The conference was inaugurated by P Kumaran, Indian ambassador.
He spoke passionately about “being honoured to represent” the diaspora of nearly 650,000 Indians and mentioned Qatar’s appreciation for the Indian community’s contribution to this country.
Waleed Raslan al-Abdulla, executive director (finance), Qatar Foundation and Kamal Naji, chief strategy and business development officer, the Qatar Financial Centre, were the guest of honours.
In the panel discussion, al-Abdulla “emphasised the need to be resilient and cautious, learning from previous economic turbulences.”
Naji explained how the QFC was enhancing Qatar’s economic growth through its diversification strategy and its support for Qatari companies looking at the global market.
Naji said non-hydrocarbons and the private sector would be key to Qatar’s long-term development vision.
Fawaz al-Idrissi, senior vice president, Abu Issa Holding, presented his views on how the private sector could succeed through difficult times.
Chapter chairman Raja Gopalakrishnan focused on the pivotal role played by finance professionals in steering the organisation during challenging times and said their knowledge on the changing dynamics of the global economy needs to be leveraged upon.
There is a pressing need for finance professionals to sharpen their skills and get updated globally, he said.
Devaraja Reddy, president, ICAI, congratulated the QFC for organising successful roadshows in Mumbai and Bangalore and for their patronage towards ICAI Doha. He reiterated ICAI’s full support for any initiatives from the QFC.
The ICAI Doha Chapter launched the conference souvenir at the event.
Gopal Balasubramaniam, past chairman, Doha Chapter of ICAI and partner KPMG in Qatar, was awarded the “Dilip Thakkar Professional Achiever Award” for his significant contribution to the chartered accountant fraternity and in taking the profession to new heights in Qatar.
In the first technical session on “India’s Resilience Through Turbulence”, TN Manoharan, past president, ICAI, stressed how the world is globally connected and how events happening in one part of world affected others.
The conference, addressed by the experts in finance, management and academics, was attended by around 300 delegates. It showcased an excellent platform where international speakers with extensive experience spoke about a variety of topics.
These included technical subjects such as ‘emerging markets – attractive or avoidable;’ ‘currency – no longer a fringe risk for managers;’ ‘VAT implementation and its implication for Qatar businesses;’ ‘transforming to fit the digital age;’ ‘turbulent leadership to leadership in turbulence’ and ‘breakthrough – making things possible’. The sponsors were recognised for their support to the conference. They included gold sponsors – Ernst & Young, Doha Bank and Protiviti ; silver sponsors 0 Ooredoo, Deloitte & Touche , KPMG, Qatar Insurance Group and Protection Insurance Services, part of the Bethel Group and support sponsors – ExxonMobil Qatar, Nimai Management Consultants, Focus and Morison Menon Chartered Accountants & Partners.
