I am glad to announce to you that our organization was appointed by the Government of Kuwait to develop the AlShagaya project. We have recently accomplished generating 70 megawatts of renewable energy, and we plan on achieving 4,500 megawatts by 2030, which would comprise about 15% of Kuwait’s power.
What is the impact of the Pandemic on the Real Estate Sector in Kuwait?
First of all, I would like to thank KPMG for allowing me to be a part of the KPMG 2021 Kuwait CEO Outlook.
Second of all, I would be glad to participate and help add as much knowledge possible to the report.
Definitely, The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted Kuwait and the rest of the world specifically in Kuwait, the real estate sector was one of the majorly affected sectors as organizations were shifting to a work-from-home business model. Most businesses started investing in upgrading their IT back-bone to enable employees to function remotely. This had a negative effect on the demand for office-space. At the moment, we are monitoring how this shift may impact the sector and the market further.
What are the main challenges Real Estate Sector is currently facing in Kuwait?
We are very much involved in the real estate sector, especially in the retail and office space. We believe that we are not only responsible for ourselves but also the economy. That being said we thrive to excel in finding innovative ways of developing smart projects, projects that create an environment that incubates businesses and assists them on their quest for success.
I have invested the majority of my time and effort in making improvements in this sector. I have enrolled in a reputable academic program-Dprof to further research the effect of COVID-19 on the office space sector. I am in the process of completing a thesis that highlights how work-from-home has impacted both the mental health of employees in addition to demand and supply determinants.
I believe such studies will be of great value for us and the market.
Yours being a real estate company, you have to work closely with the environment. And, now that we are moving to a post-pandemic era, how important do you think the incorporation of ESG programs in the growth strategies of organizations will be?
Kuwait has been a leader when it comes to adding renewable energy sources and eco-friendly components/projects, or what we call Green Design components, to the market and the private sector has been investing greatly in it.
Government bodies, such as the EPA in Kuwait are pressing further for architects and planners to include Green Design components in their projects.
I am glad to announce to you that our organization was appointed by the Government of Kuwait to develop the AlShagaya project. We have recently accomplished generating 70 megawatts of renewable energy, and we plan on achieving 4,500 megawatts by 2030, which would comprise about 15% of Kuwait’s power. I hope many countries follow the same path.
As an Industry leader, what’s do you think is the future of the Real Estate Sector in Kuwait?
After the COVID-19 crisis, retail and office space sectors were primarily affected and we witnessed a lot of downsizing requests from a majority of the organizations as a result of the shift to remote working. Real estate developers are now considering how they can readjust considering the changes in the market and incorporate it into their upcoming projects.
While I am positive that the future will be promising when Kuwait returns to normal, it is better that the designers are prepared and flexible to adjust to any future changes. We, at Tanmiya, are more focused on smaller organizations, entrepreneurs, etc. We are introducing newer office buildings that are designed to meet the requirements of young business owners who suffered a lot during the pandemic.
The Government has been quite supportive in this time of great uncertainty, which has resulted in the formation of numerous Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti start-up businesses, which we are looking to attract into with our newer buildings that are designed to host such business models.
Another noticeable impact of the pandemic on the real estate sector was the downsizing of malls following the surge in the e-commerce sector and growing digitalization, and we plan on tackling them using newer concepts, such as our latest innovative project, The Business Lagoons.
Hopefully, these new concepts will see life, and I believe the real estate sector must be smart to adapt to these changes in a positive way.
