DOHA: Eighty percent of construction projects in Qatar from now until 2022 will be based on the principles of sustainability, a senior Gulf Organisation for Research and Development (GORD) official has said.
Qatar is on track to ensure the majority of the projects to be used in 2022 FIFA World Cup achieve world-class sustainability standards, said Dr Yousef Alhorr, Founder and Chairman, GORD.
GORD is a not-for-profit subsidiary of Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Company. It promotes healthy, energy and resource- efficient and environmentally responsible building practices in Qatar and the Gulf.
“We have been talking about sustainability and our vision. These dreams are being put into action where we are implementing sustainability practices. This includes in QRail, all World Cup 2022 projects, new cities and all new government projects, including schools and hospitals,” he said.
Dr Alhorr said Qatar is already demonstrating how it can successfully develop sustainable large-scale sports venues.
The 2015 World Men’s Handball Championship in Doha from January 15 to February 1 was hosted at two of the new venues built to meet demanding sustainability standards. These were Lusail Sports Arena and Ali Bin Hamad Al Attiya Arena, which achieved four-star rating.
He said GORD is preparing to undertake sustainability projects in Saudi Arabia.
“We have started training on the ground in the kingdom and are doing capacity-building to move to implementation this year,” he added.
GORD has an agreement to promote sustainability in government and private buildings in Kuwait and has started talks on similar projects in Bahrain, he said.
Dr Alhorr is a keynote speaker on day one of the MEED Qatar Projects conference, organised in association with Ashghal, at Grand Hyatt Doha on March 10.
“My presentation will help business understand what opportunities are in this area and what is needed, including materials and systems to support our sustainability plans,” he added.
The conference brings together government representatives, key project owners, developers, consultants and financiers to address evolving challenges of Qatar’s project delivery market and highlight future project opportunities, strategic priorities and master plans.
The Peninsula
