Mid East real estate sector needs greater regulation, says industry leader

Sheikh Khalid Al Gahtani, who is also President and CEO of the Kingdom's pioneering HAK Group and Chairman of Al Khobar's futuristic Rikaz Development Company, said the regional real estate sector is still in its' infancy and needs to undergo a huge transformation in the coming five to ten years.

"The whole real estate industry in the region is still under formation," he said. "It is in its' infancy and in some ways resembles the California land grab scenario 200 years ago or the New York real estate boom of the turn of the last century.

"There's a lot missing in terms of regulation, most specifically in Saudi Arabia and generally in the Arab World. Real estate is one of the least regulated industries in this region and is in severe need of reform. With time and with the necessary reforms and educational support, we can raise standards. And these are needed - in

Lebanon and Egypt, for instance, old fashioned laws are stifling development."

Sheikh Khalid was speaking on his appointment as a corporate ambassador for the ground-breaking 'Leaders in Dubai' event, which will be staged in Dubai this November.

"This is the type of event which will enable us to heighten our efforts to bring leadership to various sectors within the Arab World.

"Real estate is very much a personality-driven industry and we need to build regional leaders for the future. It is a sad reflection on the state of the industry that not one university in Saudi Arabia offers a course leading to a professional real estate qualification. We need to rectify this and the NREC is now in discussions with universities to bring about a national qualification."

Al Gahtani joins a growing lobby of corporate ambassadors now behind the 'Leaders in Dubai' event.

The lobby also includes Jacques Sarraf, the former head of Lebanon's Association of Industrialists and Chairman of the country's giant Malia Group; Bharat Jashanmal, Managing Director of the Bahrain-headquartered retail group Jashanmal; Mubarak Al Muhairi, Director General of the Al Ain Economic Development and Tourism Promotion Authority; Khamis Al Muqla, Chairman and Managing Director of Gulf Saatchi & Saatchi; His Excellency Sheikh Faisal Bin Khalid Al Qassemi, Chairman of Sharjah's Al Qassemi Group; Abdulla Al Zamil, Chief Operating Officer of Saudi Arabia's Zamil Industrial Investment Company and Fadi Ghadour, Founding President and CEO of Jordan-headquartered courier and logistics group, Aramex International.

The corporate ambassadors initiative came directly at the request of the seven global personalities who will address 'Leaders in Dubai' which will be held at the Dubai International Convention Centre from November 29-30. The speakers include former Mayor of New York, Rudy Giuliani; Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter; Tom Peters, the U-guru of management; best-selling author, Frank Maguire; MIT's Professor of Management and Economics, Lester Thurow; influential futurists, Alvin Toffler and former GE Chairman and CEO, Jack Welch, who will address the audience via a live satellite link.

"At the request of the speakers we are assembling a group of the most recognized and contemporary business leaders in the Middle East to be their VIP guests at the event and network ideas for future leadership development in the region," said Sheena Dunne, Project Manager, Leading Minds, which is organizing the event.

"Recent leadership debates both in the Middle East and London have identified vision as an essential requirement for institutional leadership. Sheikh Khalid ideally fits the bill with his visionary approach to real estate embodied in the Rikaz City Fanar future city destination which has raised the bar on real estate projects both in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf. His commitment to bringing increased professionalism to the regional industry is a leadership approach which is in line with the ethos of 'Leaders in Dubai."

'Leaders in Dubai' is expected to attract more than 1,500 business leaders. It will be the biggest business conference to be held at the Dubai International Convention Centre since the Annual Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in September 2003.