Industry executives and officials gear up for the annual AHIC 2012 to discuss investment opportunities in a region where governments are ploughing billions of dollars into tourism infrastructure
FOLLOWING a turbulent year in the region, post Arab Spring investment climate will be the main focus at the annual Arabian Hotel Investment Conference 2012 (AHIC), which will take place in Dubai, on April 28-30 at Madinat Jumeirah.
Held under the patronage of Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, president Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, chairman Dubai Airports and chairman and chief executive, Emirates Airlines & Group, organiser Meed Events in partnership with Bench Events, AHIC 2012 will see industry leaders and speakers address the investment outlook in the region over the three days.
Speaking to TTN, Jonathan Worsley, chairman and CEO, Bench Events and board director STR Global talks about the region’s potential for tourism investors.
What is on the agenda for AHIC 2012 ?
The investment climate post Arab Spring will be the main focus at the annual Arabian Hotel Investment Conference 2012 (AHIC), but there will also be sessions that focus on individual case studies, including Egypt, one of the Mena’s most important hospitality markets.
Participants will also discuss the challenges of developing and operating in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. They will look at the budget and mid-market segment in the Kingdom as well as addressing the issue of regulation. While the conference is focused mainly on the Mena region, there will be a separate dedicated session exploring investment opportunities outside the Middle East.
New at AHIC this year will be interactive scenario planning workshops that help give delegates the tools to deal with the uncertainty and risk currently present in the region, In-depth workshops will enable them to have closer interaction with speakers and go deeper into specific topics.
Who are the key speakers lined up at this year’s event and please give us a brief on the key panel discussions lined up this year.
Key speakers at this year’s event include Nenad Pacek, founder and president, Global Success Advisors Ltd, who will address the business, economic and political outlook for the Middle East and North Africa in 2012 and 2013. Addressing the long term impact of the Arab Spring on transactions and hotel performance in the region will be Stewart Coggans, executive vice president Middle East & Africa, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels and Elizabeth Randall, managing director, STR Global.
Speakers looking at the investment climate in the new Arab world include Bashar Al Natoor, director, Corporates, Fitch Ratings; Bassel Hamwi, chief executive officer, Bank Audi Syria and Iyad Malas, chief executive officer, Majid Al Futtaim Group.
Nick van Marken, global head – Advisory, Travel, Hospitality & Leisure, Deloitte, will lead the panel ‘A Hard Talk on Egypt’ which focuses on the opportunities for hotel investors and how the tourism sector is moving forward. Discussing this with Nick will be Kurt Ritter, president & CEO, The Rezidor Hotel Group and Samih Sawiris, chairman, Orascom Development Holding.
There will also be a finance forum led by Mark Wynne-Smith, Global CEO, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, addressing when bankers and financiers will lend and at what ratios. Speakers in this panel discussion include Amro Nahas, executive director – head of Real Estate Saudi Arabia and Fergal Harris, head of Real Estate Middle East, Standard Chartered.
Additional bankers participating in this session include Lo’ai Bataineh, DGM, Investment & Development, head of Investment Management Group, Oman Arab Bank SOAC; Oliver Ebner, senior manager at Project and Structured Finance, National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) and Santoshkhumar Vasudevan, principal investment officer, International Finance Corporation (IFC).
How can delegates make the most of the brain storming sessions lined up at this year’s event?
Preparation is essential to getting the most out of these. Delegates should research the industry issues that are going to be discussed, such as regulation, nationalization and owner/operator ownership, and then hold meetings to consolidate their ideas before attending the sessions. Attendees should also set clear objectives of what they want to achieve from this event.
Last year, the event addressed the impact on the hotel investment industry due to the political changes across the Mena region – How much has this changed in the last 12 months?
Over the last year hotel investment has dried up in some of the countries affected by political unrest and has instead shifted to more stable parts of the region. Poor hotel performance markets like Egypt, Syria and Bahrain will not have a long term effect on investment in the region, as areas such as Dubai have benefited from unrest elsewhere so investment moves around accordingly.
While there is still an air of uncertainty in some countries, I have no doubt that once the political landscape settles, then investment in tourism will reach new highs there. With the growing middle class in the region, destinations that are politically stable will benefit from this demographic change.
What needs to be done to restore faith and confidence to affected markets?
It’s all about risk. Political stability is a priority for investors followed by economic incentives to attract investment and a public relations strategy to attract both business and leisure tourists.
Despite the Arab Spring, in Egypt there are still 19 new hotels or 5,923 rooms opening during the next five years according to W Hospitality Group.
What markets continue to show strong opportunities for investors in 2012?
The oil exporting states of the Gulf have a high level of political stability coupled with government initiatives to attract tourism investment. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman all offer excellent opportunities but each country is unique.
Saudi Arabia, for example, is focusing on business, religious and domestic tourism while Qatar is ploughing billions of dollars into tourism infrastructure as it prepares to host the 2022 World Cup and life beyond.
How bullish are investors of the region today and what is the key to boosting investment opportunities moving forward?
Investors are exceptionally bullish where risk is perceived to be low and reward or return relatively high. The Middle East remains one of the fastest growing regions for tourism. The number of tourists visiting the Middle East is expected to grow by up to five per cent this year according to a recent report by the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO). This growth will encourage investors to the region in contrast to areas such as the Euro zone for example.
Key to boosting investment opportunities is the ability to develop an investment friendly environment, political stability along with growth indicators. Also key is having good transport infrastructure, leisure attractions and sporting and entertainment events.