both countries also increased to $124m during the first eight months of the year, compared to $98m during the same period last year.
The Ambassador added: “I am sure that the successful concession of the Ukrainian seaport, owned by the Qatari company Q-Terminals is just the beginning of the implementation of a long term bilateral investment projects between our two states. Also, the investment agreement between Ukraine and Enterprise UDP Renewables and the Qatari Nebras Power in the green field also proves the substantial interest of Ukrainian market for Qatari investors”.
Blockchain technology was also discussed during the event.
In his presentation, Raju Buddhiraju, EGM and Head of Wholesale Banking at Commercial Bank, reiterated that blockchain will be a key in countering the growing problem of counterfeit products.
He said the economic value of counterfeiting is estimated to reach $2.3 trillion by 2022, while blockchain technology is also estimated to reach $3.1 trillion in 2030.
Asked on how soon can blockchain be available for individual use, Buddhiraju said: “The public piece which is permissionless, this part can happen maybe within three to four years from now".
