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Satyendra Pathak
Doha
Qatar's economy is expected to grow above 3 percent for the next one decade, a top official of Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) said on Wednesday.
Talking to Qatar Tribune on the sidelines of a press conference to announce the details of the upcoming fourth Doha Islamic Finance Conference in Doha, QFC CEO Yousuf Mohamed al Jaida told Qatar Tribune that Qatar's economy is poised to grow at a decent rate between 3 percent and 3.5 percent upto 2025 despite the geopolitical challenges facing the Middle East region.
As announced in the state budget for 2018, Jaida said, Qatar will be spending more compared to the previous year, which in turn will boost the private sector.
He said the participation of the private sector in Qatar's economy would triple in the next 10 years as the state would continue to increase its spending every year, first to complete all 2022 Fifa-related projects and then to achieve the goals of the 2030 Qatar National Vision.
Given the current situation, he said, maintaining a growth rate of more than 3 percent for the next one decade would prove Qatar's economic resilience.
Jaida said that QFC is taking various measures to establish Qatar as the hub of Islamic finance in the world.
Currently, more than 10 Shariah-compliant firms are working under the umbrella of QFC in Qatar, he said, adding that around 50 Islamic companies are expected to join QFC by 2020.
In general, he said, more than 20 Islamic institutions representing sectors like banking, insurance and asset management are active in Qatar.
These institutions have placed Qatar at the forefront of Islamic finance in the region, he said, adding that a lot more is to be done to increase the share of Islamic finance in the capital market.
Five QFC-licenced companies are in the pipeline to be listed on the Qatar Stock Exchange, he said, adding that two of them would be listed this year. By 2022, Jaida said, more than 15 QFC-licensed firms would be listed on the Qatari bourse.
