Qatar’s investment strategy, global partnerships to boost trade, says LuLu top executive

Qatar’s global partnerships and judicious investment strategy are among the vital fundamentals that continue to bring more foreign direct investments (FDI) and boost international trade, Dr Mohamed Althaf, director of LuLu Group International, has said.
Despite its geographical size, Dr Althaf said Qatar has proven itself as a reliable trade partner. “As more countries come and start dealing with Qatar, we expect that they will discover how easy it is to do business here,” Dr Althaf explained.
He said while Qatar has announced plans to increase its LNG output, the non-hydrocarbon sector will still play a key role in accelerating the growth of the country’s economy.
“The Middle East is an exciting region and many tourists come here to shop because there is a favourable tax structure. And today, this matters for a lot of people. Qatar is now focusing on developing its hospitality and tourism sector following the positive impact of the 2022 FIFA World Cup,” Dr Althaf pointed out.
He said the success of Qatar’s hosting of the Middle East’s first-ever FIFA World Cup resonated strongly with the international community, which will be vital in pushing the growth of many sectors in the country’s economy.
According to Dr Althaf, the World Cup helped open a wide range of opportunities for Qatar’s international partners to explore long-term investment opportunities in the country.
Even as the Qatari government spent $220bn in stadiums and related facilities to host the World Cup, Dr Althaf emphasised that the highly-anticipated football tournament gave visitors and tourists a first-hand experience of the country’s culture and heritage.
“Visitors coming for the World Cup not only witnessed Qatar’s world-class infrastructure but they also got exposed to the country’s many touristic destinations, so tourism in Qatar is expected to be a big industry moving forward,” he pointed out.
During the World Cup, he noted that LuLu Group was also able to do a lot of business diplomacy with its international partners that arrived in the country during the tournament.
“A lot of people came to Qatar. We have invited our principals from various countries. They all came and had a taste and feel of what the country had to offer, so we were promoting other countries in Qatar and, at the same time, we were also promoting Qatar to other countries. In terms of that balance, I think we were doing whatever we could do in our humble way. And I see a lot of results in that,” Dr Althaf emphasised.